Older people seeking solutions to constipation: the laxative mire

This article reports an extensive descriptive survey of 90 older people (65+ years) living in the community who sought through in-depth, semistructured interviews to explore their experiences and responses to constipation. The composite story of these older people is that seeking a solution to constipation may be fraught with great difficulty. Most commonly tried are laxatives, yet laxative use can be like a mire. The older people tend to be uncertain of which way to turn to avoid getting stuck in a murky conglomeration of laxative options. The imperative for self-management of constipation is strong amongst most of the older people and the process in which they engage when seeking for a solution is discussed. There is an evident frustrating lack of readily identifiable and accessible services and information that could help them navigate successfully through or around this mire. `Through the mire' would be the appropriate use of suitable laxatives with minimal side-effects. `Around the mire' would be the gaining of useful solutions other than laxative use. Solutions may be strategies to prevent constipation or to treat constipation. The needs of these older people seeking solutions to constipation are grouped into two main categories: provision of accessible, empathetic and useful advice about affordable solution choices, and accessibility to solutions, including laxatives, where evidence-based knowledge informs selection or prescription of the solution. Eight major recommendations, including research suggestions, are offered for consideration.