UOAA Discussion Board

Hi everyone -

Still a bit of a newbie, and finally looking to get out and about but am having a few challenges/questions about what to wear. I've read a few great threads here and have already ordered a Stealth Belt and some undies from Comfizz, although nothing has yet arrived. Thanks for the tips!

Today is really the first day I'm dressing in 'real' clothes, I turned my bag sideways and pulled my underwear and pants over so they are on top and waistbands rest above the bag. They are both stretchy material, so they are evenly snug but not binding - feels secure! Is it ok to have this resting tautly flat against the bag ? My stoma is very low profile and doesn't protrude very much, and I just want to be sure I'm not going to 'crunch' it in any way by wearing snug/stretchy stuff across it. My incision is still healing as well, so I've got a bandage to deal with too.

Any additional tips and tricks for getting back out into the world and looking good while doing it?? I am very nervous about getting back out there.

Sending much thanks and wishes for a great day -
Andrea

Hi Andrea,

Welcome to the discussion boards.
Yes, it is ok to have clothing lay tautly over your appliance and stoma. Though they bleed easily, due to the significant amount of capillaries that are present, the stomas are actually pretty resilient. I have taken several hard blows to my stoma over the years, and aside from aggravating the capillaries, I haven't had any issues. In fact, I got hit square on my stoma while warming up my baseball team a couple of weeks ago with a "Total Control Ball".
I have a parastomal hernia too, and I wear an abdominal binder over everything. It stretches enough to allow output if necessary. I'm an irrigator with my colostomy, so I usually don't have output, but when I do, the binder does allow for it to flow into the pouch without any issues.
I highly encourage you to get "back out there". Don't let an ostomy slow you down. You will find ways to make it work for you. I won't lie, it's not all rainbows and unicorns, and you'll probably have a "code brown" at some point in time...I like to use those as life lessons and learn from them. Keep in mind that this is a marathon and not a sprint. Having an ostomy will eventually just become routine...with an occasional "code brown" when you get lazy (ask me how I know )!
You'll start to have specific questions over time, feel free to come back and ask. There is a ton of experience on these boards...someone will most likely have the answers you seek.

David

Fact is. No one will notice you have an ostomy and are wearing a pouch. Like Dave says. Get out there and enjoy life.

Thank you, Dave and Jimbob!! Went out for lunch today for the first time in months (I was in the hospital for 2 long months BEFORE my surgery, so I've been out of circulation for a really long while) - and went ahead and left the house without my 'kit.' - thank goodness, no code brown but I won't forget to do that again. I've got plans to be out pretty much all week, jumping back into life.

Thanks for the advice and the words of encouragement. I did yelp out loud, however, upon reading about your baseball incident, YOWZA.

Looking forward to 'seeing' you on the Boards - thanks again!
Andrea

AJM wrote: 2019-06-03 17:58:04 I did yelp out loud, however, upon reading about your baseball incident, YOWZA.

I wish I could say that it was the first time that happened, but I think they try to hit me on purpose sometimes!

this is my first post and I am not sure I am doing it right .......so let's try a quick question .......I run .....and need to stretch out the time/distance . what are good options for additional pouch support ?? I bought a stealth belt, but am concerned it will cause too much moisture and contribute to a leak ? Jim

Hi Jim,
I have a hernia, so I need support all the time. I wear an abdominal binder all day. I irrigate, so I typically don't have output to deal with throughout the day. The binder helps hold everything in place with good support. You can get them on Amazon for around $20.
Also, I like to wear under armour compression shirts. I usually get 2 sizes too small to get all the support I can.
I have a stealth belt, and never could get it to give me enough support even when I wasn't running. If you're sweating, moisture is going to be there all the time. But, you won't sweat enough to cause a leak. A leak created while running will most likely be caused by the constant movement of your trunk. I sweat pretty heavily with exercise and yard work...never caused an issue. I swim and scuba dive too, still no issue. Leaks are most likely going to be created from the inside out...from the output, or from an appliance that isn't fitting correctly.
To answer your question, I think you would be fine with just a compression shirt for pouch support. Others will be along to share their ideas. Hope that helps.

David

I empty before I hit the treadmill and wear Comfizz’s support undergarments. Never had an issue, but then I am more Tortoise than Hare. A friend of mine at the gym uses a maternity support belt thing to hold his stuff in place and swears by it. He does iron man in that, so it has been fully tested!