Hi
Is there anyone out there that looks after a horse please? I had an ileostomy and mucus fistula end of May and given impression I will in a year can, muck out my horse's field and barrel 15L of water again. Now I've been told to rehome my old four-legged friend. I can ride after 6 months but not care for him again.
Also told no yoga for 2 to 3 years
Is this right please?
Many thanks
I think your advice is extra careful. Yoga that I have seen does not stress the abdomen, so depending on your poses it should not be a problem. As for your horse, raking and pitching could be a problem. You should be on a 50 lb or 20 kg limit. Maybe look into a hernia belt when doing chores.
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Well, as many of us have limits to how much we can lift, so we don't cause hernias or hurt ourselves because we went to do things we like too fast after surgery. Everyone heals differently, so it's hard to say what your personal limits are. As far as yoga, it just changes with what you are able to do. Any form of exercise is good as long as you don't overdo it. Like for me
Hello Cce.
I like the replies you have had so far. It is one thing to advise to be be cautious but it is quite another to be dogmatic about what you can or cannot do. All exercise has to be appraoched with caution, especially in the early phases of healing. However, This should not stop us experimenting with what is possible.
I use two hernia belts when I am doing anything strenous: one as a general abdominal support and the other to give extra support to my parastomal hernia - which they gifted me from the outset.
It's been a few years since my operation but I have gradually increased the sorts of things I am able to do and amongst those are digging the garden and I have just finished concreting a path and mixing the concrete by hand. There is not much I can think of that is more likely to cause a problem than these sorts of activities and I have had no problems. (Apart from an increase in pain from arthritis in my fingers!) If I had an equine companion, there is no way that I would give up caring for it on the say-so of someone else. I would do what I could and try to get help for those things that were temporarily beyond my capabilities. As for yoga: I have several quite elderly and frail clients who indulge in forms of yoga that are appropriate for them and they find it a great benefit. The exercise we indulge in should be within our capabilities and not put us under too much pressure. However, that does not mean we should give up our hobbies entirely.
Best wishes
Bill
I see no reason to believe that you wouldn't be able to resume these things once you are healed. I've found, two years after surgery, that I can do anything I could before surgery. Sometimes you have to go about things a little differently or not as fast as I used to, but I've always found a way. I wouldn't let someone else tell you what you can or cannot do. These are things we must find out for ourselves. If you feel like you can physically handle it, give it a shot. Just be careful about it.
Hi
Thank you so much for taking so much time to offer me help, advice, and support. Here's to looking after Ned for many years to come one way or another.
Thank you :0)
Charlotte
I had my ileostomy surgery last August and I'm back to mucking stalls and paddocks! I have no problem pushing a wheelbarrow, but I do have someone else help me with actually lifting anything heavy, like full water buckets or muck tubs without wheels. When I work in the barn, I wear support undergarments designed to prevent hernias, and that makes me feel more confident. Just take it slow and make sure you're using proper body mechanics to protect your core and prevent a hernia.
Thank you so much for your message. I am a lot more confident that come the spring I'll be mucking out Ned's field again.
Many thanks for restoring hope for the future :0)
Consult with a physical therapist. Do a test to see where your weaknesses are and go from there. Of course, I had my ileostomy reversed, but when I did have the bag, I did work on a farm with physically heavy lifting after three weeks. As for yoga, plenty of people with stoma pouches do yoga and fitness - YouTube.
I had my urostomy in 2017, had chemo first.
This past winter I joined a fitness center and exercise. I downhill ski and do yoga. I also garden. Before my ostomy, I had a total knee replacement. I started slowly by walking, then biking on a stationary bike. My husband got a colostomy the same year as mine due to cancer. He too is very active. He takes care of rental property, fishing, lawn care, our home, and boat. He is 67 and I am 65. Don't lose the things you love.
I have five horses and two donkeys and had the colostomy for about 6 months, then had it reversed. I'm about 3 months out from the reversal and have been able to feed hay, use a manure rake (rather than the HUGE shovel I used to use) and pressure washer to clean the stalls now. A friend fed for me until 6 weeks after the reversal since I wasn't supposed to lift. Although I'm not back to picking up feed sacks or hay bales, I can handle them off the back of my truck. I roll the feed barrel to the tailgate, let the grain fall in, then roll it back. Hay I can drag with a hay hook. I haven't ridden yet because I don't have anything rideable right now but everything else is coming along. I have a rather large seroma at the surgery site that they weren't able to drain so that gets in the way sometimes and is painful but it feels really right and normal to be back at the barn. My normal anyway! LOL!
I think it is crazy to think you can't take care of your horse. He is your friend and I'm sure he offers you moral support, so you need him more now than ever.
Don't give up. You'll figure it out. I lift weights and do heavy garden work. Just take some precautions and go slowly at first and you should be fine.
Get a support belt to inhibit or protect against hernias and once the surgery has healed, which for me was six weeks, you should be back to normal activities. I personally did not let my bag get in the way of anything. I ate, drank, and did everything I had done before. My doctor was superb. He told me that if I was able to do it before surgery, I should be able to do it after. Watch out for hernias, so buy a belt and don't lift anything too heavy, within reason. I didn't get a belt and got a small hernia, then got a belt which was much better. I have now had it reversed and left it twelve weeks before resuming manual labor and all is well. Don't give up on anything.