HealingWell
Search Close Search
☰

Showering without bag?

Support Forums
>
Ostomies
✚ New Topic ✚ Reply
❬ ❬ Previous Thread |Next Thread ❭ ❭
Posted 4/7/2012 11:44 PM (GMT 0)

Hey everyone, I'm new to this forum and have enjoyed reading posts today. I've read a few comments about showering and it seems that people remove their bag when showering? I've had a colostomy for almost 7 years and have never showered without the bag, thinking that the water stream would hurt the delicate stoma tissue. How does everyone handle this?

Posted 4/7/2012 11:47 PM (GMT 0)
Welcome Sally. It's fine to shower w/the bag on, but it won't hurt your stoma at all if you shower without it. You probably wouldn't want to say point a hand held shower head at it full blast, but I have had no problem at all with ordinary showering. I try to time it when there's not likely to be output, but if there is some it just goes down the drain..... marshmallows help for pouch changes too.
Posted 4/8/2012 12:04 AM (GMT 0)
Normally I will remove the bag and let the shower clean the stoma really nice. I don't force water on there or anything, just let it rinse and it doesn not hurt it. I also apply sure seals that cover up the wafer the rest of the week.
Posted 4/8/2012 5:29 AM (GMT 0)
I shower with it on mostly but on occasion take the chance that I won't poop all over myself and shower without it on and it is heaven. Such a nice feeling having the pouch off for that short time, and no pain to the stoma at all.
Posted 4/8/2012 11:37 AM (GMT 0)
On change days I shower fully 'naked' in the shower without a problem. Your stoma doesn't mind water at all, after all it's nothing compared to what it's used to having around it lol Hot or cold water, it doesn't seem to mind even when the shower stream hits it directly (which is most of the time while I'm in the shower). It gets the skin around my stoma really nice and clean too.
Posted 4/8/2012 12:13 PM (GMT 0)
I loved showering without the bag. I think it was good for the stoma to be uncovered (my own projection), got the skin totally clean and was the only time in my 12 months of stoma life that I didn#t have to have the bag on me.
Don't get afraid of your stoma getting active while in the shower, sometimes it will, just let it go down the drain.
If I ate about 5 marshmellows 20 minutes before going in the shower, it could keep the stoma quiet, but let's say that worked about 80% of the time.
Posted 4/8/2012 1:35 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks everyone! I feel like I keep the skin around the stoma pretty clean, paying close attention when I change the bag, but I'm definitely going to try a shower without the bag soon. Ha, how liberating it must feel.
Posted 4/10/2012 12:05 AM (GMT 0)
It is liberating... enjoy... and welcome! smilewinkgrin
Posted 4/10/2012 2:20 AM (GMT 0)
I love bag change days! The shower and the time without the bag is what I look forward to. I wait until after I have a large amount of output and then go for it. Even if you keep the skin really clean, nothing compares to having the warm water run all over your skin.
Posted 4/10/2012 10:59 PM (GMT 0)
I choose a time of day where I hardly have any output. I too was afraid, finally took the plunge after a year. Oh how liberating, the little things we appreciate! I change my appliance once a week, shower about 15-20 minutes. This time that I give my skin to really be clean, time to breath, I must say that other than the wafer indentation, my skin around the stoma is healthy....no issues at all!!
Posted 4/10/2012 11:25 PM (GMT 0)
With my end ileostomy, I changed my appliance every 3-4 days or so. When it wasn't time to change it yet, I always took my bag off and left the flange on while showering. I hated waiting for the bag to dry when I came out of the shower. When it WAS time to change the whole appliance, I looked forward to being able to shower naked with no bag, no flange, nothing. Didn't matter if it acted up in the shower since I was in there surrounded by soap and water anyway. It didn't really matter what time of day I showered, I was able to learn to read my end ileostomy really well and know when I could last a good 10 min without it acting up.

However, now with my temporary loop ileostomy, I am changing my entire appliance every other day (flange, bag, everything) because I have crazy leakage problems. So I ALWAYS shower with my entire appliance off and I am always completely naked in the shower. And they are the best showers I've had in a long time!
✚ New Topic ✚ Reply