Living with a New Colostomy and Old Urostomy: Tips and Advice

Hi! I just had my ileostomy changed to a colostomy and still have a urostomy. This will be my new life. 😒

Any suggestions or thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

I notice a lot of people wear their bags vertically, which sounds okay for emptying. How does that work for covering up? Does anyone use liners in their colostomy? Peace.

Oooh, another double bagger! There are a few others, but not many.

I wear my bags vertically. I'm not sure how you would wear them horizontally when you have two bags... don't they end up overlapping each other and making the bags more obvious?

I'm fortunate that my stomas are placed very high, about three inches above my belly button. I'm also female, so my bust line creates a natural space over the stomas, and I can easily hide the bags under my shirt. Dresses are trickier, but with careful selection, they are manageable.

Hopefully, some guys will be along soon to give advice. I think your situation is more challenging.

I wear a tummy sleeve from a maternity shop. It covers, but if you look closely, you can see it.

Hi, double bagger here. I wear mine inside my underwear, flipped up. It gives you support and is out of the way.

Double-bagger here also 🙂

I wear mine at a slightly outward angle so that I can roll them up and tuck them under my underwear at the groin. I wear any kind of pants and usually a longer shirt.

My Ostomy Journey: April | Hollister

Welcome to the “twin” club! Rest assured that if you've managed one, then you can manage two—you've got this!

Like Susan, I also do both my pouches vertically, making them easy to empty.

And unless I let them get really full, they don't usually show, as I wear a Koolknit support garment anytime I leave the house.

Hi! What happens if they start to fill up?

Randy

Hi. What happens when they fill?

Have you ever seen a double ostomy belt or wrap?

Peace

Hi. What happens when they fill?

Have you ever seen a double ostomy belt or wrap?

Peace

Hi. What happens when they fill?

Have you ever seen a double ostomy belt or wrap?

Peace

Hi. What happens when they fill?

Have you ever seen a double ostomy belt or wrap?

Peace

Double ostomy belts need to be custom ordered to fit the exact position of your ostomies. I know of two sources:

Nu Hope and

https://ostomybagholder.com/

Nu Hope is a plain belt with rings to pull the bags through. This was covered by my insurance.

Ostomy bag holder is like a stealth belt. There's a base belt with holes to pull the bags through and a fabric cover that holds the base like a light wrap. I bought one of these out of pocket, but it might be reimbursable depending on your insurance.

If anyone knows of another source, I'd love to learn about it.

I like the flexibility Nu-Hope provides.

— Managing my "life investment" in preferred low-volatility "stocks" since 2023 (ostomy, not financial statement).

Bulge might become visible, but more importantly, it can strain the adhesive and cause a leak. So emptying regularly avoids all those problems. I empty my urine pouch about every 1.5 hours, and while in the loo (as we say here in Australia), I check my colostomy and at least “burp” it to remove wind, and also empty the solid content if there's been some decent output. It makes me feel lighter and more confident.

Thank you!

Hi! I'm struggling with my colostomy. The lube I'm using isn't working. If I'm not pushing the contents down the bag, it pushes out the back. Seems like I'm doing something wrong 😕

Peace

Two good lubricants I have used are "Brava Lubricating Deodorant" and "Revel! It's In The Bag." Revel is the best that I have ever used. Many on this site have problems with Revel leaking out of their pouch. I have never had this problem, but I use a closed-end pouch and only 3 ml, even though Revel suggests 5 ml. You can request samples to see if either works for you. Is there any air in your pouch?

Hi. I'm really struggling with my urostomy and colostomy. Meaning, now that all the surgeries are done (last appointment was taking stitches out of my ass since they sewed it up!😡) I have no more distractions, and I'm left with the reality of having two bags. Does anyone know of a good therapist who is familiar with the mental aspect of it all? I'm not doing well.

Peace, Randy

I think your best bet is to go to the UOAA website. Under support, there is a page for locating mental health assistance. They basically send you to other sites, but there are some valuable tips for narrowing your search.

I hope you feel better soon. I am also dealing with two bags, and it is a bit overwhelming at first. But it's possible to move on. Feel free to reach out to me privately if I can help support you while you are looking for professional assistance.

Hi Randy

The Cancer Council here in Australia referred me to a local psychologist who specializes in cancer, which was the reason for having the surgery that created my two stomas.

She's been great—very adept with the hard conversations and topics. And so maybe ask your local Cancer Organisation for suggestions.

She was also much cheaper than the “generalist” psychologist I had been seeing previously, whose sessions became less helpful to me when we entered what was new territory for both of us, of “cancer country” and then stomas.

It's all a huge adjustment, so be kind to yourself, and don't expect to be sunny and funny all the time. Yes, for sure, it's great that our stoma(s) helped us stay alive; I even thank them to “their face” during my pouch changes, but they are still a fair bit of work to manage. It really does become second nature over time, so hang in there, it will get better.

Hugs from here,

Kristin