What if enemas had been considered an open topic for discussion ?

Maybe my Dad would be healthier today, because his Mom would have taught him safe enema practices rather than simply lecturing him not to do them and shuffling him to different quack doctors.

View6, your post indicates that you are a casual user,and do enemas just for fun. children don't get enemas for fun from their parients. they are clinical. enemas are not supposed to feel good.they are supposed to be uncomfortable. small volume enemas don't clean out the colon,and athough they are more comfortable than large enemas, they aren't effective.

The topic reads : "Enemas had been considered an open topic for discussion". Most of the replies seem to indicate "within the home". I look at this subject "out in public". If Enemas had been considered an open topic out in public, I think they would be considered as simple as brushing your teeth, or using deodorant. Just another part of keeping clean. HOw many people talk about brushing your teeth, or what brand of deodorant they use? Not a daily discussion but on occasion it comes up, mainly without embarrassment. IF so, I think many more people would use enemas and at one point maybe in the fifties, society was like this. I feel that some day, society will come to this again, just like a lot of thing come around again in society. It seem like in the fifties, by the pictures found on the web, everyone had an enema bag in the bath room and many people used them often. We should all be using them everyday just like brushing your teeth!

To a certain extent, perhaps they WERE, as long as the sexual aspect was suppressed or denied completely, and nly he medical aspect was discussed.

After reading many of the responses to this thread, it sounds like that many families did discuss enemas in the open and the context was not negative at all.

So I really don't think enemas are where they are today because they were not discussed in the open during the Gold Age because in many cases they were. But the biggest trend that I see that reduced enemas from the mainstream is that there was a significant trend away from the home remedies in the 40's and 50's to using over the counter remedies like laxatives, cough syrups, decongestants etc. Drug store shelves really evolved in the late 60's in terms of product expansion for all types of remedies for anything that ails you. There was big money to be made selling a product that had to be purchased time and time again. There really wasn't a whole of profit in selling an enema kit that could last for years.

Lisa, I'm sure that in some families, you are correct. But, I can assure you that in the thirties, forties and fifties that such discussions were not held in many homes. Water Wetter, you have the right idea of how it should have been.

Manybags, enemas did not have to be uncomfortable and small enemas could and did in most instances produce the desired results, a good BM. You are correct that mostly enemas were not given to children for fun. That was up to the individual child to know if they liked them or not. An indication that some enemas may have been given because the giver enjoyed doing it is idicated from some other posts on here, Large uncomfortable enemas may have been the norm in your household but not in others.

My original question was would enemas be accepted now as in the "Golden Years" if they had been given in a proper manner with no stigma attached. That is, if you received one, you didn't care who knew about it because they were used by all. It stands to reason that if enemas were generally accepted that there would be more klismos like us.

The entire subject is merely a thought of mine and wonderig if anyone else had the same feelings, not what their personnal experienes have been

I recall bag and bulb enemas being frequently discussed among mothers, either for their kids, or themselves in the 50's. Almost every home had a bag or bulb. Plus most doctors told the mothers to give their kids an enema for almost any illness that required the doctor's home visit. I have a hunch that the doctors thought that an enema couldn't do any harm and that they gave the mother satisfaction that she was doing something that would help her child recover. Also, the theory of auto-intoxication was still prevalent among many physicians. Most homes had a fountain syringe, because most women douched due to using diaphragms and jelly as the most popular form of contraception.

Now days, I doubt most millennials even know what a bag enema is, or may think that only disposables are even used today. Most doctors discourage douching among women and those that do it anyway use Summer's Eve. We live in a disposable culture, so the hassle of preparing a bag for either use is discarded. They are seen as out of style and a real bother to anyone. I suspect that if the culture of the 50's was still in practice today, Zity would have a lot of newer, younger members.

If constipation is a problem today, doctors usually recommend Mirilax, Dulcolax tabs, Peri-Colace caps., or Sennokot granules; also Metamucil. If those don't work, the docs go for Dulcolax supposes., or drinking Mag. Citrate.

Jimmy, for what it's worth, I think you're right on the money in your assessment. I know that I wish things were different, but wishing and having it happen are too different things. The one encouraging practice today is the use of coffee enemas, which seem to be growing (rapidly) in popularity. These require some kind of apparatus, be it a bag or a can.

Although I have less than six coffee enemas (I find them hard to hold), I'm all for them. Hope the practice catches on big time across the country. Then we may hear more open conversations about enemas.