I've literally been discharged from hospital this evening after a 6 week stay, 3 weeks post ileostomy.
I have had no output from my stoma for over 12 hours now but no swelling and no real pain.
I stopped eating solids about 4 hours in and have been on liquids only since, including a glass of coke as I've heard it can help. But nothing is happening.
Hi el,
How often were you having output before you left the hospital? Being such a new ostomate a lot could be going on, so don't panic. What solids did you eat before you stopped eating them? Were you given any eating guidelines when you were discharged? Have you had any output since you wrote this topic?
;O)
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Have you had any output since writing this? If you are worried about a blockage, go to the emergency room and be checked out. If you get any pain or swelling, get it checked out. It is better to know and not have to worry than wait and be sorry. How are you now?
Like what Bob said...a lot of things are still going on.
Look at it this way...
If you were blocked, you would be in pain. Give it time, kiddo. You just had major surgery.
As others mentioned, if you are in pain, then go back to the hospital.
What have you been eating since you got home?
Go to the Emergency Room stat and bring a change of clothes and your otosmy supplies.
It might not hurt at first, but then all of a sudden you'll be in intense pain. They will put you out and hopefully with the appliance removed it will clear itself without further surgery required.
A clog can happen eating too hard of foods like nuts, hard meats, fibrous vegetables. It can also be caused by improper application of appliance, wafer hole not cut to size and shape of stoma, paste covering the stoma etc.
It could also be something internally.
So get going.
This is for later
[b]Signs of a clogged stoma.
[/b]
No output or only watery output under pressure for a few hours after eating. Could be caused by a covered stoma by improper application of an appliance, typically hole is cut too small or too much paste. Also could be caused by eating hard food. Seek treatment by an emergency room, remove appliance if necessary and wait. If clogged a severe pain will eventually appear which hopefully will clear itself. If not a trip to surgery would be necessary. Unfortunately very high and frequent output will ensue after clearing for quite some time which will likely making putting on a replacement appliance difficult. Use stool thickening tactics (below). If going to an ER, bring your own otosmy gear and a change of clothes as hospital likely doesn't carry or doesn't know how.
[b]What is "pancaking?"[/b]
Pancaking occurs when a vacuum in the bag (likely do to a clogged filter) or super thick stool blocks stool from depositing to the bottom of the bag. Thus can force bag off and cause leaks. Controlling what one eats and by mixing and consuming stool thickening and stool softening foods at the same time to get a balance.
[b]What is "ballooning?"
[/b]
Ballooning occurs when foods eaten produce too much gas and the filter gets clogged (likely due to laying down) and thus forces bag off and causes leaks.
These two conditions can cause premature bag replacement and leaks which burn the skin. It's better to replace the appliance if there is any continuous stinging pain, don't just live with it. Keep an eye on your otosmy supply and have ample reserves.
I've found that caffeine, in coffee, tea and even chocolate causes diarrhea and can assist in controlling flow so stool is more liquid..however coffee makes output very acidic making burns worse. Dried Chinese Crispy Noodles, Cheerios or applesauce (peeled apples) are the exact opposite, a stool thickening food. By mixing these with other foods one can manipulate their stool output and counter the issues above. Also the severe thickening helps in cases where one has severe diarrhea and unable to reattach a new bag due to high flow.
[b]Eating Guide
[/b]
Partially copied from my nutritionists guide. Ileostomy Nutrition Therapy from the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. (This handout may be duplicated for client education.)
My recommendation is to see a nutritionist for the full guide as not all can be pasted here
I've added my own observations to further clarify
Chew all foods well to the consistency of paste.
[b]Foods That May Cause Blockage (very bad avoid!)
[/b]
Apples, unpeeled (unpeeled and applesauce are excellent thickeners, don't eat the core, chew well)
Bean sprouts
Cabbage, raw
Casing on sausage (inside fine if no tough parts, avoid swallowing if a chunk is felt)
Celery (avoid)
Chinese vegetables (stir fried crunchy, too hard, need soft veggies with no skins)
Coconut
Coleslaw
Corn (grits also, corn anything doesn't seem to dissolve in stomach)
Cucumbers (skins bad, inside chewed up good seems okay, no seeds)
Dried fruit, raisins
Grapes
Green peppers (red, yellow also) pureed or very very small seems okay in small amounts
Mushrooms (doesn't dissolve in stomach) pureed or very very small seems okay in small amounts
Nuts (totally avoid)
Peas (mushy interior okay, like pea soup, skins a problem)
Pickles (skins a problem, inside if chewed up good seems okay, seeds not)
Pineapple (liquid okay, mushy parts fine, hard parts not, tricky)
Popcorn (totally avoid)
Relishes and olives
Salad greens (diarrhea nightmare too)
Seeds and nuts (avoid)
Spinach (doesn't digest, pureed perhaps)
Tough, fibrous meats (for
example, steak on grill, well done, tough parts especially)
Vegetable and fruit skins, (any avoid)
Whole grains (no grits, oatmeal seems to be okay, Cheerios is an excellent thickener)
[b]Foods That May Cause Gas or Odor
[/b]
Alcohol
Apples
Asparagus (stink)
Bananas
Beer
Broccoli (clog hazard)
Brussels sprouts (clog hazard)
Cabbage (clog hazard)
Carbonated beverages
Cauliflower
Cheese, some types
Corn (clog hazard)
Cucumber
Dairy products
Dried beans and peas (clog hazard)
Eggs (don't digest in stomach)
Fatty foods
Fish (cooked salmon in small portions may not, nor stink)
Grapes
Green pepper (red and yellow also, clog hazzard)
Melons
Onions (clog hazard)
Peanuts (clog hazard)
Prunes
Radishes
Turnips
Soda and sipping using straws, (drink from glass instead)
Seafood (oh God does it stink!)
If your having pancaking issues a small amount of something above (like having a soda during a meal) could introduce some air into your diet and thus into the bag. Also by avoiding too much thickening foods by themselves which often contribute to pancaking.
[b]Foods That May Help Relieve Gas and Odor[/b]
Buttermilk
Cranberry juice
Parsley
Yogurt with active cultures (Greek yogurt)
[b]Foods That May Cause Diarrhea (looser or more frequent stool)
[/b]
Alcohol (including beer)
Apricots (and stone fruits)
Beans, baked or legumes
Bran
Broccoli
Brussels sprouts
Cabbage
Caffeinated drinks
(especially hot)
Chocolate
Corn (in my experience corn anything doesn't digest in stomach, just passed through and out, kernels/popcorn will clog)
Fried meats, fish, poultry (KFC, supermarket rotisserie chicken very bad, anything soaked in brine)
Fruit juice: apple, grape, orange (small amount okay)
Fruit: fresh, canned, or dried (small amount okay)
Glucose-free foods containing mannitol or
sorbitol
Gum, sugar free
High-fat foods
High-sugar foods
High salt foods (KFC, supermarket rotisserie chicken)
High seasoned foods (blackened)
Licorice
Milk and dairy foods (small amounts okay)
Nuts or seeds (bad, clog hazard)
Peaches (stone fruit, one rarely okay)
Peas
Plums (stone fruit)
Prune juice or prunes
Soup
Spicy foods
Sugar-free substitutes
Tomatoes
Turnip greens/green leafy
vegetables, raw
Wheat/whole grains
Wine
Rice (1/4 cup in mixed in food okay), refried beans (1/4 cup okay) pasta (one cup max).
Any foods soaked in brine or fried (rotisserie chicken, Kentucky fried chicken etc)
[b]Foods That May Cause Diarrhea (looser or more frequent stool)
[/b]
Alcohol (including beer)
Apricots (and stone fruits)
Beans, baked or legumes
Bran
Broccoli
Brussels sprouts
Cabbage
Caffeinated drinks
(especially hot)
Chocolate
Corn (clog hazard, even grits, doesn't digest)
Fried meats, fish poultry
Fruit juice: apple, grape,
orange
Fruit: fresh, canned, or
dried
Glucose-free foods
containing mannitol or
sorbitol
Gum, sugar free
High-fat foods
High-sugar foods
High salty foods
Licorice
Milk and dairy foods
Nuts or seeds
Peaches (stone fruit)
Peas
Plums (stone fruit)
Prune juice or prunes
Soup
Spicy foods
Sugar-free substitutes
Tomatoes
Turnip greens/green leafy
vegetables, raw
Wheat/whole grains
Wine
Soylent nutritional drink
[b]Foods That May Help Thicken Stool
[/b]
Applesauce (unpeeled apples, no cores)
Bananas
Barley (when OK to have
fiber)
Cheese (cheese food may be a clog problem, use real cheese)
Dried Chinese Crispy Noodles (severe thickening, mix with other food that causes diarrhea)
Marshmallows
Oatmeal (when OK to have
fiber)
Pasta (sauces may increase
symptoms) (in my experience more than a cup of pasta causes diarrhea)
Peanut butter, creamy only, nuts clog (makes skin oily)
Potatoes, no skin (skin clogs, more than a cup causes diarrhea)
Pretzels (salty may cause more flow water consumption)
Metamucil, mix or crackers (mix in cup of water and drink before it gells up)
I'm adding to this list based upon experience.
After staying up into the early hours of the night drinking herbal tea after herbal tea, having a hot bath, drinking a Coke, getting a massage, doing yoga movements, and eventually giving in and getting more pain... my bag had filled up by 4:30. What a relief!
Thanks, everyone 🙏
There you go. Problem solved. Getting to your new normal takes time and patience.
You were not in any pain at first, so no reason to visit the hospital.
It's a learning curve. An education in the new you.
Get some sleep now.
Hi Shammy,
What did you mean when you said "they will put you out"? Whenever I showed up at the ER with a blockage, the first question was, "Are you in pain?" And if not, they did a quick scan and told me to wait and see if it clears itself. If I was in pain, they'd start an IV and give me fluids. I've been to the ER many times with blockages, and they never ever gave me anesthesia. That's the last thing they'd ever do because they need to communicate with you to find out what's going on. So I'm curious if that's ever happened to you or if you read that somewhere?
;O)
They put me out when I had a clog and yelled in pain.
Of course I suspected and went in before the pain started, told them what I thought so they put me in a bed.
I guess each hospital is different.
I'm glad things are working again. That is a good sign. Try not to over do it with movements and exercise if you just got your ostomy. You don't want to hurt yourself.
