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dealing with bag 1 handed?!?!?!

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Posted 9/29/2015 2:59 PM (GMT 0)
hi everyone! Sooo- over the wknd I tripped over my cat, fell on my face,  broke my nose & fractured my left wrist. Yay me.... Let me tell you how tricky emptying with a cast is!!!! I have no idea how I'll manage changing everything, but I'm not due for that until this wknd, at least. Anyone have any tips?????
Posted 9/29/2015 4:11 PM (GMT 0)
Sorry to hear that! Darn cats, I never did like those things... :P I guess unless you have a helper, you kind of just have to find a way to do it, sure sounds tricky!
Posted 9/30/2015 5:24 PM (GMT 0)
This is a bit embarrassing, I fell and cracked my wrist last December, and I can't recall what I did when changing. It was a just a hairline crack, just checking a picture (my first selfie!) of myself, the cast didn't seem to go too far down my hand, so I had some flexibility in some of my fingers. Hmm, I'm having a vague recollection that I took the already cut wafers out of my emergency kit. Hope you have enough fingers sticking out to manage.

Ann
Posted 9/30/2015 11:03 PM (GMT 0)
Hi,

I was curious and found this post from a nurse's board: http://allnurses.com/general-nursing-discussion/one-handed-ostomy-74613.html

Even though the issue has been resolved, I will tell you that just last week I cared for a patient on our floor. He had two arms, but one of them was completely useless (an attacker had stabbed him several times and ruined nerves). He also, as a result of the stabbings, had a new colostomy. I never personally watched him do his care, but he was completely independent with the colostomy. Apparently instead of emptying it using the bottom of the pouch and re-rolling it up, he just took the whole appliance off the wafer every time it needed emptying and did it that way.

Something you could try..... maybe harder w/an ileo....

Would it be easier if you used a clip?

Good luck!
Posted 10/1/2015 2:17 PM (GMT 0)
Wow, thanks! I thought about swapping out the entire bag for a new one, as opposed to emptying. But the cheapskate in me cringes at going thru 4 bags a day! I'm managing ok- not getting things as clean as I like, but whatever.. there's no smell or leaks, so I'm good! I need to chamge everything either today or tomorrow, & p;an to use a 1 piece Mio as opposed to my usual 2 piece HOllister. I have the use of my 4 left finegrs, but not humb to grasp things- And the fingers are barely able to do much- my daughter has been doing my hair every day! Wish me luck on the bag change, please! I'm going to need it!!!! Because I just WILL NOT ask my husband to help- I just can't, I'm still grossed out myself sometimes!
Posted 10/3/2015 12:06 PM (GMT 0)
well, it went ok! I stuck on a 1 piece Mio... it was tough to get the Eakin on ok, those are so sticky. Then, when I went to line up wafer, to stick it on, it just sort of fell onto the skin & that was that- couldn't pull it off & re-stick it. Thankfully it's been well over a year now with the end ileo, so I've gotten pretty good at aiming! Emptying is still a hassle- it's really hard to use 1 hand to squeeze everything down- it tends to get smushed into the other side of the bag. And I can't get the ends as clean as I'd like, but... no leaks, no smell, so it's ok. I can deal with this for the next 8 weeks or so! Sucks, but... it's do-able.
Posted 10/4/2015 12:38 AM (GMT 0)
Glad you figured something out! You'll probably get a bit better at it w practice too.
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