2 Quick Questions from a new kock pouch

[AliT]

I'm almost 3 months into this and I am trying to get into some sort of a schedule for emptying the pouch....

1) Must you intubate 1st thing in the morning? I sometimes don't "feel like" I need to. I don't feel "full" but I'm wondering if there is some kind of medical reasoning why I might need to, like jump-starting the system, to get things flowing....

2) I've been told that I have a small hernia next to my stoma. This is making it difficult to get the catheter thru the valve and into the pouch. A little scarey at times but Dr. Fazio wants to hold off on any further surgery until I've healed more, maybe 6 months!
Has anyone dealt w/ this issue?
Any tricks to easier "tubing" ?

Thanks, Ali.

[lesson]

Ali
I can't help you with the hernia question.
I can't remember if I was told to "tube" as I woke up or if it just became the routine.

[barbie]

Shouldn't Dr. Fazio or his nurse Marlene be able to give you some information to help you get the catheter in?

[Lynne]

Ali,

I, also empty my pouch first thing in the morning, late in the afternoon, and before bed. Congradulations on your new pouch - I haven't heard from you and was wondering how you were doing !

Lynne

[chrisc]

Hey AliT,

One of the reasons that you MAY want to empty first thing in the AM is to keep the pressure from building inside the pouch. It MAY make it easier to get the cath in with your hernia.

I don't know if it will work for you but when I have trouble "tubing" Dr. F recommended lying on the bathroom floor and inserting it. It seems to relax the "pushing" that the hernia may be trying to do.

Ofcourse if your bathroom is small (like mine) it can make it REALLY interesting

Glad to see you're back!

chrisc

[AliT]

Whoops....only 3 months later....For some reason i didn't know that anyone had actually responded to my post Isn't this site supposed to let you know about that? Anywhooooo, Thanks ladies for giving me some feedback. Chris - still funny as ever !

I'm still dealing w/ the "hernia" and having much trouble getting the catheter all the way into the pouch on the first try. I usually have to go in-and-out a few times. It's weird because sometimes I have to give up altogether, freeze the tube, and try again 20 minutes later. And then other times I can get it in w/o much difficulty at all. And it isn't like the valve is off at a weird angle, it seems to be right there. Any thoughts on that?

I was scheduled to see Dr. Fazio at the end of next week and probably do a repair, but during one of my regular exams, they found a rather large 'mass' behind my uterus and I now have to deal w/ that first. So I lost my time slot w/ the good doctor and now must wait until September before Fazio can see me ! Ouch !

Has anyone dealt w/ any of the other surgeons at The CCF - Ohio?
I don't really want to go to anyone else but I guess I may have to in an emergency.

Thanks, Ali.

see you all in 3 months..just kidding - I'll be much better at checking into this site

[Lynne]

Ali,
Good to see you back ! there's a place at the bottom of the page where you type in your reply where you can check off that you want to be notified of replies to the thread. That will keep you "in the loop".
Lynne

[Bob Webtech]

For some reason i didn't know that anyone had actually responded to my post Isn't this site supposed to let you know about that?

As Lynne pointed out, you can select the "Notify me when a reply is posted" checkbox near the bottom of the posting window, to notify you when a reply is posted to a particular message. As another option, you can go to your Profile (by clicking the Profile link at the top of any page in this discussion board) and select "Always notify me of replies" so you'll be notified when anybody replies to any of your posts.

Bob

[AliT]

Thank you Lynne and Bob for your help.
I'll be sure to check off those boxes!

Ali

[TAM22]

Hi,
I'm considering one of the two pouches, Barnett pouch or ouitside ostomy. How has the inside pouch been working for you? It seems like an easier solution, but does it get infected?

tam22

[AliT]

I had an ileostomy for 10 years. I had a J-pouch for 1 1/2 years and I've had my kock pouch for 6 months now. I really like this system the best. It's awfully nice to have it all on the inside vs. the bag! It's definitely easier and a lot more comfortable.

I only had pouchitis once back when I had my ileostomy. I took meds and it cleared up rather easily. Unless you're really prone to reoccurring pouchitis/infections I don't think you should let that hold you back.

I wish you the best in which ever system you decide to go w/.

Ali