Hi, I was diagnosed with stage 4 Ovarian cancer in March, it was a complete shock to the system. I had osphagus cancer in 2016 and thought if I was unlucky to get another cancer it would be a secondary not a primary.
How do you get your head around a terminal diagnosis, this overwhelms me at times.
My chemo I have coped with, probably because I've had it before but I am now due surgery in the next 10 days, and the thought of a permanent stoma scares me as I'm really not sure how I would cope with this.
Hi Polar Dream
I’m so sorry to read all you’ve been through already and are still going through. That is very tough.
I had major surgery (a total pelvic exenteration) for my recurrent cervical cancer and I have 2 permanent stomas-colostomy and urostomy. They are much easier to cope with than you might imagine but fear of the unknown before surgery is perfectly understandable. I did not have a good chance of survival and recovery but am still here more than 3 years later.
Which type of stoma are you having if you don’t mind me asking? We have lots of tips and advice in the stoma support group if you’d like to also join there. This is the link-
You can ask any questions 5here, and people with experience of stomas will be happy to help.
Sarah xx
Hi Polar Dream
It is a lot to come to terms with, physically and mentally I found. Recovery for me was long and tough, but my surgery involved more than it sounds as if yours might-I was very weak and very tired afterwards.
It didn’t bother me as such to have the stomas as I viewed them as necessary to stay alive. But honestly, coping with a colostomy is actually very straight forward after you get used to it. I just think of it as going to the bathroom in a different way. Stomas can take a while to settle after surgery-changing shape etc so it can be hard at the start finding the right products to use-there are many different types of pouches/bags for example. But once the healing is done, you gain more confidence in managing it.
Best wishes for your surgery, and I hope you’ll let us know how you’re getting on.
Sarah xx
