If you’re an ostomate, you’ve probably realized there’s a big learning curve to this, and if you’re dealing with the condition that you have, it can be a bit of a challenge for some people.
Luckily though, we have tips and tricks that you can use to help you get the most out of your ostomy experience, and to properly take care of each and every part of this.
Avoiding your Backsplash
If you are emptying into the toilet, you may want to be careful with backsplash, since it’s gross.
Try to flush it as you empty this out, since it might help.
You also can sit within the toilet to empty this, putting toilet paper over the contents and from there have it onto the seat part of the toilet. Empty it with it hitting the paper rather than the water.
Removing Hair Around it
A lot of people struggle with hair in this area, especially males with coarser and larger hair. There also may impact how the wafer sticks, and also may be irritating and hurting if you pull on this.
Hair removal is important at this stage, and you should try to use electric shavers rather than blades for obvious reasons, since it’ll prevent stoma damage.
If you do this in the shower, you want to gently shave the area with a razor and soap with no additives. Once is more than enough with this too.
Changing on Empty Stomachs
It’s best to change right when you first wake up, since it can impact the output. If you don’t eat for a bit right before you go to bed, change it then too. If you do need to eat in the morning, try to have a nutrient-dense food that’ll impact the blood sugar but won’t cause an output immediately, so that you can change it.
Changing After Showering
Another time to consider changing is after you shower, since you can remove this while you’re in the tug, and then do your shower without a bag. This of course is easy to do, and then once you’re out, you just put the appliance back on, and it also is good for skin health, since it does expose that area to air, which offers health benefits.
Rinsing that Appliance
Some people actually will rinse out their appliances with water after they empty. Although this isn’t mandatory, it’s actually a convenient type of way to really take care of the appliance, especially if there’s solids on the inside.
A bottle or syringe or dropper or a baster and squiring it into there will push water directly into the appliance itself. You can then swish this and try to do it again.
Lumpy Bellies
And finally, let’s talk about lumpy bellies. Not everyone has a flat tummy, and if you have a lumpy belly, especially if you’ve been through multiple surgeries, you’re not the only one.
If you struggle with fitting the wafer over the lump or the bump, try to make a cut on the outside, towards the inner hole. This may seem strange, but it can help you as well improve the flexibility.
It is important though that you do like 1-2 of these, since otherwise if there are too many cuts within this, there can be a lot of leaks as a result.
It’s hard to be an ostomate, and some people struggle with handling the bags and such. Luckily though, we get it, and hopefully this is helpful for you to use, so you can have a better experience as an ostomate down the line.
Gastrointestinal Health 