UOAA Discussion Board

Hi - I've stopped irrigation after 25 years and am now wearing a Convatec closed pouch or the open bag from Convatec. I am very happy with the products. I've been doing this for a month now and I am still adjusting. I had rectal cancer and I think the surgeon left me with couple of inches of my rectum - which I think has been helpful.

Issues I've run into:

1. Panning - it only occurred once when I wore jeans which were perhaps too tight and poop spread to the side. Fortunately I was home so it was easy to deal with.

2. Excess gas while sleeping (and at other times). The pouch turns into a balloon and feels like it's ready to pop. My solution is to use a pin to prick through the carbon filter a few times. This is OK when I'm in a situation where I can do this privately - but sometimes I can't and have to leave the situation I am in - e.g. on a hike, or at a friends house. Usually, after pricking through the filter, I realize the problem is not because there is excess output - it was simply excess air.

3. I am pretty regular with eating at fixed times but it's hard to know how full the pouch will be after say 8 hours. I sometimes feel comfortable for 24 hours and at other times I feel I need to change after 8 hours. I understand Medicare allows 60 pouches per month so doing it twice per day should be no problem cost wise. But changing at say dinner time is often inconvenient. Do I shower or just wipe things down? My irrigation schedule was always first thing in the morning (as it was before having an ostomy).

4. I've wondered whether doing an occasional irrigation might be a good thing.

I'd love to hear experiences from anyone who has changed away from irrigation.

Thanks

Arnold

I've been thinking of taking a break from irrigating, so will be watching this thread!

It's working fine and it has now been about 6 weeks since I stopped. I am away from home now. I flew with a bag which got pretty full by the time I got to my destination 12 hours later. I don't like the messy job of emptying the bag. Since arriving here (I'll be here for 16 days I have been using two pouches a day - Convatec - and that's been fine. I hike a bit for exercise and notice that sweat reacts with the sticky part of the pouch and my skin needs a good clean when I take the pouch off. Esenta seems to work fine for that.

I switched from a colostomy to an ileostomy in 2015 for many reasons. Due to transit time when I had a colostomy, I felt the need to irrigate more than once daily. I don't want to dissuade those who need ileostomies but will admit that my colostomy was SO much easier to handle. Leakage is now a part of my life and I'm constantly searching for solutions. This is partly because my surgeon placed my ileostomy stoma on a scar which was NOT a good idea. My GI doctor had prescribed diphenoxylate atropine to decrease output. It's stronger than Imodium but my body got used to it so I'm going back on Imodium for a while and then see if the prescription med works again.

I'd love to find a high-output pouch that really works well. I've tried Coloplast's and Convatec's -- issues with both. Sometimes I'll wear an irrigation sleeve if I know I can't empty for a while and they do better with gas.

Pancaking has ALWAYS been an issue for me and I wish something could be invented to help with this. So many others struggle with this. No, inserting a small amount of oil inside doesn't seem to help, esp when I am sleeping. And my stoma gets very active at 5 AM.

My situation is different from yours but I wish you good luck.

Well, I just spent three weeks in the hospital, part of it with an NG tube, so I haven't irrigated in a while. It's all back online now, so for the first time in years, I can see my "natural" output cycle. Pretty much around every meal, or whenever I think of food.

I plan to start irrigating again, just as soon as I have the stamina for it. I planned to start tonight, but took a nap instead.

When I get a gas buildup, I discreetly pop open a tiny section of the tupper connection.

Finally irrigated last night. Lost two pounds!
Oh, yeah, that's why I do it; emptiness and control!

I occasionally take a break just to get a reset.

Last one was for 3 months. Was very happy to return to the fold afterward.

I have tried occasional irrigation but

I think the reset was worthwhile. Proved my body still worked "normally". Aging always brings changes and it is nice to know what they are. Not irrigating is more expensive due to additional supply requirements. I do not mind the time requirements as I can play games and watch tv on a tablet.

I wear a small pouch about half the time. Filters always fail but my solution is to use a single sheet of TP folded into 1/6 and binder clipped to the top of the pouch with multiple single plys pointed down. The binder clip is the tiniest available and I use 1" paper tape to keep the top of the pouch always upright. The TP works as a prefilter and extends the usable life of the pouch.

I really wish the producers would come up with a replaceable filter, but I think economics prevent that.

Good luck with your endeavor.

Interesting comments by Mikem on this and another recently updated thread about irrigation - that the cost savings has made it less recommended for financial reasons. That makes a lot of sense for sure!!

As far as additional supplies obviously being necessary and expensive, luckily I have always had insurance that covers everything after a small annual deductible....

Have an ileostomy myself so am not one who can do it....