Three Weeks Back at Work.

The weeks ago I started going back to work.

So, 5-6 weeks of healing and now 3 weeks in the books back at the job, that's 9 weeks since my urostomy.

The nice thing was HR asked if I had any "needs" or requests for "reasonable accommodations." I filled out the ADA form and just asked to be allowed to wear coveralls as the daily work uniform and that I wanted "light duty" / no heavy lifting for 3 months (my next check-up with the urologist).

They agreed to my requests and it's been good to feel like a semblance of what I qualify as a human person again.

The coveralls fit with my maintenance gig. It's like a big onesie, and I don't have to fiddle with where the bag sits on a waistline, fight with a belt, or fold the bag to accommodate a tucked-in shirt.

I just cannot see having the bag being pinched on the waist of pants.

I don't think I miss going pee... in fact, dumping the bag takes even less time than the normal biological process.

Unrelated to working again... sleeping...

I wake up in the same position I went to sleep in. I used to move around a lot in bed. It's weird that I'm somehow now conditioned to not move much. The tube and bedside bag aren't a huge pain to deal with. Some people have CPAP machines, I have a Pee-PAP bag I guess.

Ok, a few more things. Changing my bag. The adhesive remover tip you all gave me was a winner. I got these adhesive remover wipes and showered with no bag before putting the new bag on. The "body horror" is slowly going away and the confidence is slowly building. I still have a shirt on 100% of the time I'm not in the shower though. I think I'm scarred for life literally and figuratively. I can pat my stoma through my shirt and bag. But I don't want to see it. A simple pat forces me to accept and acknowledge its existence, but my eyes seeing it trigger anxiety. It's funny how emptying the bag and doing that process is indifferent to me though. Maybe it's because I have no choice with it.

Anyhow, I've rambled enough for now.

It is a journey. Glad you are able to return to work. It makes you feel good to know you can take care of yourself.

Hello stevefreedenburg.

Thanks for sharing, and I'm so pleased for you that it is coming together so well. 
I wear coveralls all the time. Here in the UK we call them boiler-suits, which is great because when my wife first began to complain, I simply responded that they are no less a 'suit' than I used to wear for work all the time.
I also like them because it makes me look as if I am still a 'working' bloke (even though I'm not).
Best wishes

Bill

Well done, Steve.

It is a major step to get back to some sort of almost normal, and being on the tools adds another dimension to the task.

Good for you.

Nice update! It sounds like you are doing great. You handled your accommodations request like a pro. Three weeks back at work is awesome! Everything else will sort itself in time. It's still early days.

Avoiding Ostomy Bag Leaking | Managing Ostomy Leaks with LeeAnne Hayden

Hi Steve, that's almost the same routine I had when I got my ileo. After 8 weeks off, then 2 weeks of light duty, I wore the bib overalls as it didn't put any pressure on the scar down the middle, and getting into the routine of work helped me adjust mentally to the trauma of surgery and dealing with an ostomy.

Steve-O.......that's awesome. And it keeps getting better with time. At some point, you won't even think of it as something foreign you have to lug around. You really will get to a point where you won't think of yourself as Steve with an ostomy..........but rather just Steve.

When I'm working outside and it's not too warm, I always wear overalls, coveralls, etc. I can completely not worry about my bag getting snagged on something.........my shirt riding up and letting someone see it (not that I care anymore....but I used to), and all those pockets make multiple trips back to the garage for tools a thing of the past.

Keep on keeping on!

;O)

Yes, boiler suits! I'm going to adopt that for daily use. I wanted a red one. Maintenance staff wear red shirts at work. I might get too clever for my own good and get a red one and cut it in half so the bottom half is blue like our work pants and the top is red like our work shirts.

I'm terribly contrarian and do things just to make management itch. Nothing evil or wrong, just fun mischief. Fun to me at least.

If I could come up with a bag that beeps when it's getting full, I'd be happier.   

You take your internals for granted in how robust and useful they are until you don't have your factory parts anymore. 

Draining the bag is almost an hourly thing.   Maybe 2 hours.   It's never full, but any volume to be is too much to 'work' with. 

The coveralls are just utility and comfort. I haven't worn proper pants since the surgery.

Loose jogging pants, athletic shorts, and coveralls. I imagine one day I'll wear regular pants.

I don't really care who sees what. I just don't want the questions or concerns. I don't need anyone's pity, and I'm not a YouTube tutorial either; I barely have it figured out myself.

I personally don't hate ostomy bags. It was die a horrible cancer death, be miserable with chemo treatments until insurance says no more, or get the bladder plucked. Not much of a choice.

It's the stoma itself I'm having issues with. I don't get freaked out by blood or guts. I just haven't accepted that the stoma isn't this delicate, fragile thing, and in the beginning, right after surgery, it may have been very fragile. It definitely hurt like a mofo! So just time.

Don't take this the wrong way, but the first few days after surgery I wasn't going to self-delete... but it was terrible, the pain and drastic changes, etc. I did think, "if this is how it's going to be forever, I'm out..." but obviously, the situation did improve, and I was released 4 days after surgery, not 2 weeks as the surgeon said was a good possibility. I want to live, darn it! And live as normally as can be. For the most part, my life is pretty much normal.

The only real question that remains that isn't really a front-page item is intimacy... so that will be interesting.

Hi Steve, I'm 3 years out with my urine bag and have been wearing loose-fitting jeans almost from the start. I, too, empty every 2 hours depending on liquid consumption. I travel quite a bit by plane and worry every time that I am going to leak and have to deal with it in that little bathroom with a bumpy ride. It has never happened. In fact, I have only ever leaked at night but found a 2-piece bag from Hollister that works really well for me. Hollister support is amazing, and you can get free samples. Good luck; it definitely gets easier!

Also suggest building into your permanent accommodations of your Return to Work/Capability Plan the right for frequent breaks. I have “twins,” an urostomy, and a colostomy. I empty the urostomy pouch every 1.5 hours or even sometimes 1 and a quarter hours if I'm adequately hydrated.

If it gets too full, the weight of the urine strains the adhesive and the donut seal, and it's more likely to leak, especially if I'm also frequently doing a sharp bending motion like picking something off the floor or sitting and leaning forward when straining to hear a conversation in a noisy restaurant.

The suppliers and stoma nurses say to empty the pouch when it's about 1/3 to 1/2 full. I have pushed it at times, on purpose or accidentally (got absorbed in doing something at my desk) and waited too long. I stood up, and the weight of it pulled it loose, causing it to leak as I was on my way to the loo.

Then during my frequent loo breaks, I can also burp or vent my colostomy pouch if it's filling with wind (but only after emptying the urostomy, never cross-contaminate), there in the loo, where bad smells are expected and well vented away.

I agree that getting back to work feels like starting to get your life back and is a welcome distraction after having to be so body-focused during the hospital and recovery phases. Enjoying your workmates' companionship is a nice slice of normality too.

Kristin

.

I'm extremely fortunate to have extreme freedom when I'm on site at work. As long as things are working and the tasks on the task list I create are getting done, I'm good to do whatever I need to do whenever I need to do them.

That sounds like a fairy tale job, but ultimately I've built up quite a bit of freedom over the years and equity that gives me so much latitude.

Being the "tech wizard," no one understands what I do. It all looks like magic to the masses, so the ivory tower crew just leaves me alone.

So, my biggest obstacle is me remembering to empty. Most times I hate feeling the bag have anything in it, so I obsess over draining the bag.

But like you said, getting involved with something and realizing you're full.

So many times I've gotten up from my workbench, headed out of my office to the right, realized I'm full, about-faced to the restroom... then carried on with my task.

It's always "dammit"... go drain the bag.

LOL... I can't count the number of times that I've stood up from sitting and had to head straight to the bathroom because my bag is full and I forgot all about it.