This topic is all about understanding how much time people with ostomies spend on their daily and weekly care routines. It covers tasks like emptying or rinsing the pouch, changing wafers, irrigation, and dealing with rectal mucus. The goal is to find ways to make these tasks quicker and easier, and to reassure those who might worry that having an ostomy is too time-consuming.

Here are some helpful insights and advice shared by others:

1. One person prepares five pouches in advance by attaching EZ Vents and shaping rings or seals. They empty and rinse the pouch once a day, which takes about 15 minutes. They change the whole appliance weekly and handle rectal mucus twice a day, spending about 10 minutes each time. Overall, they estimate spending about 2 hours per week on care.

2. As the stoma or body changes with age, routines might take longer. It's a good idea to allow extra prep time, like 10–15 minutes instead of 5, and to stay standing or lying down for another 15 minutes to ensure the wafer seals properly.

3. Irrigation can be a time-saving strategy. By combining several small pouch-management tasks into one session, which takes about 1–2 hours, people can enjoy longer periods of freedom. This approach typically involves irrigating every 24–48 hours, wearing the same wafer for up to six days, and changing a stoma cap daily for hygiene and odor control. This routine might take about 3.5–4 hours a week.

4. To save time on supply preparation, use precut wafers to avoid cutting time. Attach EZ Vent air vents to pouches and pre-shape barrier rings in batches of five to make future changes quicker.

5. Managing mucus from the remaining rectum or colon can be challenging. Some people need to empty mucus more than eight times a day. One person is trying radiation therapy on the unattached colon segment to reduce mucus output, though the results are not yet known.

6. A positive mental approach can make a big difference. Naming the stoma and seeing it as a life-saving friend rather than an enemy can help reduce psychological resistance and make care feel quicker and easier.

7. For practical tips, use dog-waste bags or blue disposal bags from suppliers for odor-free trash handling. If you irrigate, expect to use less toilet paper, but if you manage mucus frequently, you might use more.

Overall, while routines can vary from a few minutes a day to a couple of hours a week, many people feel that the time spent on ostomy care is minimal compared to the bathroom time, anxiety, and accidents they experienced before surgery.