friend just got a colostomy. can you give me some help and advice to give him???

It won't drastically change his life. Once he gets his routine now it will be second nature and he won't even think about it other than the few times a day it needs emptying.
He can eat or drink anything, after the first few weeks. He will need more water, but that shouldn't cause a problem with fast transit
I have an ileostomy which is different from colostomy, but a lot of it is the same.
Some people do have food problems, but those are usually limited to one or two things. The main thing that I have with food is some foods give me more gas or smell really bad coming out. Like fish or broccoli. Some things look gross coming out, so I don't eat them.
Honestly, my crowns on my front teeth keep me from eating more things than my ileo does.
good luck to you and your friend, you are a very good friend to take time to post and ask questions!

You said he has a colostomy, but then you said he doesn't have a colon. So, does he actually have an ileostomy, or is there still a bit of colon left??

Either way, his life shouldn't have to change very much at all. Once he gets used to having the stoma/bag and gets a routine down, he'll likely forget about it much of the time. I know that's the case for me and my surgery was just over 4 months ago.

- After the first 6 weeks or so, he can start adding in foods that are more difficult to digest, and should eventually be able to eat/drink pretty much anything
- Spicy foods haven't been a problem for me, and neither have greasy or fatty foods. I eat anything I desire for the most part.
- Without a colon he will have to drink more water to stay hydrated. As far as transit time, my nurse told me not to drink much with meals, or the 20 minutes before/after, and that should help slow things down a bit.
- Everyone has a different type of bag they prefer. All of the companies that make them are GREAT about helping figure out what's best and sending all the free samples he could want. This can be done by phone or online. I've gotten samples from Convatec, Hollister, Coloplast and CyMed.
- Once he's recovered from surgery, he should be able to be as physically active as he wants to be. The only thing to be careful about is heavy lifting, since hernia risk is increased with a stoma.
- He can drink alcohol
- Patience is very important. He has been through a lot and has some things to learn, but it is not earth shattering. The first few bag changes will probably be frustrating, but it gets SO much easier before long. At first he should eat easy to digest foods, small portions and chew VERY well. His output will likely vary a lot while his system adjusts. A lot of things might seem odd, just don't freak out and use any support system available.

Come back with any questions you or he might have!

if he had his entire colon removed, then it should be an ileostomy. as everyone said, once he gets his routine, it's not gonna change anything in his daily activity at all! getting samples from all companies and figuring out what works best is a good start. once he gets that figured out, taking care of the stoma will be so very easy. doesn't consume much time too. i change my wafer once a week and it takes about 10-15 mins (i'm very pedant, but for most ppl it takes like 5-10 mins).

for the first few weeks he should eat low residue foods, cuz they are easier on the digestive system. after that while he should start slowly introducing more foods to his diet in small amounts to see how it works. most ppl can eventually eat anything they want. some ppl may still have problems with few certain foods. i'm 4 yrs after colectomy with ileo-rectal anastomosis and 3 yrs after loop ileostomy and i now can eat almost anything i want. some foods will always be problematic for me, but i can live w/o them. everyone is different and some foods that i can eat with no probs, some ppl can't, so it's more like a trial and error thing. it's important to chew the food well, mostly in the first few weeks. i now forget to chew sometimes (when i'm very hungry lol) and there's no prob even so.

i eat greasy and spicy foods all the time - no problem at all with that. if he drinks alcohol, it's important to drink lots of water after, cuz it can increase chances of dehydration. he should drink pletty of water in the first few weeks, but it gets better with time, cuz the output slows down with time.

we can do anything we want with a stoma. many ostomates do all kind of sports - going to the gym, running, swimming, riding a bike, horse, hiking, diving, mountain climbing - the stoma doesn't limit us in anything we want to do. its just like another accessory we're wearing :)

wishing him a speedy recovery!