Need advice on using a ring under my flange - causing leaks!

Hi. So here it is the weekend and I woke up in a disaster. When my nurse was here yesterday, she put this ring underneath my flange and said it was to help prevent leaks. The whole time I was in the hospital, not only did I not have one on, but not one nurse showed me this step. I had no idea. But prevent leaks? Ha! Everything was soiled! I am on my own, so here I was trying to clean myself up, then all the bedding and mattress. Now I have the bathroom to tackle before my kids come back so I don't gross them out. Ring or no ring? I don't have one on right now because I was so panic-stricken I could barely get the flange on. I am not in a good place right now and am starting to doubt my decision to finally go ahead with the surgery. Better quality of life they said. I don't feel that right now. I am 10 days after surgery.

You still have a ways to go if you are 10 days post. When you change, measure your stoma because it will slowly deswell and you will have to adjust your appliance accordingly. Once that settles, you'd only have to make adjustments if you gain or lose weight.

The ring might be a seal (Eakin, Adapt, et al), which can help with leaks. It's like a gasket or washer. You would have to experiment with your system to see if it is worth using or not.

As a general rule, the Eakin Ring will double your wear time. As was said earlier, 10 days post-op is still very early in the game. You will learn and adapt, be patient and have faith... thousands of people on this forum live normal, active, social lifestyles with an ostomy... you can too.
Now, you might try a search here for "leaks." There are many posts that will give you some help correcting them. What are you eating? Avoid high fiber foods till you get things sorted out, eat small portions more often, don't eat till you feel full. How are you prepping the site where your flange goes? A common newbie mistake is to use a soap that contains oils or perfumes... about 95% of soaps do. You can't stick your flange to skin with oily residue... I suggest "Yellow Dial." Do you use a wipe-on or spray-on skin prep? This will also seal the skin and prevent leaks and sore skin.
Remember, most ostomy nurses don't have one. Your best source for info is right here. Keep us posted, ask questions if you have further trouble. Good luck.

Thank you for the advice.

Whatever you do, don't suffer. Ask, demand.
There are lots, lots of us with an ostomy living normal lives.
It will get better, leaking is not normal.
Stay positive.

Getting Support in the Ostomy Community with LeeAnne Hayden | Hollister

Hi Pammer, read your post about the leaks...how frustrating. Do you use soap on your skin or maybe a skin cream while changing the wafer, because if you do, the wafer will not stick properly. Try using just plain water and wiping the area softly and drying it completely. I bought a small fan and I stand in front of it for a few minutes each time I change the wafer. The air feels great on my skin too. Also, do you use a skin barrier prep around the stoma area to protect your skin and help the wafer stick better? There are many products out there but I really like Cavilon (sp). It dries quickly and the sponge wipe is nice and wet. Others I tried were not and I felt that I did not have enough barrier applied, so I would use two or three packets. Also, I liked the suggestion of using tape around the wafer. This would give you extra protection at night. Give yourself some time to learn the process. With me, it took several months...I was very unsure about everything. My hands would shake while I was trying to put the wafer on initially. Take care Pammer and keep posting. Everyone here has great ideas and techniques to make ostomy care easier.

Thanks for the great advice.