Preventing Pancaking and Pouch Leaks: Tips and Solutions

Any solutions to this? I have tried putting lubricant in the pouch, and it helps somewhat, but I still get pancaking that then lifts the pouch off the skin.
I am wondering about others' experiences—would adhesive sprays maybe help?
Or changing from my Eakin dot pouch to another one that's more “pancake resistant?”

G-Day Kristin,

If you have a drainable bag, all you have to do is lift the end of the bag up towards you and open the end, being careful not to spill anything from the bag. Now add to the bag about 3/4 of a cup of water. Now close the bag and swish the water all around inside the bag; this will dislodge the pancake. Now open the bag and empty as normal.

Regards, IGGIE

In my experiences, I find pancaking is a direct result of not enough air in the bag. If the bag has a filter of some sort, this makes it even worse. I use a bit of baby oil and then trap some air in the bag…output drops to the bottom…another reason to be thankful for gravity 🤦‍♀️❗️ Gravity wins in the end….jb

Gravity is like you looking for your feet when it should be looking for the stars and beyond.

IGGIE

I was just thinking that when justbreathe posted about air in the bag, I have an ileo and a filter that works just fine for me since my output tends towards softer. If you're pancaking often, use no filter and blow into your bag often. Don't hesitate to push your output away from your stoma with your fingers (from over your clothes!).

Living with Your Ostomy | Hollister

Totally agree eefyjig,

All day I am touching my stoma bag through my clothes, and when I feel a buildup, I just rub a finger across the opening like a guillotine, and it drops to the bottom. It's a life of learning.

IGGIE

I used to be self-conscious about it in public, and now I just do it. Let them think what they want!

One thing we learn about having a stoma is learning as early as you can that your actions are for your own benefit, and if someone doesn't like it, then tell them to BUGGER OFF.

IGGIE

I have blue stickers to put over the filter, and I used toilet paper folded into a cube and dropped it in the bag, along with coconut oil near the stoma opening.

I still get pancaking occasionally, but I manipulate it if I can.

I'm with the crowd that says to manipulate the output as needed. I have a very inverted stoma, though, so my experience may be different from most. I do put air in the bag as I can get in a sort of ‘vacuum-sealed' position if I don't. I've also rinsed the bag out if my output is more solid/sticky. It depends on what I eat. I just tried my favorite granola cereal from the before time, and my output got REALLY solid! As for adding stuff, my experience has been that they only work if I can add them to the TOP of the bag closest to the stoma, so only when I first put the bag on. Adding anything to the bottom of the bag doesn't really seem to work for me, but again, that might be because mine is so inverted.

When you get pancaking, rinse your bag out with warm water, add some lubricant (to keep the bag from sticking to itself), and go on about your day. It's almost impossible to completely prevent it if you have thicker output. You can do all those things mentioned… air in the bag, lubricant, more fluids, etc. to help, but it's hard to completely eliminate it.

If you don't, try using a 2-piece pouch. It can help somewhat with lifting up the wafer when you have pancaking issues. Also, empty often and push the pancaking down into the bottom of your bag whenever you notice pancaking. If one lubricant doesn't work for you, try a different one. You can also use barrier extender strips around your wafer.

Thank you! I thought I'd tried everything, but you've given me some new ideas, lovely!!!