Tips for Pancaking Post-Surgery?

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

Thanks

Hello,

It's going to take a while for your body to recover and your digestive system to finish adapting to a stoma. Usually 1 to 2 months.

You can try lubricating deodorizer. Hollister and other medical manufacturing companies sell it. Call them and ask for a free sample. It kind of works at first. You have to rinse out the bag and reapply often.

Some ostomates use a small amount of baby oil added to the bag. Work the oil around inside the bag.

Start a food diary. Eat something. See what happens, and record the results. Everyone is a little different.

Keep a little air in the bag. If you have a 2-piece system, open up the bag top seal, gently pull the bag plastic apart to draw air inside, and reseal. This gives more room for output.

Pancaking happens. I just live with it. When I get a lot, I squeeze and manipulate the output down toward the bag bottom. If the bag is really coated with sticky output, I snap on a new bag. I use the Hollister 2-piece system with a moldable barrier ring.

Be careful. Do not lift anything heavy for several months. Ostomies can develop a peristomal hernia very easily. I have one. It looks like a bump under or next to your stoma. It can get bigger over time. When you cough or sneeze, try to firmly hold a pillow against your stomach. There are ostomy support belts available. Nu-Hope Corporation makes nice comfortable ones and offers a variety of styles, sizes, and widths. Your medical supplier can get them for you. It hasn't been proven that a belt prevents hernia, but it's worth a try. I wear a Nu-Hope belt nearly every day. It holds in my hernia nicely. I also have another belt from them with a prolapse strap used to flatten my stoma. It hides my ostomy well with a button-down shirt. I wore it yesterday to a funeral.

Take care

Excellent advice. Agreed... Did they also tell you to stay hydrated? That's one thing a lot of people neglect is drinking their fluids.

Since you are relatively new to the ostomy world, I would definitely look into it if I were you.

And of course, keep asking questions.

I just want you colostomates to know... pancakes used to be my favorite breakfast food. Then I found this website and can now never look at pancakes the same. Thanks for that. Makes me want to pour maple syrup over all your heads. Just f&*king with ya!

;O)

You can still enjoy pancakes. Just get the ones with chocolate chips... yummy.

Getting Support in the Ostomy Community with LeeAnne Hayden | Hollister

Smart,

What type of ostomy do you have? Ileo, colostomy?

I thought my colostomy was going to be temporary. Didn't happen.

Yo!!! Bob, you can still eat pancakes... just wear a blindfold and a clothespin for the nose 😋

They're all temporary... because we all are!

;O)

Nice visual!! Stoma fart downloading in three, two, one-

Yes... everything in life is temporary. Someday our sun will run out of fuel, expand, shrink, then disintegrate in a flashy supernova. Just not next week.

Waffles?

Actually, I "waffle" when figuring out which syrup to pour on my pancakes.

😹

I actually have a water app, and have been averaging approximately 70 oz daily, so I've got that covered 🙏 thank you

Yes! Unless someone on here starts describing their output as 'waffling'.

;O)

😸😹 That remark had me spewing coffee. ROFL. Thank you!!!

Colostomy, I am also going through cancer, Acute Myeloid Leukemia, since 12/22. This is temporary. I developed diverticulitis, and it perforated my colon. Luckily, I didn't die. I still need a bone marrow transplant. 😵‍💫🥴 Lots of bumps in the road for me.

Colostomy, I am also going through cancer Acute Myeloid Leukemia since 12/22, this is temporary. I developed diverticulitis and it perforated my colon. Lucky I didn't die… still need a bone marrow transplant 😵‍💫🥴 lots of bumps in the road for me.

Yes, lots of bumps... potholes... detours indeed.

All manageable with help and patience and guidance.

You live in God's country up there. He has His eyes on you.

You've got this.

You sure? Cuz IHOP has those chocolate chip babies... chips melt right on your tongue. Yummy... seconds please.

...

My bag was flatulating.

My advice on pancaking is to use baby oil in the pouch for lubricant and make sure you have a bit of air in the pouch. Walmart sells a scented baby oil that helps with odor as well. Drink plenty of water as it makes output less pasty. Good luck.

I asked the company that supplies my bags in the UK for their suggestions. They recommended baby oil in the bag, and I rub the leftovers from my finger onto my scar; it helps with healing. They also suggested rolling up a bit of tissue paper and putting it in the bag. They advised doing what Beachboy suggested: just move it down with your fingers, which apparently is "socially acceptable"! I also find I need to do that to make sure the stoma itself isn't blocked by a big lump of pancaked poo. There's also a theory that if you half-cover the filter with a bit of something, that helps. Our bags here come with little stickers in the box.

But as Beachboy says, if all else fails, I push it down the bag.

I love that new superpower, seeing everyone looking round clearly thinking "what the hell was that?" But for a while I was blaming the dog, I truly didn't realise it was me. I even bought the dog some charcoal tablets!