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An individual may exhibit a broad range of symptoms of constipation depending on his or her bowel habits, diet, and age. These are some common problems a person may have if he or she is constipated:

• Difficulty in starting or completing a bowel movement
• Infrequent and difficult passage of stool
• Passing hard stool after prolonged straining
• If the person has irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), with crampy abdominal pain, excessive gas, a sense of bloating, and a change in bowel habits
• If the person has an intestinal obstruction, which results in nausea, vomiting, absence of a bowl movement, and inability to pass gas
• Distended abdomen, headaches, and loss of appetite
• Coated (furred) tongue, bad breath (halitosis), and bad taste in the mouth

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