Her name was Wendy but I called her Heaven. She liked that. Her green eyes would light up and I would see the light of a perfect future shining out, washing over me, caressing me. Everything about her oval face was the way it ought to be: her small, slightly freckled nose turned up slightly, and her lips – what can I say about those lips? “Don’t tell your parents that I call you Heaven, okay? They might think I’m some kind of weirdo.” I could see that she understood completely. After a couple of dates, we started making out. I couldn’t believe what a good kisser she was. Soon it progressed to more advanced exploration. This is real love, I thought. I was beginning to get carried away. I forgot about my ostomy completely which, in retrospect, amazes me. Love can turn a person upside down. Our hands were exploring each other. I felt her fingers go down inside my shorts. “What’s this?” she exclaimed, pulling her hand away. My heart missed a beat. I tried to tell her what it was. “Eww,” she wheezed. My Heaven had turned to Hell. But all was not lost. The following month, I met the girl I’d marry. We just celebrated anniversary number fifty-two. Now that’s Heaven.

This is a remarkable community of 40,920 members.
You will get real advice from fellow ostomates who truly understand you - things you won't find in the books.
And it's not all about ostomy - there is friendship and relationships too.
Privacy is very important - your profile is not visible to the outside world.
past member
After I got my ostomy I found this site and got a lifetime membership. I have had so much help from the core members, things that even the wound care nurses didn't know. If you haven't been through this journey you don't know - only the people that have experienced this first hand truly understand what your going through. The support is enormously helpful getting through this. Afterwards when you start to learn how to deal with this new normal you can begin to help others. ...mtnman.
Learn about some strategies that can make it easier to talk about your stoma.