Hi, I am looking for people close to me who know what I am going through and dealing with an ileostomy. I am in Ashland, Kentucky; my area is considered the tri-state area of Kentucky, Ohio, and West Virginia. If you want, look me up on Facebook or Instagram, Luauna Daniels

Greetings Ostomates!
So… I'm new(ish) here, joined a while back but have never posted. Got my ileostomy May of last year after decades of Crohn's & two bouts of colon cancer. Happy to report I'm doing well and still here! I think I've adjusted pretty well to the new routine. It took a few months of testing products to land on a good appliance that lasts a solid 7+ days before swapping out, b ...

Been anxiously awaiting for today. I have great confidence in my medical team. Started evacuating my bowels. The large capacity bag from Hollister has been a huge help. I will do my best to document my experience.

Hey OstoMates! I have a question for the men of this site that I'm hoping someone may be able to help me with!
My body is fairly hairy, in particular my abdomen, which is obviously where my stoma is located. Obviously, this can affect adhesion of the bags to the skin.
Do any of you have experience of having to remove hair around your stoma? I'm trying to figure out the best way to do it. I don ...

Let's talk about hernia belts, preferably ones to prevent a hernia.
I am 7 weeks post-op with an ileostomy.
So I am getting very anxious about getting outside and getting some work done, but I will let myself heal up some more.
One of my concerns is developing a hernia.
I talked to my stoma nurse and she said, "Don't get a hernia belt with a hole for your ostomy, because they don't help around ...

I know barrier strips are supposed to be used to add security to my ileostomy wafer, but I have started putting the strip on my skin first, then the wafer on top. This keeps my skin from any adhesive irritation and healthy looking. A must recommendation.

Hey gang, long-time ostomy guy here. Thirteen-plus years with an ileostomy. Generally, no complaints. Crohn's disease, life-saving surgery, great surgeon, good insurance. My question is about how often folks have a seal failure. I've had them on and off over the years, and I've dialed in my products to get a very satisfactory result overall. I try not to let my appliance go too long—about a ...

Any tips on pancaking? I'm a little over 2 weeks post-surgery..
Thanks

First off this is after the removed bag with just residue no-sting paste and wafer. As you can see for some reason the paste didn't harden after 24 hours (as it should have just peeled off) and didn't adhere to the damaged skin.

Apparently this is a product defect of some sort, quality control or some sort of environmental issue perhaps. A grave concern as I've been trying for months now and ...

I saw these on the shelf when I picked up my last order. They do not crinkle. I think I will try them again.

Does anyone wear their ostomy outside their clothing with a cover or inside their clothing? I wear mine inside my clothing. Just wondering what works for people.

For the first time yesterday, I decided to play Osto Roulette and have a bagless shower. I used my lovely new shower gel that I got for Christmas and had no output at all. Result! I then put on my new bag, slathered myself in my new body lotion, and put on my new loungewear... I felt great!
Feeling very pleased with myself, I started to go about my day when I suddenly felt something wet drippi ...

I hope I’m posting this in the right forum. I’ve had my ileostomy for 1 month and I’m having a devil of a time with finding clothing where the ostomy bag doesn’t stand out. I’d appreciate any suggestions. Thank you.

It was hard for me to bring this up worrying about people being judgemental but it's a much needed topic for ostomates in this position and I will never see anyone here outside the forum anyhow.

Found out I had Hep c in the mid 90's and suspect I got it from my ex husband who actually had a liver transplant.

Anyhow I was always afraid of the horror stories of how rough the meds were to ...

Lol... not in that sense! Hehe. I've recently got into more cardio rather than just weight training but, my pouch seems to come undone... even on days I haven't sweat too much. Anyone have any tips/tricks/advice?

As many of you know, I have been home on rest fighting tooth and nail this latest Crohn's flare. I have been feeling better and better every day. I have finally hit the 3-digit mark in my weight and the appetite is coming back, with some crazy cravings. I blame the devil's drug on that one.
However, this past week my guts have been rather loud with gurgling, but the thing that is getting on my ...

Hi everyone! I just found this site and I got my reversal of my ileostomy on Monday last week. I was wondering if anyone had any tips to help me out?
I've been struggling with finding foods that are good for me because I've been back and forth from the bathroom a lot more than I think I should.
If anyone has any advice or tips, feel free to let me know! Thanks!

Wanted to share this little tip I got from an ostomy nurse. Did you know that you can use 4x4 skin barrier sheets to make your own barrier rings?
You can get 2 rings from each sheet by cutting them out yourself. I like to make mine the size of the pouch flange or just a little smaller.
Most pouch makers sell these. My favorites are Convatec Stomahesive and Hollister Hollyhesive.

Hi everyone!
I was wanting to ask about eating granola. I was wanting to add some granola to my yogurt and other things. Do you think this may cause a blockage or something more serious?
Thanks for your advice and input.
Mindy

In prior years, I have always donated my surplus supplies to my ET nurse. She told me this morning that they are no longer allowed to accept them due to a FDA ruling. She said that I could donate them to the American Cancer Society. So if people are looking for supplies you might want to call your local ACS to see if they have them available.