Got my samples yesterday and changed it this morning; already so much more comfortable! They bend with me when I bend, which the more convex products were not doing, which then led to leaks and a general mess. The video nurse told me that there was zero chance of any convex product ever pushing my stoma to being an ‘outie,' so it would be better to go with a smaller convex product that would ...

Hi all! I'm 27 and looking for other young ostomates. I'm in the United States, Georgia to be specific. I'm looking for both local and virtual connections with others in the young adult stage. I have a great local support group, but everyone is over 50 and relatively inactive. When I go through members here local to me, I don't find anyone in my age group. Does anyone have tips on meeting youn ...

I have had my ileostomy since 1986 due to UC. I had a great stoma therapist prior to and after surgery, and I know that has made a HUGE impact on my recovery, acceptance, or whatever you want to call it. Because of her, I am pretty much an open book and have always been willing to help other ileostomates when questions and concerns arise. Which brings me to this posting.
Once again, I have bee ...

Since my stoma nurse decided to let me trial my Coloplast SenSura Mio two-piece bags, I still have quite a bit of ConvaTec wafers and high drainage bags left over.
I would prefer to donate them rather than just throw them away.
So if anyone uses these and would like them, and you are willing to pay the postage, I'd be very happy to see them go to another home.
The wafers are:
ConvaTec SUR-FIT ...

Hi! I'm one week post colostomy takedown and thought I'd post about my experience so far, since it's been really positive. I had my colostomy 8.5 months ago due to a perforated colon from diverticulitis (my eighth or ninth attack, which is another story - I wish people knew that if you've had three or four attacks you should consider preventive surgery, but no doctor ever mentioned that to me) ...

Has anyone on here had a tattoo done around their stoma? If so, did you have any problems?
I'm having one done on 1st Feb and the only thing I'm a bit dubious about is the chances of my colostomy becoming active while the guy is doing the tatt.
Fingers crossed everything will be fine.
Kezza

So I’m still pretty new to terminology and such. Back in March of 2024, after a year of my ileostomy, I saw a surgeon at Emory. The original doctor wasn’t able to create a J pouch during my surgery in January 2023. After talking with the surgeon at Emory, we both decided to not try again since my quality of life already was leaps and bounds better than when I had UC. He ended up removing t ...

Sitting on a park bench enjoying a warm summer afternoon... I dozed off. A little later, an elderly lady happened by and sat next to me. "Wonderful day, isn't it, young man!" "Oh yes," I replied. "An excellent afternoon indeed."
She stretched her legs, adjusted her glasses, and softly hummed a catchy tune.
In the distance, children were busy at the playground. We could just make out their sho ...

Hello from New Zealand. I had an ileostomy 10 weeks ago, due to ulcerative colitis not responding to any drugs.
Within about 4 weeks after surgery, I started to suffer joint pain, knees, wrists, thumb joints.
I asked the doctor and he believes because I still have an anal stub, the joint pain is from what UC is left within the anus and rectum.
Has anyone experienced this and if so, how did you ...

My daughter-in-law gave me a wonderful way to help with the disposal of my ostomy bags. She got me a diaper genie, and now I toss the mess in the bag into the genie. She recommends not using the latest model but the original style with tie-your-own bag.
I hope this helps.

Hi everyone,

I'm almost four months post-ileostomy surgery, and I'm looking to start rebuilding my core strength. I haven't been able to exercise for years, so I'm starting from scratch and want to be really careful.

One of my biggest concerns is overdoing it and increasing my risk of a hernia. I know core strength is important, but I'm not sure what exercises are safe to begin with. ...