Karate and my ostomy

[Deanmadonia]

I just had a rectal resection for cancer and I have a loop ileostomy for the next 6 months until my last round of chemo.

I had my surgery 3 weeks ago and I miss karate like crazy. Who has an ostomy and is trying? What belt/pouch/guard do you use?

[ot dave]

I applaud and encourage you to remain active with your ostomy. However, being just 3 weeks out of surgery, I would think your surgeon might suggest that you wait another 5 weeks or so. At that point, when the surgeon gives you clearance, you should definitely get back into your routines. As far as Karate goes, I think your stoma could take some contact, but it should be avoided. The stoma has a lot of very thin capillaries that will break with contact and cause a lot of bleeding. There are ostomy guards on the market, one that comes to mind is ostomy armor...here's a link: https://www.ostomyarmor.com/contact-us/ Just a side note, I'm an occupational therapist and I have access to thermoplastic material (hand splints are what this is primarily used for), and I was able to create a stoma guard that looks a lot like the ostomy armor products. If you're inclined, you might find an occupational therapist in your area that could create something like these for you that would be custom fit to your needs/desires.

You should also consider the possibility of hernia formation with this type of activity and wear an abdominal binder over anything that protects the stoma while engaging in karate.

I'm a big fan of getting back to your daily life after ostomy, so if you've got clearance from your surgeon and you've done all you can to protect your new stoma, I say back to it!

David