Lubricating Deodorant Usage - Individual Packets vs. Big Bottle

Hi everyone,

My mom uses Coloplast Brava Lubricating Deodorant to help push the stool to the bottom of the bag. We have been using individual packets for a while now and they work great. However, we got a free sample of the 250 ml big bottle from her medical supplier a couple of months ago and I wanted to try it out. Does anyone know how many drops to use that is equivalent to the individual packets?

I welcome anyone to respond even if you use a different deodorant. What deodorant do you use and how many drops do you apply to the pouch?

If you have a packet left, look to see how much is in it. Then just measure that amount out in drops. You could probably Google a picture and see how much is in a packet if you don't have one.

Thank you, Alex. I do still have a packet left. I will try your suggestion.

From what the back of the bottle says, 2 squirts... Now how much they actually mean, I don't know lol. I just eye it really. I believe the sachets are like 0.025...

Thanks for your response, Beth!

When I first got the sample, I called up Coloplast to ask them how many drops I should add, and I didn't get a clear answer. I meant to call back and see if someone else could advise, but never did.

I just took the bottle out of the box a few minutes ago. There were no directions on the box, but on the bottle, it says to add 1-2 teaspoons. So I guess I can try two drops, 2 teaspoons, and also try Alex's suggestion. Thank you!!!

Stories of Living Life to the Fullest from Ostomy Advocates I Hollister

Agree with AlexT. Make sure she is consuming sufficient fluids to make the stool less firm. It is easy to become dehydrated. First of all, it is very important that the bag is coated with the lubricant before it is placed. Be careful, if there is a charcoal filter that the lubricant does not come in contact with the filter. To answer your question, 20 drops if you are being precise from Vegan Ostamate. Frankly, I probably do not use that much and vary the amount by the looseness of the stool. Vegan Ostamate has a lot of very good reviews on a number of stoma topics. Here is his review on the Coloplast Brava product:

https://www.veganostomy.ca/coloplast-brava-lubricating-deodorant-for-ostomy-pouches-review/

His review lists the Pro's and Con's. There are alternative products out there. Some are more reasonably priced. Some others you might prefer like Simple 'n Safe. Personally, I use Hollister's Adapt Lubricating Deodorant. I tried Brava. It works. However, when using one hand, I clumsily dropped the cap into my open stoma bag. That was when I knew that this product was not for me. I called the company and told them that their competitors who have flip tops eliminate having to deal with the screw top.

Hope this helps. Don't forget about hydration too.

Thank you Gentlejohn! Your response was very helpful and insightful.

It's interesting you talk about not letting the lubricant get in contact with the filter. That did happen with my mom a few times and when it did happen, her bag would sometimes blow up. I guess the filter was less effective. Thankfully, we haven't had this concern in a while though.

I will definitely check out the review you shared. Also, thank you for suggesting other brands. I will request free samples. The only other lubricant we tried was from Convatec and we didn't like it.

I do think my mom needs to drink more than she does. I keep encouraging it. She has gotten better with her fluid intake but I still think she should be drinking more.

Thanks again for the advice and for the exact amount of drops.

Dear John, thank you for everything! I tried to send you another message, but I guess I ran out of my 3 free messages. I'm still trying to learn everything on this site.

By the way, I did call Safe and Simple today and got some free samples coming our way. My mom was telling me she might not want to use the deodorant anymore. I think she might be concerned with the potential cost, especially with switching medical suppliers. I don't apply the deodorant to every pouch change, but I do use it frequently. My mom's output is not really consistent; sometimes it's pasty, other times it's more formed, and there have been times it's more mushy. If I notice her output is more mushy, I don't use deodorant because it does drop to the bottom of the bag by itself. When mom first came home from the hospital, we had a nutritionist come to the house to go over recommendations for her diet and fluids. The nutritionist and the nurse both advised my mom needs to be drinking more fluids. The nutritionist advised at least 6 cups of fluids based on my mom's weight. I'm not sure if she is necessarily getting that amount as I work in the day, but she does drink water, tea, a nutritional supplement every day, sometimes coffee or cranberry juice. We also eat a lot of pasta and bread, which I know is not the best thing to do. The nutritionist advised that too much bread and pasta can thicken output. I try to use the deodorant as a preventative measure so we don't have that pancaking issue like we had in the past. Between the deodorant and the convex wafer, we thankfully have not had that issue in months.

I use Safe n Simple Assure C odor eliminator/clear lubricant. It comes in an 8 oz. bottle and what I do is just do one decent squirt onto the bag and move the bag around to coat all the inside. It seems to work very well.

Thank you Virgo68. Safe and Simple Assure C Lubricant Clear Deodorant was also recommended by someone else in this group and I did request a sample already. Thank you for explaining what you do!!!