A funny oddness about stoma bags, is ballooning. I suppose its my breaking wind that causes it. I first encountered this oddity on the ward. I woke up and felt the balloon under my nightie, and when I stood up to go and empty, I had to hold it up slightly otherwise it feels like it is dragging enough to come off altogether. I am used to this now, but cannot believe someone hasn’t invented something to stop this happening. I mean, stomas have been around for years and bags have got much better since the early days when a sponge was attached to the opening with an elastic bandage to absorb the leakage, this was in 1776 and was the first successful ostomy.Previous to that ,the procedure was not effective and they couldn’t control infection.
I expect manufacturers are looking into ways of perfecting the pouches, but farting and blowing up the bag? really?
Another annoyance is pancaking, and it pretty much is what it sounds like. The poo has flattened and is squeezed between the pouch base and the skin, so it leaks onto the skin and then the skin becomes sore. I seem to be lucky and only had this happen once, and very minimally.
I had my first shower without my wound plaster today. It was wonderful, the final scabby bit has gone and this means I can now have a proper deep bath too.
It still looks like a second belly button, but I suppose it is something I will have to accept. Again, its better than the alternative. Bio oil here I come….
Sleep is something that gets disturbed for many reasons. Obviously the stoma doing its thing through the night can wake you up, either because the bag is getting too full or the sensation is enough to wake you. But an important factor for many people would be your thoughts. Especially in the early months, or when there are still issues, it can be hard to shut down. As soon as the lights go out, my mind goes in to overdrive ,and I relive the horrible experiences I went through , and my time recovering. I was given sleeping pills which really help me when I need them, I do struggle to get up before 11am if I have had one though, as my husband likes to remind me.
I have also started my counselling sessions, which are an eye opener. It is nice to talk to someone who has the expertise to help you get your thoughts in order. I am not sure if it will help in the long run, but I am happy to try. She is very amenable, and makes me go deeper into my feelings. When she asked me to tell my story, she said I was good at telling the story but at no time did I say how I felt at each point. Also she said I was good at worrying what everyone else was thinking and feeling but not myself.
She was perfectly correct.
