Daft questions

Hi 4halves.Post op it’s usual to have thin stents that will be visible in the bag attached to the stoma.These are removed several days afterwards.You will wake up with a bag attached and if it’s at night this will be plugged into a larger night bag.You don’t have a sensation of urinating.You need the bag to hang down so the urine drains into freely.It’s best to let it not get too full else it will drag and you would be prone to leaks or the bag bursting.I empty mine a few times a day and the night bag the next morning.I don’t like chewing gum either but it is supposed to help to stimulate the bowels to work.No question is daft it’s best to have some idea of what to expect.I hope this helps.Jane

Thank you for the reply,much appreciated

Hi 4halves,

Just to add to what Jane has said, the bag is attached in the operating theatre as once the plumbing is done urine starts coming down from the kidneys via the ureters and you don't have a sphincter to control it. It's a sort of dribble but it works all the time.

The bag isn't attached to the stoma, there is a sort of circular collar around the bag that sticks to your skin and the stoma brings the urine into the bag through the hole in the middle of the collar. (One name for that collar is a wafer, by the way but that always reminds me of ice-cream.)

You don't get much feeling from the stoma but you can feel the adhesive. It's a bit like having a plaster over a cut. As part of your hygiene once you have a stoma and bag, you remove the bag and wash the adhesive away as taught by the stoma nurses after the op, then put on a new one. It's easy once you know how.

And re chewing gum, anything that restarts your bowels again after the op is a good thing. It can take a while because they don't like being fiddled with and the surgeons chop a bit out to make the new stoma.

At my hospital they have a special all day meeting for stoma patients and partners and during that they gave us some stoma bags to play with before the op and also checked to see if we might be allergic to the adhesive. I am allergic to lots of things so have special hypoallergenic bags. 

Maybe your hospital does something similar? It's worth asking your surgeons about it.

All the best,

Latestart

Thank you that helps a lot,havent got any dates meet Stoma people yet but assume it will be soon

You will need to keep an eye on the size of the stoma to begin with as in the early days it will change shape.You can use the backing that peels off the back of the bags or the paper template in the stoma supplies to measure it.Then you can ensure that the hole is cut to the correct size in the bag to prevent leaks.Your stoma will shrink down and settle.You can then order pre cut bags if you prefer.You get used to it but at the start its all new and you might be all fingers and thumbs.I found it much easier to manage the stoma at home than in hospital.You don’t have all the tubes and drip stand to contend with.Try to avoid being constipated pre op as this can make it more likely that you will develop Ileus an unpleasant but common complication.As Latestart has said the bowels don’t like being handled and don’t always fully wake up and function properly.Jane 

Hi 4halves,You will probably get an appointment to meet your local stoma team.At mine I watched a video of someone cleaning and changing a stoma bag and had a general chat.I got measured up for the stoma by them just a few days before the surgery.I wore trousers that had the same height waistband of my other clothes and they measured from there down and marked up the area with marker pen.My stoma is on the right side almost level with the navel.It all sounds a bit daunting but once you get into your own routine it’s easy.I had to be able to change the bag unaided before discharge from hospital.I’m much better off without a severely diseased bladder that caused years of pain and then cancer.Jane 

I didn't chew gum, nor did I do much walking in hosp, as I was still very dizzy from the anaesthetic. However, I did do the breathing & leg exercises the physio advised, and drank plenty of water. Perhaps I was lucky, but didn't have problems when allowed to eat, although bowels didn't wake up until day 7. After managing to pass the first small bullet, was quite erratic over the first weeks. I was warned there can be some permanent changes and I do occasionally find I have to rush to the loo after a meal out.

If your hosp has an enhanced recovery scheme, you might be given special nutritional drinks before & after the op. Hope all goes well.

Try mintoes. They have an artificial sweetener that has a laxative effect. Or you could try a fruity chewing gum. The act of mastication stimulates the bowel.

Hi there and no question is a daft or silly question especially at a time where you have more questions than answers. There is a plethora of people will similar circumstances to yours and other with different circumstances and experiences. 

I hope you got the answers you were looking for, I can't help much with your questions but it looks like you got some good responses. 

So yeah just hi and hope your doing well. 

Hi 4halves

Your Stoma nurses will give you a a full demonstration of how to cope with stoma bags the week before your RC. Mine had a plastic life size lower abdomen complete with a bright red stoma sticking out. She demonstrated puting on and removing the bag and let me have a trial run so I was fully up to speed with everything before the op.

You’ll be fitted with a bag when you wake up as others have described and physios will have you walking and exercising soon after. Chewing gum did nothing for me as I was constipated for several days but the bowel woke up and started working after about 5 days. Drinking lots of water and walking the corridors worked better for me. The ward even had footsteps printed on the floor for the recommended post op corridor walk.

As regards peeing sensation, well none at all only the bag filling. In the aftermath of the operation I did get some sensations in the lower abdomen but was told the bowel settles to a new position in the absence of a bladder. That soon settled down and I now lead a pretty normal with the exception of a daily 15 minute bag change. Big bonus though is no more getting up in the night. Just connect up and sleep.

good luck with it all.