Are bag enemas with soapy water really needed?

@Westy said,

Growing up I will say that my mom only knew how to make one kind of enema, namely warm water with Ivory soap delivered from a combination syringe. Conversely, my wife prefers to take as well as to give warm water with some baking soda. In all honesty it seems much gentler than the soapy ones but I don't think it cleans you out as well.

Growing up, like you, my siblings and I received a soapy followed by a salt and baking soda enema. Occasionally, the soapy or rinse enema was repeated for one reason or another. And once our RN grandmother taught us personal hygiene as preteens, and enemas were our responsibility. Our sister gave my brother and I enemas and we did likewise for her, this routine lasting until we finished High School. During that time, we discovered that we got the same results using only salt and baking soda enemas. After I got married, my wife and I continued the same enema routine my siblings and I used as teenagers.

After a number of years, depending on the reason for an enema, we started using both soapy and salt and baking soda enemas again. Starting after a conversation with our kids Pediatrician, when they were around five or six. He was enquiring, how enemas were working out for our kids, when we mentioned we only gave them salt and baking soda enemas. He advised us to give them a soapy followed by a salt and baking soda enema for constipation. But salt and baking soda enemas were fine for reasons other than constipation. My wife and I taking his advice for our kids, plus ourselves.

Growing up I was only given plain tap water enemas, with the one exception of a soapy enema ordered by the Dr. I told the story on Zity, the cramps were HORRIBLE! The plain water seemed to clean me out good enough and that is what I used when I started self administering my enemas. I read that baking soda made an enema very soothing, so that is my standard solution now. I am definitely into comfort, not strong cramping.

I never got enemas growing up. They'd passed out of fashion by then. It wasn't until adulthood that I discovered the joys of enemas.

It depends.if the enema is large enough, just water or water & salt works fine. Soapsuds can be an excellent stimulant, but I never used it on my medfet patients, just a good large enema of plain water, i didn't want the sting of the soap to force the "patient" to resist the 2 quarts or so she was receiving. As a result, the women were always able to take at least two truly good enemas prior to their rectal exam. Always worked well. As to me, after my bowel surgeries, my system is very sensitive & soap is pretty much contraindicated. It's hard enough to get the proper amount of water into my colon without a major reaction if I don't use soap. In short, I trust volume much more than solution.

I’m with @Doctorh3e in trusting volume over solution. As an IBS sufferer, I’m not inclined to add any irritant to an already finicky bowel, and if you tell me something causes even mild cramping, I’ve heard enough. I also don’t think I’d recommend soap to an enema newbie.

However, I believe that some people cannot get a good release without soapy solutions and that some others enjoy the nostalgia and sensations soap affords. If your colon likes it, or if it activates some beautiful primal memory, I’m not here to yuck your yum.

This may very much be a case of to each his own.

I put Dr. Bronner's peppermint soap in my sub's enema. Is it needed, not necessarily. Soap, I have heard, helps stimulate the bowels. But here is why I do it.

1) it makes the enema solution cloudy and easier to see going through the hose.

2) makes his breath just a bit minty fresh. Yep the peppermint gets transferred to his breath.

Remembering what my grandmother who was a nurse to me that she did not like using soap. Because she did not feel it was necessary and that it caused to much discomfort making the enema experience tramic and not pleasurable she like to give large volumn enemas so when she started to give me enemas at the age of 8 a bag was used and I was make to take as much as I could increasing my capacity over time the enemas became a weekly treatment as she called them

I replied to this with my own experiences, but I remembered my first girlfriend told me that when she got enemas from her mother, her Mom used to mix up a strong soap solution and sit her on the toilet. She said she cried and begged every time, sobbing, saying, "Mommy, it hurts!"

Thinking about that, I realized that I never used soap in her enemas. She actually asked me to give her an enema the first time I did, after I had asked her if she had ever had one, and she initially rejected the idea, after telling me the story I just related. However, she evidently got super constipated a few days later, and (with a hugely red face) asked me to give her an enema. I was beyond pleased, and our date became a treatment. It was my biggest fetish, and I got to do it to my girlfriend... my point is that she never cried, and I gave her many enemas-- but I also never used soap and always gave her her enemas lying down bottoms up, or on her back, legs up. I never gave her her enemas on the toilet. The one thing I hadn't learned as a teenager was that even a small slender girl could take a 2 quart enema easily--she might not think so, because there's a certaian amount of panic as the waater fills you and cramps start. But at least two quarts twice or three times, is the only way to get a thorough cleanse, rather than emptying just the rectum. When I finally told her "you have to take it all," she took the entire bag with no problem. She remarked " when you know you have to take it all, it all goes in." I found that remark to be true in every case. A gentle but very firm administration is the way. I remember, much later, giving a full bag enema to a Filipina who was probably 5' 1" or 2" and couldn't have weighed more than 120 pounds. She said, "It felt good." My experiences have convinced me that getting the girl's colon completely full is the best way to make the enema truly effective. When I can get her to take more, I do. The limit is probably about 2-1/2 to 3 quarts, based on what I've found by giving many, many enemas to women. It's important that the colon be completely filled. I have even given 2 quart enemas to quite constipated women without them experiencing a great deal of stress. The same of course, goes for me. A full colon empties completely...

@jpaul said,

Remembering what my grandmother who was a nurse to me that she did not like using soap. Because she did not feel it was necessary and that it caused to much discomfort making the enema experience tramic and not pleasurable…

My grandmother was a retired registered nurse and gave my siblings and I soapy followed by rinse enemas for constipation growing up. The soapy enema was made with Ivory bar soap, and the rinse enema was made with salt and baking soda. Having watched her fix both many times, the soapy enema had a very slight milky color. And the rinse enema was made with a teaspoon of salt and baking soda per quart of warm water. The soapy enema wasn’t really uncomfortable. However, it wasn’t as pleasant as the rinse enema.

As I’ve stated in other post, my siblings and I stop using soapy enemas as teenagers. Discovering a rinse enema made with salt and baking soda worked just as well as the soapy enema. We still did two enemas but simply replaced the first one (soapy) with a rinse enema made with salt and baking soda.

From the beginning, my siblings and I received enemas from a douche/enema bag. And mom, grandma, and our teenage aunts always pushed our limits volume wise. So, shortly after my tenth birthday, I took a full two quarts for both the soapy and rinse enemas. My brother was a year younger, but about the same size and weight, and took a full bag enema around the same time I did.

I used plain tap water for decades and yes, you can get a clean colon from enemas using tap water.

Eventually I tried using Castile soap (1or 2 TBS in 2qt. water) and it absolutely stimulated a strong BM when expelling the enema. I have since backed off using soap enemas since it seemed to create irritation in my rectum that lasted for several hours after the enemas. And the soap enemas would cause a burning sensation as it exited out during the expel. So, I have gravitated towards using either baking soda or Epson Salts as my main additives for bag enemas.

So, it all comes down to what you want your enemas to feel like when choosing an additive. I get a good cleansing result using the salt enemas without the irritation. Some people like the feeling of a soap enema because does produce an extreme urge to expel. And if that is what you desire then use a soap additive. If not, I would recommend using some type of salt for a saline enema which is effective and produces a soothing feeling without the irritation.

According to my mother, "the soap is what makes you go", so yes. I have experimented with several types of enemas, and my conclusion is soapsuds are the most effective.

Medical information suggests that the volume of water alone is effective, and I have had aTWE administerred by a nurse at a hospital after surgery. It was effective, and a very good enema experience. She was a young charge nurese and had good experience with giving large volume enemas. Before we started she asked "is this what you would do at home?" and "do you think you can take the whole bucket?".

The recommended medical large volume enema is normal saline solution. Having tried these several times, I find them to be effective. However, that being said, normal saline doesn't come out at ounce. You have to be careful about passing gas during the day.

My late mother-in-law who was an RN would tell me not to use saop, but always made sure she had soap in every enema she ever gave me or my wife. Mostly she liked the pre-measured packages of castile soap, but she would also just rub her hands together with a bar of ivory in a plastic hospital bucket. Once for expediency she simply did a sqiurt, squirt from handsoap on the sink. Enemas from her were always good enemas.

In conclusion, I prefer soapsuds enemas. Be careful not to make the solution too strong. Always a good enema.

Definitely for me😍I’m holding 3 quarts of J&J, 60 ml of liquid glycerin and very warm water while edging 😍I feel so full but I want to hold for at least 5 more minutes😈I’ve had two weeks of “tummy rumbles” after antibiotics and I really need a series of enemas😎

@CatGirlMina Same here. I now really enjoy giving and receiving when I can.

I so need an enema series that starts with a nice soapy bag of very warm water, J&J baby shampoo and 60 ml of liquid glycerin😘Then a couple of sea salt and water rinses until clear😍I really need my happy ending so a three quart finale held while edging is soon to be happening 😎