Learn with Comfizz
Travel

Summer brings visions of carefree days basking in the sun, picnics and holidays, but it can also be a time of heightened body anxiety as we naturally reveal more of our bodies than in winter months. Then for those with an ostomy, this body anxiety can become a much bigger issue. The switch to lighter, more revealing clothing can trigger insecurities about being able to confidently conceal the ostomy pouche. Let's face it, ostomy pouches aren't exactly beachwear chic. The constant battle between comfort, practicality, and wanting to feel confident in your body can be a real struggle. Of course for some ostomates, the need to conceal the pouch at all times is not a concern but we are all...

Welcome to our Day 10 (the final day of our "10 days of self-care") & thank you for putting you first & joining us. Our focus today is to enjoy the fresh air outdoors, after looking into why spending time outdoors can improve your health.

Travelling feels like such a luxury after the last two years. I am eagerly awaiting my family holiday with the family and can’t wait for my toes to touch the sand and feel the salty sea air on my skin. Is there anything better? Fish and chips at the seaside, the kids playing outside care free, and that dreaded morning alarm set too silent. If you have kids it won’t make much different mind! But, just being able to turn it off feels so rebellious! Packing for a family is a task in itself. Inevitably something will get left, and if you are like me you will have to buy more sun-cream as you leave it at the beach or...

Travelling with an ostomy for the first time for any journey can be daunting, to say the least. It could be months since you've had your surgery or years, but it's safe to say that whenever it is, it's perfectly understandable to have many questions & worries.

On a walk the other week with my children’s dad I realised I needed to empty my stoma and we were in the middle of the moors and there were no bins for miles; for me to empty into a disposable bag and pop it in. So obviously I had to empty off the beaten track which is not my favourite thing to do but I was more shocked at what he said to me when I told him I needed to empty. 

September 4th is #NationalWildlifeDay so I thought I would take this opportunity to talk to you about how my relationship with the outdoors has changed since my stoma surgery in 2011. Rewind to pre 2011 & pre surgery Especially when flaring with Crohn's Disease, I experienced...

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. 

I have always been one of those people that adores the great outdoors but not so fond of just sitting about in the garden I need to be doing something outside. Due to my multiple chronic health conditions I always had some anxiety in the back of my head regarding solo treks; this year I decided to break that fear and go off by myself, don’t get me wrong having Kobe helps plus the odd friend who will join me on occasion too. Having an ileostomy certainly hasn’t stopped me from going off and enjoying myself.

So this is my first summer holidays where having both kids at home all the time isn’t the norm as Ra-Ra started school last September. It is also difficult for me because I have become more fatigued than normal due to mental health which is now affecting my ostomy. Being a chronically ill or mentally ill parent or even just a parent (I have plenty of healthy friends who struggle just as much) comes with it’s problems as well as the joy that kiddliwinks can bring. So I thought I would write a little post offering some solidarity. Children don’t amount value to things so they can often want things or do things that you simply just can’t afford at...

I have a guest post this week from Rio; she got in touch with me wanting to share her story and I thought it would be a good idea to share it here as surgery is surgery! Are you thinking about having or a have a jpouch? I don’t have many positive things to say about when I had mine so I thought this post is absolutely perfect and will put your worries to bed! The Beginning My story starts at the beginning of 2009 when I started having symptoms of what I now know to be Ulcerative Colitis. It was my first year of University and I was living away from home in halls. I suddenly got ill with...