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Posted 12/7/2008 4:56 PM (GMT 0)
Questions keep popping up in my head..

My stoma is irregularly shaped kinda like an oval and I read on here that when Im cutting the wafer, I can cut it a little smaller than my stoma. So today I cut it a little smaller and kinda stretched it out with my fingers but Im afraid of getting it too tight. Its still working and it doesnt hurt so I guess its okay right?

Another question is where my wafer is, it hurts. And I noticed today when I changed it, it was kind of purplish red. Its been that way since I left the hospital. My surgery was 2 weeks ago Wednesday so maybe its just red because its still new?

And my last question is ..the doctor said these strips on my cut should fall off in 7-10 days..its been longer than that and none of them have came off..I pulled some off but it hurts too much so i just left the rest on. Should they just fall off? And why is it taking so long for them to come off?

Thanks so much!

Oh..another question just popped up..My surgery was Nov.19 and for like a week and a half I couldnt even walk from my room to the living room without feeling like I just ran a marathon! Now its a little better. Ive been walking as much as I can but still cant stand up or walk around for more than 5 minutes without my back killing me and getting outta breath.. Is this normal? I feel so out of shape and my parents keep pushing me to walk and I cant get my dad to understand that my back kills me when Im up for a long time. Im trying to push myself and it seems to be working. I can walk longer now and I can do more without feeling like Im going to pass out. But my boyfriend thinks I should be relaxing and healing. Everyone on here told me to walk walk walk. Will my back pain get any better?

Posted 12/7/2008 6:52 PM (GMT 0)
ok your back pain is from kind of stooping over from your stomach hurting, ,you may not realize you are doing it, but that's what causing it. Honestly my back pain was worse and more bothersome than the regular pain. Pay attention to the way you walk and keep good posture, it will help! you can put a heating pad on your back for a while to help it out.
The short of breath when you are walking may be cause you are a tiny bit deydrated. try drinking more and see if that helps. And yeah you are supposed to walk alot, it helps you get your energy back and such, i didn't listen though, inever do, lol. And i was pretty weak for a while.
Dont know for sure about those strips, are they just bandaids? or is the wound still open some under them? if they are just bandaids i wouldn't worry
The skin under your wafer maybe bruised, well actually your whole stomach is probably brusied. Without seeing it or knowing what kind of hurt though, i cant tell you what i think that is. If it doesn't get any better in the next few days you might oughta call your ET or DR.
As for the cutting it smaller, that was me that told you that, just make sure that it doesn't cut your stoma off, or make it have to squeeze through a lot. I don't stretch mine or anything. Like my stoma actually measures at like 1 and 1/2 on the measure thing, but i cut at like 1 1/4. Or there about, i don't measure anymore
Posted 12/7/2008 9:10 PM (GMT 0)
I thought that was you who told me that I could cut it smaller..Sorry about all the questions =( I just went to Walmart and walked back to the sporting goods and then back to my car and my back was killing me but I wasnt hunching over or anything. For the first week or so I couldnt walk up straight so I did hunch over then but now I can walk up straight and my back kills me but Im going to put a heating pad on it in just a few to see if that helps. The strips arent bandaids. Theyre butterfly stitches I think thats what theyre called.
Im going for my follow-up Tuesday so Ill ask about it hurting and being purple. Thanks summerstorm. You dont know how much of a help youve been to me. =)
Posted 12/7/2008 10:17 PM (GMT 0)
Oh i am glad i can help! And dont' worry about all the questions, i think i asked about 10thousand when i first got mine, lol.
Are you sleepign the way you used to sleep? that might be messign with your back too.
Let us knwo what the dr tells you!
Posted 12/8/2008 2:07 AM (GMT 0)
I cant really sleep the way I used to..I used to sleep on my stomach with one leg out and the other straight but with my stoma Im afraid to sleep on my stomach. Can I?..Ah yet another question lol Ill deff tell you what the doctor says. My GI always wears cute bow ties Hes so adorable because hes old and always has on a bowtie so for Christmas my mom and I got him 3 bowties haha Im sad though because when I turn 18 in July he wont be my doctor anymore bc hes a pediatric GI doctor cry Ill be SO glad to get my final surgery so I can go tanning again!  :-)
Posted 12/8/2008 2:50 AM (GMT 0)
you can sleep on your stomach, i do.
And you can get in the tanning bed too! I just wear a tank top over my bag and middle section, so that i won't get the light on the scar cause that makes them harder to fade.
Posted 12/8/2008 3:25 AM (GMT 0)
I had the steri-strips after my surgery too, and the surgeon told me to leave them alone and that they would start to peel off by themselves. At my one-month follow-up appt, they still were on, and only curling up at the edges a little. At that point he said I should remove them at my next shower. I was nervous about it, but it didn't hurt at all. I would defer to your dr for his/her recommendations, but know that they don't fall off immediately.
Posted 12/8/2008 2:36 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks Pibbin! I was starting to get worried about them not falling off. I cant really sleep on my stomach yet because it still hurts a little. My scar isnt too bad. Its only about 4 inches long. Im excited about tommorrow. I get to hopefully find out when I get my ostomy off!! =)
Posted 12/8/2008 11:58 PM (GMT 0)
Hi UC Free!

I wanted to post a reply to you, because I had two of the same problems (with steri-strips on scars, and with cutting my wafer too small).

For the steri-strips:

The nurses told me that they would eventually fall off, but the DON'T as you have seen! My surgeon actually said I would have to remove them or they would stay on for a Very long time! I tried to remove them and felt like my skin was being peeled off too--ouch!! So I asked my surgeon how was the best way to remove them--Here is the secret: grab one of the loosened edges and stretch it out--as in try to stretch out the strip itself. This will actually cause the strip to loosen its grip on your skin, and come off easily!

For the dark purplish spots on your stoma:

I had the same thing (mine looked very dark red, and a bit drier than the surrounding area), and my stoma nurse told me I was cutting my wafer too small, so that it was too tight around the stoma and cutting off blood flow to it! (You can't feel this because stomas do not have nerve endings). I had been cutting it small because I was afraid of leaks. But I started cutting the hole bigger, leaving about 2 mm between my stoma and the wafer, and using paste to fill in that small space. After doing this, the dark spots on my stoma turned back to normal, red/pink color.

Hope this helps! I am fairly new at this too--I have had my ostomy since May. :)

-E
Posted 12/9/2008 1:35 AM (GMT 0)
UC, are the spots on your stoma, or you stomach?
Posted 12/9/2008 2:01 AM (GMT 0)
Summerstorm, its not really spots its more like a purplish red circle around my stoma.

LittleE, yeah these strips are annoying and now where I pulled them off its hurting. Im guessing because its right where my underwear is. Im going to see my surgeon tommorrow for my follow-up so Ill let you know what she says about that and the circle.

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