Managing Unexpected Stoma Gas in Public Spaces

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   Does anyone know of anything to take for gas? It's very embarrassing for someone to hear it come out in places like an elevator or a quiet room filled with people. Embarrassing!

Some people put "beano" in their food while cooking it.
I had to laugh yesterday, sitting at a lunch table with a group of Army cadets, when I blew a good one
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. All the kids looked around, unsure what to say. So I piped up, "Hey, who was that?" followed by a long silence. Then one of the mothers piped up, "That was me!" which defused the situation.
Cheers, Bob

Yes - BEANO - it works! I chew 2-3 tablets prior to any good-sized meal and even if I forget - like today - and start getting "gassy," I take it after the fact, and things quiet right down!

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It used to come in drops as well (to put in your food), but I haven't seen those for years - at least not in the usual SoCal stores.

Thanks, Pinky, I'll look for the tablets. I've only seen the drops, but that was a long time ago.
Cheers, Bob

Ray, it doesn't have to be embarrassing in a crowded situation. Not at all. Here's the trick. When it happens, just quickly look to guy next to you and ask out loud, "Say, what did you have for lunch?" Works all the time.

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Ray,

Well, usually, but not always, I can feel the pressure mounting near the stoma, and I brace for the "big bang." What I have done in close quarters is to put pressure with my hand right on the stoma. It does not stop the explosion from coming, but it does deaden the sound. I have used this successfully when at meetings where I am sitting for a long time and there are people sitting practically on my lap. Although I have not tried it, I believe I read on this site that eating a marshmallow is effective against a blowout.

X_

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I have to hand it to you, my friend. I would have felt like a tiny ant.
I would have felt triple embarrassment, just like I did at the bank the other day. The teller took me into the vault where I have a safe deposit box. It was so silent you could hear a mouse run across the carpet. I let out a small horn beep, but it was so loud because the room was so silent. I am going to QVC Pharmacy tomorrow to get Beano and give it a try. Thanks for your response; it made me feel not so alone in my problem.

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Thanks for the encouraging words. It does not happen very often, but when it does, my God, I feel so small. Of course, the person that hears it does not know that I have a stoma. To the average person, it sounds like I passed gas.

A lot of people think of that as disgusting. Everyone passes gas, but it's all about doing it when nobody else is around. I hate it so much that I have very little control of when it comes out. I will go to the drug store tomorrow and try Beano.

Thank you......

OK, thanks for the response. I appreciate the encouraging words...
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Yes, you are right. It does not have to be embarrassing, but in reality, it is.
I mean, what adult lets out a fart in public in front of family and friends?
Believe me, you are the talk of the town for a short while, then people forget about it after a while. Thanks for the encouraging words.

Brings to mind an old african saying about a man who was ostracised in his community, and when a traveller asked why, the reply was "he is the great great grandson of a man who passed wind"!  

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But honestly, it may be because of my Australian upbringing, but in my family to let one rip was cause of great hilarity and entertainment and certainly nothing to be embarrassed about!  In fact my father and brother both lift their legs to do so, and seem quite proud of their eruptions.  Fortunately I have no need to do the same!  And I have a friend whose husband delights in farting in public and blaming her for it!

Courtesy of my Dad are the expressions:-  "Organ arse" or "Speak to me Oh chocolate lips"

and of course there are those old sayings:-  "There is no point in having an arse if you can't let it rejoice in song!"  

or:-  "Better to fart and bear the shame, than hold the fart and bear the pain!"

So many jokes, so little time...but then perhaps I am in the wrong section!

Cheers!
Jo

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Beano does work! But if I do still have an outburst, I am usually honest about it and say, "Oh, my colostomy is just acting up again. So sorry about that." The person closest will shut right up either because they have no idea what a colostomy is or they are too embarrassed themselves to inquire. Subject closed.
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Good luck!

I like your solution, Mama - I've been in class when (early on) my colostomy would start to toot a bit.  I writhed and held my hand over it, etc., etc.  Now these are public health classes, so I SHOULD have felt comfortable just stating what the problem was!  Except I'm usually the oldest person in the class, and the 20-somethings probably just think I'm like the little old lady in the library who can't keep it quiet!  

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Chew Beano?  I take a pill when I can't get my bag to shut up.  It has been grumbling all week.  My God... I never had so much gas!

Barbie

What a great post, Jo. Thanks. I needed a good laugh. One lesson I take away from this topic is that God must have an incredible sense of humor because He fashioned our bodies to pass gas. This bit of His mischief keeps us from taking ourselves too seriously. Ray, I am sorry my comments don't address your need for a solution, but I know you already got some good advice (Beano) in earlier posts. I just think it's important to see a little stomach noise for just that. If you can handle this embarrassing inconvenience well, maybe someday, your great, great grandson might be proud of your symphonic stoma.

Hi there, BEANO didn't work great for me; I could only get tablets—I can't find the liquid anywhere. I did also try Ovol 180 and Extra Strength Gas-X. All will help, but I think it is important to try different things and it also depends on what you have eaten.
Since I had my ileostomy reversed, I still have a lot of gas and just recently found a product on the internet that seems to work best for me. It is called Devrom. Last weekend, I checked at the store that sells all the ostomy supplies in my area, and they just started carrying it in October 2010 and say they can't keep it in stock. It seems to help the gas although it is sold as an internal deodorant.

Good luck—lots of info on this site.

Well, how about this one! Having several blasts during silent meditation in Buddha class! Yeppers, happened to me - total embarrassing moment!

I am 2 weeks into having a permanent colostomy, passing gas has been truly challenging.  Surgeon says it will become less frequent when my GI system normalizes after surgery.  I would like to try Beano but it is not available locally so it's quite pricey over here if I order online.