Bathtime with a stoma

Hi Loz0cd630 

I’m sure you’ll be glad to get back to baths! I personally do use bubble bath in my bath, but I’m just wondering if you are talking about having a bubble bath without your bag, or will you be keeping the bag on?

I can’t see any problem with any kind of bubble bath if you are wearing your bag, and I use whatever I fancy if I have my bag on since none of it would reach my stoma. When I bath without my bag on, I just use a simple, basic bubble bath like Radox etc. I don’t ever have a bath where I don’t use bubble bath and it’s never caused me an issue in more than 5 years. Others may have a different view but I’m speaking from my own experience over many years not having any issues.

Sarah xx

Thank you Sarah, I will be using my bag on since its early days but its good to know I can take the bag off and still use bubble bath and I'm a fan of radox too

Thanks Lorraine 

After my surgery, I did keep my bag on for a bath as I wanted to make sure everything was fully healed-I have 2 stomas, so 2 bags to float in the bath water! I know that the recommendation might be not to use any products in the bath if you don’t have a bag on, but I don’t spend long in the bath at any one time and consider using products a nice little treat. 

Sarah xx

I never realised they would float. Do you have problems sealing your bags with you having 2. I have  nephrostomy and a stoma and the stoma bag over laps the nephrostomy bag and I'm wondering if that's why I'm also getting so many leaks.

Thanks 

Lorraine 

I have a colostomy and a urostomy, and they are on either side of my belly button so not close to each other and luckily no problem with overlapping bags. I’ve not got any experience with a nephrostomy, but I wasn't aware you could have a bath with a nephrostomy, so you learn something new every day! 

I don’t have issues with sealing my bags or them being in the water and coming off, but I do use extra products every day to ensure that my adhesion is as strong as possible.

Independence fusion applicators which look like lollipop sticks and contain an adhesive that I put on the skin round my stoma before attaching the bag, and brava elastic strips which are half moon shaped and go round the bag on either side of the bag once it’s on, and stick to my skin. These give me a lot of confidence in the bags staying on in the bath or if I’m in a swimming pool. 

Sarah xx

Funny you should mention the bathing with nephrostomy. The hospital said no baths with the nephrostomy but my community nurse said its the same bag so i can have bath so wasn't sure what to do.

I've just been given some brava elastic strips so I will give them a try and look into the fusion sticks.

I have friends with nephrostomies and the issue with them and baths is not the bag itself but the tube going into the kidney through your back which shouldn’t be in water due to the potential risk of infection.  

I’m not sure your community nurse is correct on this, especially since the hospital has said no to baths.

Have you got a CNS at the hospital you could get call to get advice from before you try having a bath? Not being able to have a bath is something which my friends have commented on to me before, so I’d honestly want to to get this checked out before you go against the hospital advice you were given. 

Sarah xx