Managing Colostomy Bag in High Humidity - Need Tips!

Hey guys,

I've had my colostomy bag since May 16th. I'm a bricklayer and sweat profusely this time of year. I've had to replace my bag every day and almost can't get through a workday with the humidity and sweating. I have an ostomy belt and it helps, but are there any tapes or things I can do to help the problem? My insurance only covers 20 bags a month, so I have to figure something out fast because, as we know, they are expensive. Thanks for the tips.

Morning Elijahblusmith....there are adhesive tapes, 3M medical waterproof tape, duct tape, etc. available....get yourself some and place them around the edges of your wafer and skin to see how that works....3M works great, get a waterproof one.....

You could also get snap-together baby bibs at dollar stores, remove the backing, and snap them around the pouch. After it's on, it will help absorb the heat and sweat between the pouch and body....do the tape and that....

Have a great weekend. Hope it helps.

Tracy

Do you use a barrier ring? I'm out in the heat/humidity too and haven't had any issues yet. Maybe try a different brand as a different brand may stick better.

Hi Elijah,

Yes, 3M makes a tape specifically for people like you. It's called Micropore and comes in white and skin color (Caucasian skin). The feature that makes it work is that it gets stickier when wet. It's pressure sensitive, so when you put it on you press and hold for a few seconds and you're done. I wear it in the pool for hours, and sweat a lot too. It's never come off. I use whatever adhesive remover wipes I have on hand to remove, but it's not hard to take off. Check out the whole 3M line of medical tapes, as they have a range of stickiness........I think Micropore is in the middle. Really fantastic stuff. If that doesn't work..........let us know and we'll see what else is available. But 3M is a good place to start.

Here's the 3M link.......Micropore is a medical paper tape, but this is the page before if you want to look around

https://www.3m.com/3M/en_US/p/c/medical/tapes-films/

Here's the Amazon link for Micropore

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=3m+micropore+tape ref=nb_sb_noss

;O)

Bob

Bob, you're bloody amazing! Thank you for the links. I'm checking to see if it's available on Amazon Canada...

I want to try it as I am testing Hollister bags, but I have found that on day 2, it blows out on the right-hand side. I really like the bag itself, but compared to the 7-day Coloplast, I want to give it a fair try...

Have a great weekend and thank you for the proper name and link.

Tracy

PS: What width do you use?

Yes, I do use a barrier ring. Thanks for the tips, man.

Yes, I do use a barrier ring. Thanks for the tips, man.

Try Brava Elastic Barrier strips by Coloplast part 120700. Call Coloplast; they will send you samples. They have major bag holding power, keep out water when you are swimming or taking a shower. They mold and move with your body. If they work out, ask your doctor to add them to your ostomy supplies so your insurance can cover the cost. Ostomy supplies have outrageous prices!

Hielijahblusmith, do you just change your bag every time instead of rinsing them out and reusing them a few times? I think most of us have to do that.

Thank you so much.

It's really nice to have you guys to ask questions to, I'm really grateful for this website.

I now use 3M Tegaderm tape on all 4 sides. This has really stabilized the whole thing. This tape gets harder to remove the longer it is left. I get a full week and don't put anything extra on my skin when changing. Good luck.

This is for a guy from Illinois with a recent colostomy needing daily changes.

I've had my ileostomy for 40 years.

First, do your appliances use Caraya as a sealant? Caraya melts at skin temperature. Get an appliance with anything else as the sealant gasket. THEN get Stoma Adhesive paste (comes in a tube like toothpaste) and add a ring of paste on top of whatever material the appliance sealant ring has, even if it is Caraya.

That should make your appliance seal way better. Mine lasts a week even in summer heat, sweat, and strenuous activity.

Caraya melts at skin temperature, start there if your issue is the sealant ring is failing causing you such frequent changes.

Good luck.

Learn to irrigate before work and you won't have to wear a bag or deal with the issues. It's life changing, I promise.

Hi elijahblusmith,

I do not know if this will help, but Sure Seal is what I use. I put it on over the flange when I change my appliance and it stays secure even with the hot summers here in Arizona.

Have you tried irrigation? It takes less than an hour and for most of us is done every other day, for some every third day.

You can get MD to increase the number of wafers/bags on your prescription so you can order more. I use duct tape to hold my wafers down.

I use the Hollister one-piece ostomy bag and Adapt adhesive paste. I've even showered with it on two days in a row. It stays put.

Duct tape? That can't be good for long-term skin care.

Hi Elijah, my name is Marsha, and I have my ileostomy for over 66 years, since I was a kid of 15... You do know that there is a difference between an ileostomy and a colostomy... with an ileostomy, most or all of the large intestine (colon) is removed... that's where the body "stores" feces, until it's ready to be pushed out... By not having a colon, an ileostomy runs all the time according to eating and digestive schedule... With a colostomy... you may still have some colon (storage area left) and many people are able to irrigate once a day, or every other day, and therefore control the release of stool... The rest of the time, they can wear a "smaller pouch", which is just meant to cover the stoma or catch small amounts of output... You don't say what you do to manage your "colostomy"... Some people have what used to be called a "wet colostomy", where very little of the colon is left in, so in essence it works like an ileostomy... Output can't be regulated... You say you have to "change your bag daily"? My bag/pouch fills up 3-4 times a day, and so I use a pouch with a spout and empty every 3-4 hours... and just wipe off the spout and clip it up until the next time... It's not clear whether you have to change so often because of the pouch, or if you get a leak under the wafer... While I don't work outdoors... I do like to go to the beach or pool, swim... and take showers once or twice a day... My wafer generally holds up for about a week... I use the Convatec system, with molded wafers, and also started to use the "Eaken" seal (an additional smaller wafer, to fill in the depressions on my belly, under the stoma... Tape is also another important variable... The best I've found is "Scanpoor" (2" ) wide, which I put around all 4 sides of the wafer... taping it down to my skin... That tape was like a second skin... When insurance no longer covered it, I switched to 3M... They have 3 different tapes... try all of them, to see which works best for you (I like the brown tape, since it's more paper-like, and sticks on the skin through hot showers or cold ocean water... But I also travel everywhere with a roll of tape... just in case of a leak... Not sure if your problem is with the wafer sticking (if so, you can still rinse out and use the same bag) That's what I had to do in the olden days... when the pouches were made of rubber, and were meant to be reused... The wafers were plastic, and we used a flammable glue/cement... to attach the wafer to the belly... Things are easier now, but Medicare should pay for what you need... even if you have to change every day... My distributor always asks what I have "left", but I always claim I use more than I do... just for the times I may need to change more often... Ask more questions... and if you haven't tried other supplies, call other companies, and ask for samples... There are also some helpful videos online that show how other people change/manage their ostomy supplies... you might find it helpful... Even if you need to change the wafer every day... the pouch can be reused... Unless you are using a sealed pouch without a spout... Get back to us if you have more questions... Best regards, Marsha

Whoops.......It's Marsha again.....my math was wrong... I have the ostomy since I was 15....but that was "only" 59 years....not 66...(duh) I'm 74 now.....so either way, it's a lifetime....

Hey buddy, sounds like you've been suffering with it! I've had an ileostomy since 2019 ... no matter what type we have, it seems we all have the same anxiety when it comes to leakage, etc! I hate it as I can't 100% trust it! It took me a long time to find the right bag/appliance that suits me ... in the end, I found the Salts BE bags work best ... and believe it or not, we had a massive heat wave here in England this summer, and they held on okay .... what you need to do is get a ring seal so you put that on first before the bag, and that creates an extra barrier around the stoma (so the stuff from the stoma doesn't leak under your stoma bag's sticky bit) ... and also, if you want, you can get what we call 'banana skins' that stick outside of the bag and you can make them surround the seal of your bag (on the outside) so that gives extra protection .... check out this link:

https://www.coloplastcharter.co.uk/Charter/coloplast/brava/rings-paste-and-tape/brava-elastic-tape/?utm_campaign=CHA_UK_EN_AW_TEXT_OC_SP_Generic-Product_BMM+(Collected)&gclid=Cj0KCQjw852XBhC6ARIsAJsFPN1qG39WQCmETCsGt_vRS2n8hL-VnllNyTEjAuMa0Z837k6WF9xHBsgaAiluEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

Not sure if you can get this in the US, but hope this helps :)

Greg :)

Duct Tape??? Not on the skin?!?!?! We must be VERY careful of what we apply to the skin surrounding a stoma and also make sure to use removal spray when taking off appliances!! I've just ripped off things and it's caused massive skin problems!!

Yes, I try to use my bag for at least 2 days at a time.

I'm in construction and remodeling, and I'm often in hot and humid environments, inside and out. I use ConvaTec 022771 because they have a tape collar. I also use Smith and Nephew no sting skin prep wipes. I rinse and wash my bag out fairly often throughout the day, depending upon output, but using these bags, I'm able to keep a bag on as long as I want, which is usually 3 to 4 days.

Try Hypafix dressing retention tape, or Hy-Tape. Both are available on Amazon or probably drug stores. They both work well. Just tape around your wafer.

If you place these around your bag and then place your belt on top, it holds longer.