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Stoma Tips

Tomorrow (Saturday 2nd October) is World Ostomy Day. This post, I thought I'd share with you some stoma facts (thanks to many great resources & my experience). What better time to share some facts than around World Ostomy Day?!

Men's Health Week has nearly come to an end (14th - 20th June). Obviously from my blog posts here with Comfizz, you read a lot about how life is for me as a female with IBD and a stoma. It's widely known that women often seem to be a lot more forthcoming in talking our their struggles & experiences in general, let alone with something so personal, so it's been really nice to hear from Neil, Andy, Lee, Sean & Keith about their experiences. Thank you so much guys for being so open & sharing your stories & tips.

If I am being completely honest, I am not the biggest lover of the summer I’m sure many people would be shocked at that as summer tends to be everyone’s favourite but I like autumn best! Sure, I like the longer days and the days out are far more enjoyable (or at least the kids whine less!) I am also more aware of my ileostomy as I wear less layers, I can’t say more dresses because I pretty much live in them all year round. No, it is because I notice my bag being damper from sweat, which has led to skin irritations and rashes and then the base plate being gummier. I generally find this is when it moves...

Having a stoma comes with its own ups and downs. Many of us have different experiences however I can imagine most of us experience the same problem with having a stoma – the horrible red, itchy and/or sore skin around the stoma (known as Peristomal Skin) Peristomal skin problems are usually very common however these are not normal, but the good news is that these can be resolved. As the saying goes, prevention is better than the cure, but if you notice any bumps, discolouration, red or purple patches in the peristomal area and you skin is sore, itchy, or painful, then this may be a sign you have a peristomal skin problem. If you notice any of these symptoms,...

Christmas 2020 is going to be different… That goes without saying! Having a stoma at Christmas can also be a journey to navigate. This post will hopefully give you some hints for getting through the changes that the Christmas period can bring, whether new or well bedded in to stoma life! Staying away from home This Christmas may not fall into this category with the “bubbles” being in place & guidelines for the clinically vulnerable, but hopefully these are pointers that can be used for Christmas’s to come either way. You may feel nervous and apprehensive if you are staying away from home, or have loved ones over to stay that may not know too much about your stoma journey....

This post has an image of a naked stoma surrounded by output. I wouldn’t be doing my role as an advocate any good if I didn’t talk about leaks that stay contained. These happen to many ostomates and affect me probably the same as an “explosion” leak. Leaks either way they happen can be incredibly upsetting to the person experiencing it. The leaks that explode out from underneath the baseplate are ones you have to think fast before you need to wash more than just your clothes. The contained leaks are the slow burners as to speak. These ones are the ones that do the most damage to your skin. The ones that start with a sharp itch, but sometimes its...

Naked stoma in this post. Last week I spoke about some of the struggles I had been having with regards to my ileostomy and I try to talk about the good and the bad. Sometimes I hate my stoma. Actually scratch that I hate the things that make life with a stoma more difficult. Like hypermobile Ehlers Danlos Syndrome (hEDS) and eczema. – with the hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome my stoma has started to fall in on its self; which is easier to deal with than a prolapse or at least I think so. But it allows leaks to happen as there is now a gap between my skin and the bag.– the eczema often ends up in me scratching my bag off....

Recently I have faced quite a few struggles with my ileostomy and they have taken quite the toll on my mental health; this comes after having my ostomy for over 4 years and having little to no issues prior to this. Some of the struggles I have been experiencing are: leaks – I do suffer with leaks but these have been happening far more often than usual sore peristomal skin itching increase in retraction swelling blockages soreness stoma cramping – this is probably my bowel kinking or becoming caught on adhesions and my goodness it is some of the most debilitating pain I have ever been in! To an extent I have experienced all of these before but not to this...

You may, or may have never, heard of this term. You may have also heard it being spoken about along with protruding or retracting stomas. A flush stoma is a stoma that sits level with the abdominal skin level. My experience with a flush stoma I have had issues with this, which was caused by a narrowing just before skin level, just inside my abdominal cavity a few centimeters behind my stoma. The narrowing was causing my stoma to be pulled back down to the skin level. A few things can cause a flush stoma such as surgical technique, a narrowing behind the stoma as I have just mentioned, weight gain/loss and it can also simply just occur over time...

Understandably, what is going on in the world right now with Covid-19 can be very daunting & scary at times for a number of reasons. We have all had to make changes, some of them quite dramatic, in a very short space of time. Some of us may have sadly experienced the virus closer to home or have tragically lost someone as a result of Covid-19. There is so much uncertainty around what may happen or how long adapted life like this will pan out, but I wanted to take this opportunity to hopefully provide a little bit of reassurance on living with a stoma at this time, & hopefully answer a few questions you may understandably have. If I...