Having an ileostomy next week

Hi Unicorn 10

There hasn't been a lot of activity on this forum recently so sorry your post hasn't had a reply.

I had an ileostomy for a year as part of a colon operation and then a reversal seven months ago. I would have thought that the operation to just form the stoma will be, time wise, much the same as the reversal so about two hours but the surgeon may have already told you that.

I would not expect any great pain from the op. As a cut is made through the muscle to get to it one thing to look out for is not to lift anything heavy and if you cough or sneeze hold your stomach as there is always a problem of  hernia where they cut.

By now I hope you have met your stoma nurse and she has explained how it works. It seems an odd thing to get used to to begin with but you will. The stoma nurse will give you advice on what bags you might want and how to get them. They come on prescription through a supplier who gets the prescription from your GP. You order regularly what you need, bags, removal spray, free wipes etc. It is normal to get in to a pattern changing the bag, either daily or two days. It will take you twenty minutes to begin with and you will get it down to ten.

Remember that any problems you may have the stoma nurse will always have a solution and they are you main 'go to' source. There are lots of suppliers of bags and accessories so if you dont get on with what is suggested you can get samples and try others. Similarly there are products to hep sore skin, help adhesion and other such aids.

This is intended to improve the quality of your life and once you have got used to you will be able to carry on a pretty normal life, work travel etc.  You will need to be careful of your diet to begin with but the hospital should give you details of a low fibre diet. The main thing to avoid is anything that doesn't break down in the small bowel such as nuts and so forth.  Also to chew, chew chew.

Hope this is of use, anything particular you want to know about please ask.

All the best for the op

John

Thanks John 

This is really helpful and reassuring. 

I think it's the fear of the unknown which is driving my anxiety.

So much to take in especially with bags etc .

Cheers

Hi, I had an ileostomy and stoma last December. When in hospital the stoma nurses were very helpful showing me how to empty and change the bags and choosing the right bag for my stoma. For the first couple of day I had help dealing with the bag but after that I managed very well on my own, it wasn’t nearly as difficult or frightening as I imagined. As John has mentioned all the required bags etc are supplied on prescription when you leave hospital and the stoma nurses keep in touch to make sure everything is going as planned. 

Good luck with your op, I’m sure you will find coping with your bag just becomes part of your daily routine.

Rich