Close Call

Yesterday, as I was receiving my chemo treatment, my colostomy pouch almost filled to bursting and had to be emptied quickly. At first, I freaked out; then I thought about how you guys have handled similar situations. I calmly got up, grabbed my emergency backpack, and walked to the bathroom with my IV pole and emptied and cleaned my pouch without a hitch. I guess I'm posting this to let you know how much you all help me.

It took me a while to be comfortable with interrupting whatever situation I was in (and whoever else was in it) and immediately emptying. Glad you remained calm and just did what you had to do. 👏

Thanks for sharing your experience. Hubz can't feel when things are happening, so he's been surprised a few times. It hasn't happened yet while he's having the treatment, but now he knows not to panic! He does keep his 'go bag' with him, so he's ready for anything (hopefully)!

Same happened to me earlier this year. It's amazing how fast you can walk with those IV poles 😊

Way to go, Hugo! We've all had close calls, I guess. My worst close call, in public, was when I was on a passenger ferry, sitting in my car, drinking a hot chocolate that went right through me and instantly filled my pouch. I had to make it up to the passenger deck, two levels, and the other end of the ship to the bathroom, as the mid-ship one was out of order! All the while, I was trying to discreetly support my pouch, as it was so full I was afraid it would come off. Made it though; all that counts!

Terry

How to Get Back to Activity after Ostomy Surgery with Kimberly | Hollister

I was driving to a doctor's appointment earlier this week, and partway there, my colostomy just dumped. What had been an empty pouch when I left the house was now full almost to bursting. I live in the country, and the route to this doctor's office is rural. There's nowhere to stop.

So I was instantly stressed. I pulled the bag out over the seat belt, grabbed the towel from the backseat, and shoved it in my lap. Then I worried all the way to the doctor's office.

Fortunately, I arrived and was able to get to the bathroom without incident. My trusty go bag served its purpose. I had never had that happen when I was out of the house before, but knowing I had what I needed to handle a problem helped a lot.

And this group helps too. Knowing there are others out there facing this reality every day reminds me it can be done.

When I was hospitalized, before surgery, I had explosive diarrhea constantly. At first, I'd press the nurse call button when I felt the "urge" and wait... and wait. Meanwhile, my bowels were screaming, "You WILL poop NOW!" Tired of waiting all the time, I decided to disconnect my leg compressors, the nose thingy for oxygen, get out of bed, and unplug the IV pole. Then, I wheeled the pole and my ready-to-burst butt into the bathroom. As soon as I lifted off the bed... Boom! The bed alarm went off. Scared the... well... crap out of me. Undaunted, I rushed into the loo as the nurses came running. One stuck her head in the bathroom door... then quickly retreated.

It took me a day of complaining, but I succeeded in shutting down the bed alarm.

Now, with my colostomy... I never need to rush.

Ain't that the truth!🤣

🤣🤣🤣🤣

The nurses hate when you set off bed alarms.

Completely a tangent... when I was in the hospital after my surgery. They admitted a lady as my new roommate. She had fallen and cracked her hip... 100% not supposed to get out of the bed on her own. No no no!

She was also a bit out of it and disoriented. After her husband left she called him and announced that a bus had taken her to a camp with another lady (me). Lol.

Later that night I woke up and there she is boogie-ing across the room. Her bed alarm failed. I had to press my call button and wait... and wait. The nurses arrive as she's making her way back to bed. There was a lot of drama. It was quite entertaining (Don't judge me. I spent almost 6 weeks in the hospital. You get your entertainment where you can!)

I was five minutes into a meeting at work, of which I was the chair, when I discovered I was having one of the very few leaks I've had. I stood up and said, "Emergency, gotta go." To this day, no one knows why.

Atta boy, Hugo. My horror story: after four hours on the road, I was going through security at the Las Vegas courthouse. I put my stuff through the scanner and started to leave when the guard stopped me. "What's that?" he asked, pointing at my bulging ostomy bag that was pooching my pants out like a hidden weapon. I told him, then asked for directions to the nearest men's room. Fortunately, he decided not to search me.

LOL you are right! Sometimes entertainment comes from the oddest places.

When I have to go out, I refrain from eating or drinking and take Imodium. This won't work for people who like going out, but I'd rather not have close calls while out. I've had to carry my bag into the can because it filled up so fast.

There's an outdoor crew supervisor who posted a video on YouTube about how he carries waterproof/odor-proof ostomy disposal bags in his truck (since there are usually no port-a-potties in sight). His demonstration showed output and wipes all going neatly into it, all while he's seated behind the wheel. Sealed and done.

I now carry a few disposable bags in the glove compartment just in case I run into an emergency. I even carry one in my back pocket along with a spare bag and wipes.

Some of the port-a-potties in summer should have signs saying, "Welcome to Hell." One was so infested with flies and cooking organic matter... 🤮 I felt really bad for anyone having urgency and needing to sit down...🥺

I was at dinner at Mrs. Knott's Chicken Dinner restaurant last week. I was having a great time munching away. Soon, dessert was served. I absentmindedly reached under the table to feel my bag. It was inflated like a football. The restaurant was packed. I hurriedly excused myself and duck-walked as fast as I could to the loo.

Lucky I was wearing a hernia support belt. Could you imagine blowing a bag off in Mrs. Knott's!!!

Yes.. gotta have something to keep our minds busy laying 24 hours a day in bed.

I had a guy in a room next to mine. I called him the screamer. He had aspirated food into his lungs. Everyday nurses and a doctor came to give him some sort of treatment. He SCREAMED non stop. I told my wife to sneak over there and kink his IV line. 😇

I had a night nurse who was from Gambia in Africa. She was really cool. Spent a long time each night talking with me about her life and all her travel adventures. One night she said I was to be transferred to pre-ICU in the morning and wished me good luck. Then asked if she could say a prayer for me. Told her sure. Well... she laid her hands on me and belted out, "Lord!! Strike the devil out of this man!" She continued on for a long time. I was amazed. She was awesome. And ya know.. I eventually recovered.

I'm glad to hear you were able to handle the situation. Yay for you!