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Ostomy Accessories

If you are new to the ostomy community, one of the first questions that may be on your mind is ‘how long will my stoma bag last?’. Unfortunately there is no definite answer (annoying I know sorry!). It should be changed when needed, preferably before you have a leakage starting and not so long that you see your baseplate start to give way. As you get into a rhythm of your stoma routine, and you establish when it is safe and comfortable for you to change it, it will become as automatic as getting up and brushing your teeth in the morning.   

Whether you're new or experienced in ostomy life, a question you may not know the answer to is "what are the stickers for that come with ostomy bags?" We asked our Social Media & Marketing Specialist, Amy, who has had her permanent ileostomy since 2011, if she knows what the stickers are for and to our delight, she did, but admitted that it took her a good few years until she found out what they are for.

October was a very special time for me as I entered my first 10K race in Cardiff, South Wales. Whatever possessed me to do it you ask? How many of you who are reading this with a chronic illness have found they can’t be as active as they once were? For me it was like a light switch was flicked and I couldn’t do anything without being in pain anymore. Its debilitating, demoralising and can lead you down a dark path mentally with the mental health benefits you loose over night. My health journey has been quite the fair ground ride. Born with Hirschsprungs Disease, multiple surgeries, 3 stomas and having a child which has the same yet more severely,...

It feels like it was only yesterday that my Instagram feed was glittered with beautiful photos of ostomates across the world, showing what World Ostomy Day means to them. For most of us who use the platform to document their journey living with an ostomy, its a daily occurrence, yet what is it about World Ostomy Day that makes it that much more special? I’ll share with you what it means to me. It means seeing everyone the same as me, rocking their bag, being raw and relatable, sharing the positives and the negatives. I feel seen. I feel my five year old ostomate is seen. That is the power of this day. It doesn’t make the content shared less...

I’m back again guys following a lovely holiday with my family! We have always stayed in the UK since we had our baby ostomate now 5 years old, so current circumstances haven’t made any difference to us choosing to visit the beautiful Exmouth in Devon. Despite a few wet days at the start, parts of the UK entered a heatwave with temperatures entering late 20s/early 30s. This was my first holiday as an ostomate, but going on staycations for five years with my little one Jake meant you would think there wouldn’t be many surprises. I felt pretty organised with the only difference being myself to care for during bag leaks, hoping that Jakes stoma didn’t feel left out and...

I had the phone call a few weeks in advance for my ileostomy surgery last Summer during lockdown. We had to isolate as a family for 10 days and I was in no means mentally prepared. With Covid I didn’t expect to have the surgery anytime soon giving us all quite the shock! A few weeks is much more than some people get with many stomas formed as the result of an emergency surgery where patients wake up to find one without even know what a stoma is. Having a son with one already and having one as a baby temporarily meant I was no stranger to stomas.  I went in to surgery thinking I knew exactly what to expect...

This week’s topic is on ostomy accessories. Have you ever heard of a flange or tape extender? Banana’s or boomerangs? They even go by the name of retention strips. No? Maybe? Or is it a hard and fast yes you have? Well this little bit of kit can help you in a multitude of tight spots whilst out and about and this post is here to tell you about how I have used them and other people have told me in the past! So what is a flange or tape extender? Well it is more often than not round and is a waterproof sealant or plaster if you will. So you pop them on top of your base plate to...

Ostomy belts! Do you know what they are for? Do you use them? They are something that my stoma nurses remind me about when my stoma is being flush or a bit awkward (which at the moment is more often than I’d like!) The general idea behind the belts is they that help create a sort of vacum which pulls your stoma further into the bag. Every convex bag I have ever tried which is a fair few as part of my ostomy bag roulette series; has some clips on the side which is for the belt to attach too. All of the belts are adjustable and come in varying widths – I personally prefer the wider ones as they cut into...

Have you ever been caught short with your usual product and had to use something different for instance a bag you no longer use but still have some in your stoma storage? This recently has happened to me regarding my ostomy bag and it stems from a little mix up with my delivery company. So we all know human error happens and that is basically what has created a knock on effect along with my hypermobile Ehlers Danlos Syndrome being a pain in my non existent ass. The way my hEDS affects my ostomy is basically the bowel (or in my case just the small bowel) uses peristalsis to move the poop through your body to be removed by going for a poo in...

To continue the posts about the different companies and the different products available we will look at Salts Healthcare. This company recently made waves in the ostomy community with their new look Confidence bags. Those waves were due to the colours of the ostomy bag being customisable (to an extent) with your outfit; as you may know many companies have the standard “medical” peachy coloured bags and then Coloplast have the grey coloured appliances but not Salts no they have gone for a skin tone they call stone, a white and a black. They in the last year have become available in a convex base plate which has opened up it’s availability to more ostomates. The bags from Salts have petals on the...