UOAA Discussion Board

I recently had a colostomy (July 9) and and doing fine with it except I have been having blowouts in the middle of the night. I make sure my bag is empty before going to bed, but I wake up in the middle of the night with a blow out. It seems my bowel movements have decided to wait until then. Am I eating dinner too late? How can I get back on a "normal" schedule?

By blowout, do you mean output, or system failure and leaks?

Talk to your doctor about irrigating. Some doctors seem to approve it right away, others want patients to wait a few months.

Irrigation gives you more control over when and where you need to deal with output. There's an irrigation subforum at
viewforum.php?f=12

IowaGirlie, after my operation, I was encountering the same issue. My resolution was a body pillow. Prior to surgery, I had always been a stomach sleeper, and that is just not possible any longer. To keep me from rolling over on my stomach at night, we bought a body pillow that I hug up to, and that has largely fixed that issue. I will periodically still have a blowout, but there are no more at night than during the day (less than a half-dozen total per year). I had never used a pillow prior to surgery so I was reluctant to try one, but I never sleep without it now.