MY OSTOMY IS MY NORMAL. It follows, then, that my ostomy is normal. My dictionary says that normal is the usual, typical, expected. Precisely. It’s all I know. It’s there when I get up in the morning, it calls to me after every meal, and it lies down with me every night. The best day of my life was when, years and years ago, in some long-forgotten moment of my past, I came to regard ...

Hi everyone! I first posted here back in March of 2024, and it's been a wild ride.
Last November, I had a completely clear PET scan and was able to reverse my ileostomy surgery. I had no idea how difficult it was going to be to wake my colon back up and have all the organs down there play nice with each other. I was in the hospital for almost 3 weeks just waiting to poop. It finally happened, ...

I'm a fairly new ostomate and have been practicing a lot with changing my bags. I've been using Hollister one-piece bags for about 4-5 months but I have a hernia which makes the adhesive wrinkle and it doesn't last as long as I would like. I tried using a sample of the convex Sensura bag but it already leaked after the first day. Looking for recommendations about which bags seem to be the best ...

My daughter-in-law gave me a wonderful way to help with the disposal of my ostomy bags. She got me a diaper genie, and now I toss the mess in the bag into the genie. She recommends not using the latest model but the original style with tie-your-own bag.
I hope this helps.

This message is for debyoung3566.
I went through a lot of the same issues you are having since I had my ileostomy replaced with a BCIR in 2009.
I'm not sure what products are there now. Have you followed up with an ostomy nurse? They may be able to
help you.
I too live in Vero. We could meet for coffee at one of the Paneras; we can compare notes. I'm not sure if I would be
of any help. Like yo ...

It's been a while since I've posted - been on a social media sanity break. When I did check in, I had over 260 unread posts, and instead of trying to reply to them all, I thought I'd say welcome to all the new folks on the site!
You have found yourself in a club nobody wants to be in. But in my case, as with many others here, we would not be alive without our stomas, so here we are.
When I had ...

Well, mostly. For the pool, I was so afraid of leaks that I bought a swim bottom meant for menstruating women, labeled as “waterproof.” I know! For swimming! Ha. I wear them under my longer boy short bottoms with a loose tank top.
I haven't had leaks, but I feel more confident.

I’ve been using Hollister new image, flat skin barriers for the better part of 15 years and at least once a week I would experience some leakage underneath the skin barrier between my skin and the barrier. This was always frustrating because it meant that the skin barrier only lasted for a few days.
A couple of weeks ago I decided to try their convex skin barrier and I am absolutely e ...

I was pleased to be able to Read The Study Report of the previously Closed Clinical Trial of TIES III 'continent' implant device: - Which I have copied below courtesy of Publishers NHS Health Research Authority.
Prof Jayne makes the point that as the Clinical Trial was stopped early - a decision reflecting the need to redesign TIES and continue potentially as a single arm open study [[it w ...

Hi, with all due respect to everyone, I joined this group to actually find someone with the same case as my boss's husband. He has a double ostomy, and I believe it has been hard for him since he's been in and out of the hospital for the last 2 to 3 years. This time, he's going for another surgery to fix his hernia, which is, by the way, the second surgery for hernia this year. I would really ...

Hello fellow ostomates! I have been following for a year and a half. This site is the best thing I have found in my new “normal.” I have tried taking my multivitamin; it makes my stool jet black! Does anyone on here have that problem? I have not been able to gain my weight back, and my appetite is not good most of the time. I had emergency surgery in April 2023; this site has been a lifesa ...