Tips for Beginning Irrigation at the Hospital

I am going to the hospital on Monday to begin irrigation. Any tips please.

Here's a short clip that describes everything very well. Feel free to contact me directly if you have any troubles. It's a fairly simple thing once you've done it a few times. Good luck and keep us posted of your progress. Regards. MMsh

http://youtu.be/g14kbuw1fU8

Irrigating a colostomy is about management, given the amount of time irrigating vs the amount of time there is no output. Given regular 'gatings, one can train the bowel and so on...

Thanks mate. That clip certainly put my mind at rest. With a bit of luck, I will have a much better quality of life. I will keep you posted. Thanks again.

Well, one week on and all goes well. I went to the hospital at 8 every morning till yesterday. Today was my first solo flight at home. All went well. I still wear a pouch for now. But it has had nothing in it. I wish I had started this from the start.

Living with Your Ostomy | Hollister

My thoughts are the same, I wish I had started earlier. It really simplifies my life as my job is very physical. I would suggest you watch your fiber intake and you should be able to go 2 days possibly between sessions. You can get the small closed end pouches and they are far less noticeable. I am so glad you decided to try it, please help spread the word...irrigation is a wonderful tool to help restore active lifestyle to all who qualify for it. My regards. MMsh

I'm a failed 'gator. Gave it 8 months and when I started to hate it, it was time.

What was the problem.

My thoughts are the same, I wish I had started earlier. It really simplifies my life as my job is very physical. I would suggest you watch your fiber intake and you should be able to go 2 days possibly between sessions. You can get the small closed end pouches and they are far less noticeable. I am so glad you decided to try it, please help spread the word...irrigation is a wonderful tool to help restore active lifestyle to all who qualify for it. My regards. Mmsh        
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Thanks m8. Your positive comments are very welcome.

My biggest issue was that no matter how consistent I stayed with how I irrigated, I kept getting different results. One day it would go smooth, the next day, I'd be wrestling my stoma.

I suppose it will never suit everyone. So far, it is going well for me. You never know your luck.

A few tips that may be helpful....but as you said, everyone is different.
1: I like to fast a few hours "before".
2: Get the water in and wait 1 hour.
3: Eat a light meal soon "after"...that will help anything remaining to come out. I then change to a fresh pouch about an hour after the meal.
4: If you will watch your fiber intake, you should get at least 2 days "clear" with zero output.

I am confident that if you stick with it, adapt as necessary to any problems, you will be quite satisfied with your results.

A few tips that may be helpful....but as you said, everyone is different.
1: I like to fast a few hours "before".
2: Get the water in and wait 1 hour.
3: Eat a light meal soon "after"...that will help anything remaining to come out. I then change to a fresh pouch about an hour after the meal.
4: If you will watch your fiber intake, you should get at least 2 days "clear" with zero output.

I am confident that if you stick with it, adapt as necessary to any problems, you will be quite satisfied with your results.        
Thanks, hero. I have to irrigate every morning for the first 14 days. My Stoma Nurse says I could start wearing those small cap things if all goes well. What do you think of them? Do you use them at all.

Hi Welshman - I have been irrigating now for about 2 years. I've never been able to get to the every other day schedule because I like high fiber foods. I irrigate every morning right after breakfast and some days it goes as quickly as 25 minutes (at the beginning though it took about an hour most days). I have never felt confident enough to just wear the cap - I use the mini-pouches made by Hollister, but since they stay perfectly flat most days I sometimes forget I have a colostomy (Sure, sure). Honestly, if I couldn't irrigate, I'm sure my mental health would take a severe nosedive.

Good on you for trying! I hope our readers feel hope from our experiences and investigate irrigating for themselves (under medical supervision of course!).

Thanks Pinky. The more positives I get, the more confident I become. It's so nice to be able to walk around all day without feeling the bag.

I don't want to knock it. I was very psyched about using it, maybe I got my hopes up? Anyway, I can always try again if I so desired, but I am righteous with my bulletproof gear as well as routine of output...

Good lad Sinfulsot. Everyone to his own.

Last day tomorrow of daily irrigation. Then the stoma nurses want me to try every other day. So far, it's going great. It feels great to read the morning paper on the toilet again. Cheers, friend.

That's great news, watch your fiber intake and keep your routine consistent, and you will have such an improved quality of life. It's so nice to be able to go do things and not have to worry about leaks, a private bathroom, etc. Regards. Mmsh

That's great news, watch your fiber intake and keep your routine consistent, and you will have such an improved quality of life. It's so nice to be able to go do things and not have to worry about leaks, a private bathroom, etc. Regards. mmsh        
Well Mr. Super Hero, I believe better times are ahead. I even had a go on the builder's shovel today. I used to worry about jamming and popping my bag doing heavy work. Hopefully, those days are gone. I will never be allowed to drive locos again, but I think I will be more comfortable driving my truck without the seat belt catching and squashing my pouch. Please keep in touch.

Well, I was doing well with 48-hour irrigation. Or so I thought. Then yesterday afternoon, for the first time in three weeks, my pouch filled up. Just four hours after irrigating. I will carry on, as irrigation has made a difference to my life, for the better. However, advice is always welcome.

Do you eat a light meal after you irrigate? For me, this seems to help. You might also try to irrigate around 7-8 in the evening, eat a light meal afterwards, and then any output that follows would be while you are at home. The main thing is to not give up...find what works for your circumstance, be ever ready to adapt if things change. Let me know how you're doing. Are you watching your fiber intake? Did you eat something unusual that day?

I usually irrigate after my breakfast. Maybe the evenings would be better. It would make life easier as well. I feel so much better in myself since I started. So I won't be giving up. Thanks, friend.

From a Welsh girl to a Welsh man, hope irrigation is still going well. I had two years of hell before I found out about irrigation, wish someone would have told me that in the beginning as it has changed my life. I have so much more confidence in myself, some days I forget that I have a stoma. 45 minutes in the bathroom and the rest of the day poo, wind, and smell-free days xxx

Hello Welshman,

I was irrigating before my colostomy so I insisted on irrigation at the earliest possible point after it. I have been irrigating ever since. (about 18months) I irrigate at nights so that any residual output (about 30-40minutes later) comes out usually just before I go to bed.

I tend to wear the irrigation sleeve folded over and sealed overnight just in case. ( but it has never been needed!) In the morning I can confidently have a bath and then plug it for the rest of the day. I've tried but cannot go for more than a day.

Incidentally I have been using a pressure input (I made myself) for about  9 months and it suits me better than the drip-feed method.

This week I have sent away to B.Braun medical, for a one month trial of their 'Irrimatic' electronic irrigation pump. When I've tried and tested it, I'll put a blog on here as to how I get on.



There is no way that I would want to go back to the bag method!

   Best wishes   Bill

Been irrigating for 13 months now, and wow! Has it ever changed my life! I love it, irrigate first thing in the morning, longest I've gone is 18 hours, haven't tried 2 days.
I even took the train from Vancouver to Toronto, even figured out how to flush while I'm camping.
Cheers, Bob.

I am irrigating every 48 hours at the moment. I have been since I changed to evenings 3 weeks ago. I don't know why, but it certainly has done the trick.

Hello Welshman.

I'm glad that everything seems to be coming good for you with irrigation.

I did say that I would blog a review on the Braun electronic irrigator and I've now blogged this.  

I am so envious of you folks who can go 2 days between irrigations. I have tried it several times but the most I can do is 1.5 days and this tends to throw out the timing of my evening sessions.  It also means that it would have been wiser to wear a bag rather than a plug during these experiments. However, as they say- you learn from your mistakes!  Anyway, Having to do it each day means that I don't need to worry too much about what I eat in terms of fibre etc, so there are compensations.    

Best wishes

   Bill

Thanks Bill. I don't use a plug. Just a cap. I do carry a pouch in my pocket. Just in case. That came in handy in the Dominican Republic a few weeks ago. Must have been the heat. Keep in touch mate. Jon.

Well, I was doing well with 48-hour irrigation. Or so I thought. Then yesterday afternoon, for the first time in three weeks, my pouch filled up. Just four hours after irrigating. I will carry on, as irrigation has made a difference to my life, for the better. However, advice is always welcome.

Hi Welshman - This happens to me sometimes, which is why I wear a Hollister mini-pouch. It sounds like since this post you are doing remarkably well! I can understand Sinfulsot's frustration with irrigation - at times I just want to be able to roll out of bed and hit the road, but I usually have to get up at least 1.5 hours early to eat, irrigate, etc. My quickest irrigation is 25 minutes. It's a little hard on me so I have to lie down 15 minutes (at least) afterwards. I've never been able to go beyond a day and a half because I love fruits, veggies, cereals, etc too much! Maybe it just depends on how much colon a person still has.

MMSH - irrigators I talked to all said to eat beforehand and drink a hot drink to stimulate the bowel. Sounds like you do it the other way round. How did you happen on this schedule? I think you said in the past you instill 1.5 liters; me too but lately I have been wondering if it is too much - I have 2/3 of my colon left.