Ostomy Paste Issues: Tips for Better Adhesion and Hardening

It seems despite the thickness, a few ostomy pastes I've tried are not hardening up as expected, thus causing running and poor adhesion to occur.

Notice that a great deal of paste remains after taking the wafer off after 24+ hours later, instead of hardening into one piece that peels off the skin cleanly. Also the paste ran down at the bottom and the top, I recall flushing chunks of paste out the end of my bag.

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So what I did was use a flat stick to sideways scrape off the residue paste, it was still pliable, then off the stick with toilet paper. Then there was a slight white film, where I used a rough side of a scrub sponge to gently sandpaper it off.

I've learned that:

1: Wash the area around the stoma with nothing but antibacterial liquid soap and rinse after each spewing if it occurs. Apply nothing else.

2: Blow dry the area well. Dry dab any moisture off stoma and around the area. Test that everything is bone dry to the finger swipe. Wounds have a slight surface hardening.

3: Use no sting paste but first squeeze some onto a piece of spare smooth product cardboard and mix in a little stoma adhesive. Then use a stir stick to apply a thin layer first to wounds, if no stick then remove, discard, dry and try again with fresh paste until it does stick. Then continue the thin layer all around to about 1/2" out from the stoma. Use a blow dryer to dry it a little further.

4: After that, apply a wafer bonding ring of paste 1/3" away from the stoma and repeat another ring around that one. Score the top of each tube of paste to make a notch then mix in some stoma powder and ensure no powder remains. Apply the precut wafer and press down; the second layer of paste will squeeze on top of the first thin layer and force it down onto the skin some more.

It is important to watch with paste whether it's activating to properly harden or not. Not to cover stoma with wafer or paste as that will cause a clog situation.

I have to use paste due to a difficult stoma and body contour, so I've been suffering with what seems to be paste formulations that are not setting up, no matter how thin I apply it or how long it sits. Gravity comes along and causes it to ooze out, causing leaks.

Since mixing in a little stoma powder first, the change is like night and day. My wounds are finally starting to heal up. 😊

So, paste users beware!

An added note:

Good paste should be the consistency of dry clay-ish.

Bad paste is more runny or pudding-like.

Sometimes I'm squeezing the tube and bubbles of air come out or even liquid. 😢 

So it's like one is getting ambushed right at a critical time, getting a bag on before that stoma erupts and your paste just fails.

Paste is an ostomate's first line of defense against leaks and here the manufacturers can't keep quality control consistent.

So take it into your own hands!

Also remember for you one-piece fans, don't let the paste ooze past the edge of the wafer hole especially over the stoma because it will just push it up and cause a leak when it extends out... if it can, or clog if it can't.

For two-piece, it's easy just to remove the extra paste over the stoma before applying the bag.

Stomas extend out under pressure, like trying to clear a chunk of food particle. This can cause leak issues. So learn to eat only things you know will liquidify upon exit. Soft meats, pasta, potato without skins, very soft rice, etc. Vegetables in near liquid form only, etc. Over time you'll learn how much your particular situation can handle.