Constipation is a condition in which you experience difficulty with your bowel movements. More precisely, if you defecate less than three times a week, then you are experiencing constipation. If you experience constipation, its cause must be determined, and more serious conditions must be ruled out.

Management should begin once constipation is detected because if it persists for long periods of time, some undesirable consequences on your health will start to set in. In some instances, management of constipation is as simple as drinking more water. In other cases, treatment may involve comprehensive changes to your diet, implementing physical exercises, and possibly the need for medication. For some, structural abnormalities, such as intestinal obstruction, adhesions, or tumors, could be preventing prompt elimination of your waste matter. In these last situations, medical interventions, such as using medication and/or surgical intervention, will be needed.

Symptoms
The first manifestation of constipation is a drastic decrease in the frequency of defecation; or worse, a complete stoppage of defecation. In addition, there is excessive straining before passing a bowel movement, or a complete inability to pass a bowel movement even with straining. Besides the difficulty in expelling your feces, your stools are described as hard and you feel abdominal fullness. After expelling some feces, you still feel that there is an incomplete evacuation of your waste matter.