I frequently praise the benefits of Vicks VapoRub for soreness around the stoma. I use this product for skin issues, cuts, etc., as it was a “home remedy” used by my grandmother and mother for “boo boos” as well as breathing and cold remedy relief.
*Vicks VapoRub is made of ingredients such as camphor, eucalyptus oil, and menthol.
On the Google News site this a.m.
I read that somewhere, maybe here. I don't know...
You put Vic's on the skin around your stoma? Or on irritated skin?
Does it affect the adhesion of the flange to your skin?
Why Join MeetAnOstoMate?
First off, this is a pretty cool site with 37,000 members who truly understand you.
It's not all about ostomy. We talk about everything.
Many come here for advice or to give advice, others have found good friends, and some have even found love. Most importantly, people here are honest and genuinely care.
🛑 Privacy is very important - we have many features that are only visible to members, ensuring a safe and secure environment for you to share and connect.
Create an account and you will be amazed by the warmth of this community.
Hi Just,
My grandmother was never without her little blue bottle of Vap-o-Rub. That and she always had rubber bands on her wrist... because I guess you never know when you'll need a rubber band. But we'd never tell Grandma if we weren't feeling great or had a cold... because she'd grab us and slap the stinky Vap-O-Rub on us and our friends would make fun of us for smelling god-awful. But she meant well!
Vap-O is mostly petroleum jelly, like Vaseline... it's just spiced up with a bit of camphor and menthol. But it also has turpentine oil, eucalyptus oil, and cedar leaf oil, which causes skin irritation for some folks. So I'd suggest that anyone wanting to put it near their stoma start with a single very small spot first. It will do a good job of trapping moisture in the skin, so it works for dry skin, but Vaseline does the same thing without the skin irritation issue. But I'm glad it works for you!
Luv... you can bet it does affect adhesion... it eliminates it. My skin irritation always involves my skin just outside the edge of my barrier, so I put Vaseline on sometimes after the barrier is fully applied, and only on the extreme edges of the barrier.
;O)
I get the same irritation Bob describes and have addressed it with calamine spray. But, that doesn't always work and I have the same concerns about loosening the tape. Gonna have to try the Vaseline that Bob suggested. As long as he meant petroleum jelly and not motor oil! (Sorry, Bob. Couldn't resist.) 🤣
Daniel
I put it right next to the stoma, top it off with stoma powder, and tap a barrier wipe on top… then barrier, then pouch. I also change every other day and remove any and all residue before showering. I use a very basic one-piece pouch with no filter, and a clear front - when done, I view and curse that little bugger most of the time. jb
wbob30 makes some good points regarding Vicks - although I would not bother with Vaseline as a replacement. I once took to heart all that the doctors told me… but today, I only trust my own self/body. wbob30's warnings are to be heeded… but I take them with a grain of salt, sprinkled on most food despite the heart doctors' warning about salt and the encouragement by ileostomy doctors to eat more salt. jb
Oops - w30bob - jumbled your handle.
Interesting stuff JB. Good 'ol Vicks. Well whether or not it works for stomas, the thing about mice sniffing menthol is pretty cool. I love the smell of fresh mint, and will often pick up a bunch of it and inhale a nose full as I'm passing it in the produce section.
Terry
Hi Daniel,
I don't want to give you the wrong impression... so far, nothing really works on my skin irritation other than a topical steroid, and that dries the heck out of my skin. I use the Vaseline every now and then just to switch it up and try something different. I saw an ad the other day from one of the ostomy suppliers... forget which, but maybe Convatec... and it said 75% of ostomates have skin irritation problems. That really caught my eye, as I thought I was in the minority... but apparently not. I'm also surprised it's not discussed more on here. That's a lot of skin irritation from something we have to use. I haven't tried motor oil yet... it's too expensive. But it really couldn't make my irritation much worse... no, on second thought... nix that.
;O)
