Ostomy Topics

Ariestar85's post regarding anger and frustration has stayed with me. Re-reading it and the many responses is making me feel a myriad of emotions and causing my own anger and frustration. Not about having an ostomy, I made peace with that and am grateful to be alive. My frustration and anger are directed at the lack of knowledge/compassion within the medical community, accessible education for ...

I cannot stop gaining weight after receiving my ostomy. I have tried different diets; my next resort is getting the sleeve before reversal. I am scared to have a reversal because of all the weight I have put on!

Ever wonder how much poop can accumulate in the colon? Glad you asked. The average person's colon can often hold 8 to 25 lbs of accumulated fecal matter. So.... some people really are: Full of crap.

How long is the average colon? Glad you asked. It's average length in an adult human is 65 inches (166 cm) for males, and 61 inches (155 cm) for females.

Who invented the Ostomy pouch? G ...

YOU CAN BE A HARD CASE & A ROMANTIC at the same time. Well, not simultaneously, perhaps, but these two competing descriptions can exist within one person. Contradictions are common in many people. My sympathy for the plight of dumb animals far surpasses any compassion I might feel for stupid people. I am not religious, but I believe that my personal faith and morality transcends the hypocr ...

A short while ago, following a post on here, I started using a baby feeding bib under my pouch.
This was because I was sweating a lot under the pouch, and it works very well.
I just finished the cleanup following a full detach, and I am pleased to report that the bib was very successful in helping to contain the outbreak.
So give it a try.

I had gut surgery and a colostomy bag put on this past May. I'll go back in February for a reversal. Since my surgery, my sexual desire and ability to get erect hasn't really changed, but although I can orgasm, there's little to no sperm coming from my orgasm since the surgery. Is this normal? Will it ever go back to normal?

I'm scheduled for a reversal in a couple of weeks, but the doctor wants me to have a higher albumin level - eating higher protein food and drinking a high-protein drink. I've been drinking Boost but find it bothers my stomach and causes loose output. Any suggestions for a high-protein drink that doesn't do that? Thanks.

Hi all,
I have been using gloves to empty and to change my ostomy bag. I'm really sick of buying gloves and needing to budget more nowadays. Do you all use gloves to empty and change or not?

Adventure for the day is to replace the leaky radiator in the Camaro. Hopefully I won't have anything else leaky by the time I finish. Right now, I'm just waiting for daybreak so I can see what I'm doing. I'm thankful, even with ostomy I can still work on things like this. I'm not as efficient at it as I used to be, but I can still get the job done.

Have any of y'all noticed that certain insurance companies allow only 10 rings but 20 flanges and 20 pouches? It used to be 20 of each. Then last month (June) it went down to 10 for the rings. I'm really trying... But the math here just isn't adding up.

I have been on these forums for one year now. My stoma relocation happened a year ago tomorrow. I can't believe it's been a year. It was when I got my relocation that I was finally able to wear a bag. I got my first stoma on Jan. 1, 2022. And from then until March 30, 2023, I was not able to wear a bag due to the location of the stoma. I don't blame the doctor for placing my stoma in such a ba ...

Hi all. Update on my reversal procedure. Spiking temperature sees me back in the hospital on IV antibiotics. Not what I wanted. Good news is scans reveal all is well with the join and bowels starting to behave as they should! Hopefully home in a couple of days... onward and upwards. Will update progress as we go, but feeling positive and better now that battery acid has abated!

Dealing with a colostomy bag I got in surgery in May. Dr said in January to make an appointment for a reversal. Will I be able to go back to normal living like lifting things, etc.? What should I expect? I developed a hernia where my stoma is. It doesn't hurt at all. Dr said yesterday at my visit that he would fix it when I have my reversal done. Will I be my old self again or will I always ne ...

Hello. I am an ostomy patient. I really want to work on my midsection and get it better in shape. I've seen the lay-down exercises online that you can do, but I am interested in doing exercises like sit-ups and leg raises. I have an ostomy hernia belt. It works very well, but I have been apprehensive about trying these exercises because I don't want to cause any damage to myself. I would reall ...

I am kind of worried about putting too much pressure on my stoma, like lifting and bending over too much, for example. Is it normal to feel like I may hurt my stoma if too much pressure is put on it? And could I hurt it? Even sitting up for too long can make me feel like I am hurting it, or when I went to change my colostomy bag once. It was really red around the stoma area. One reason why I f ...