Dealing with Body Odor: Tips and Solutions

I feel like I smell much of the time. Anyone have any solutions?

What do you feel you smell like?

Time! That's what you need to get used to your bag, not to think you smell. At first, I was even told a few days after surgery by a nurse that people with those things smell. I gave her a few choice words. 😉

I feel like I can smell the poop in my bag.

Ben is right. When I first started wearing my bag, it took me a while to have confidence that my bag could hold the contents and smell.

Make sure the tail end of your bag is very clean after you empty it if you have a drainage bag and you have a tight seal attachment on to your tummy. The way you know your bag is sealed is to put a little air in it and seal the bag. If the bag remains inflated, it is a good seal.

If you have a bag with a filter, close or cover the filter and try the same thing.

Do not wear your bag too long; maximum 2 to 3 days.

Avoiding Ostomy Bag Leaking | Managing Ostomy Leaks with LeeAnne Hayden

Yes, I do sometimes when output creeps up in the bag after sitting. Pushing it down helps, or emptying, swishing some water inside, then adding deodorizer. I don't panic anymore, but I do check for leaks. I, too, change every 3 days, one-piece system.

I use M9. Others have said to use Tic Tacs. I use peppermint Life Savers sometimes.

It will only smell if you have a leak of some sort. A lot of people have the same thoughts on the beginning.

Sandy, the best way to tell the difference between a real odor and a phantom one is to ask someone you feel comfortable with and trust to tell you if they smell anything. If they say no, then it's probably a phantom odor. Sometimes I'll run my finger around the outside of the flange to see if any output is beginning to seep under my ring and create an odor. It does happen occasionally, usually with strong odor output. That's when I know I'm not imagining things! Someone on here once suggested rubbing your hands lightly on the outside of your bag after having lotioned your body with scented lotion. I do this all the time now.

You probably don't smell at all. The bag is pretty contained, and smells tend to stay inside the bag. But if you are worried, there are products you can use: lubricating deodorants and M9 drops, which are deodorant drops you can put in your bag to neutralize the smell.

I felt the same way at first. I started using disposable wipes to clean the end when I dump out the bag. As other people have said, there are lubricants that can deodorize the bag to help as well. If you use a 2 PC set, you can take the bag off and rinse it in the tub to make sure the bag is clean. I've done that before, and it helps. Also, you can always check with your partner or a friend you trust to see if you are giving off a smell. Sometimes it is psychological.

Sandy, there's no getting around the fact that on occasion your bag contents are going to smell. Putting something (Tic Tac, Lifesaver, etc.) never helped mine much.

What did help enormously was trying to control the smell of the output before it gets into your bag. I use Lily of the Desert liquid Aloe Vera (INNER FILLET) 32 oz bottle. Very affordable and lasts (me) 2 plus months (refrigerate). I mix maybe a teaspoon of it with water or Gatorade. It will mix with whatever liquid you're drinking; almost no taste. Wonderful stuff. Works for me, and I've got perhaps the most sensitive digestive system on the planet…any planet lol!!

I ask my hubby. He always says, "Nope."

I do rinse my pouch multiple times a day and have amazing insurance, meaning I can change as often as I like.

I also use "Adapt Ostomy Pouch Lubricating Deodorant." Hollister.

Sandy, you aren't alone. After 4 months, I still can smell mine and smell it in the clothes as I take them off over my head. I've asked my relatives if they ever smell it, and they don't. We must have sensitive noses. I use the M9 drops and also the Adapt that lubricates the bag and has a deodorant in it as well. I still smell mine sometimes after the 2nd day. I did get a free sample of Simply Fresh odor eliminator spray that I use on my clothes and the bag. I might try the mints but question if that's okay since it's away from my stoma. You've found a great group to ask questions.

I use 1 tsp. Adapt lubricant and 1 tbsp. hydrogen peroxide in my bag, which helps with odor. Also, if you have a two-piece system, change the bag more often, as I find sometimes the bag retains an odor. Make sure your bag is securely attached, and watch out for your fingernails, as I've sliced the clear parts on the flange or bag by mistake.

Leaks have been the #1 culprit of smell.

Even though you may not see the leak, it breaches under the wafer or ring. As a newbie, you want to inspect the area around the inside of your bag when you change it. Only there will you find the answer.

The filter in your bag, if equipped with a filter, could be defective, emitting odor.

Bags themselves have been reported to smell. Defective bags now being made cheaply will give you an odor.

Phantom smell or transfer smell. You ever walk past a person and just know they are a smoker? High school kids reeked of cigarettes entering the classroom. Some do due to actually smoking, some just hanging out with them.

The bag end or mouth must be clean. And note when you dump the contents, backsplash!! It will get on you. Or stick on you—your nose, clothing, bag.

It's disgusting, isn't it?

M9 works for me. A few drops, you need to cater to that upon smell at dump.

Five drops kill that smell. Believe me, my nose knows!😆

You'll be fine. I once asked a teaching nurse at a school I was attending if she smelled it, and she said no. She said since I'm aware of what I'm "smelling" for, I am more likely to notice it before others. I believe this is true. As others have said on here, we develop hypersensitivity to the smell. Most people don't smell it (except other hypersensitive people). I once had a coworker who smelled the facial cleanser I used to wash my face over two hours before I came to work!!!

I usually rinse several times a day and sometimes add a little soap to the rinse. I change the bag once the filter becomes damaged. I rub a finger or use toilet paper to check for leaks around the ring of my flange (2-piece system). I look for "ballooning" around the flange (discoloration) to know it's time to change the entire wafer and not just the pouch. Before placing a new flange, I use soap and water around the stoma (to remove old adhesive residue) and thoroughly dry it before reapplication.

This method has worked for me for many years. I buy a super concentrated deodorizing spray to spray around the bathroom and into the toilet when rinsing and emptying my pouch in public places. At home, I don't care about smell. I live alone, so there's no one's nose to offend. 😆😆😆

Thanks all for your replies. Nice to be able to ask people who really know. Do you just put a whole lifesaver or Tic Tac in the bag? And I hate to sound ignorant, but what is the flange? I am using the two-piece.

Thanks again

Flange is the 1 piece of a 2 piece. Just put one or two pieces of candy in the bag. They will dissolve and help with odor.

The flange is the part you stick to your body.

I have had my colostomy for a very long time. My bag truly stinks after 1 1/2 days, no matter how much M9 I use or how much I clean the bag; it still smells like perfumed shit, and the smell seeps through and clings to my clothes after that time period. So when I go to work, I change my bag daily. When I am home alone, I just leave it on for 2 days; my dogs do not care about the smell.