help with putting on eakin seal

I'm using the hollister convexity and paste with great success: longest time has been 80 hrs. Only week ago I was leaking two hrs after applying bag.

I ordered some eakin seals, but not sure if I am doing it right. Last night I change bag and tried a seal. I found it to be more sticky than I thought it would be, and had trouble applying it around my stoma (I decided putting the seal directly around the stoma would be better than putting on the bag).

I have some skin breakdown around stoma and applied the powder and wipes x 2.

I tried the best I could to push the seal close to the stoma. Would it be ok to use water to keep the seal from being so sticky on my fingers?

Then I put on the convexity bag. I found out it is best to cut the whole a little bit larger than the stoma. Am I right? I am so compulsive about cutting hole the right size and it is hard to apply the bag over the stoma because I am looking at it lying down and it is hard to get perspective. Do you ever feel confident putting the bag over the stoma? I may have to go back using paste, but I just ordered a box of seals.

Any hints for beginner? ...Thanks

i dont know about the eakin seals, i have these strips of things, called nuhope strips and a jar of something that i think may be eakin seals but i never tried them, cause my paste works and they confuse me too, lol!
I wouldnt use water though because if it works like the paste its just going to make it worse and make it sort of mushy like.
As for cutting the hole, you dont have to have it exaclty. Mine is usually a teeny tiny bit too small, and you also dont have to worry if it is the exact right shape for your stoma, your stoma will move out to fit it, sort of like if you pushed playdoh up through something. Does that make sense? Alot of times your stoma shrinks whne you stand up, at least mine does.
I see what you mean about getting perspective, but i guess since i have been doing it so long, i dont even really watch when i do it, i just slap it on and press it down, but if you could have someone help you watch as you guide it on for now that might help you get the hang of it!

YAY YAY YAY for 80 hours!!! I have been hoping you were getting some better wear time!

You probably do need to relax about it honestly. When i first got mien, i was so freakign OCD it was crazy! I was checkign it every 2 minutes. And i would snap my bag on and off and on and off all the time. And i was paranoid about makign sure it got placed exactly right.
But the longer i had it the more i learned to trust that i was doing it right, adn i learned to trust my instincts and i know now that if i feel like i have done somethign wrong, i need to check ASAP, lol.
You will get like that too, i promise!

I use the whole seal and apply it directly to the wafer opening (I actually have to make the seal a little smaller so it is right up to my stoma) then put it on my skin as 'one' piece. No skin prep and only powder when needed for me!!

Personally, since I have more liquid output, I like my opening as close to the stoma as possible...it tends to give me better wear time. I've had great success with close to a 6 day average...don't stress, you'll find the system that works best for you, soon:)

I am also a newbie, but I have gotten a lot faster lately. The eakins are fabulous, and I apply mine exactly as tkctwbd describes - pressing it in place around the stoma since I need to make sure to get as close and tight of a seal as possible, otherwise I have major ulceration issues. (My stoma is really wiggly and finicky.) I do sometimes wet my fingers to keep it from sticking to the fingers (otherwise as I press it in place, it sticks to my finger and comes up a bit), but have to be careful they're not too wet because if any water drips on/around the seal it will affect the adhesive.

Blueheron,

I dig your blog. Do you mind if I link to it on the "Other Blogs" section of mine?

Bootstrap- please do! Thanks!

janet.. NO. you want to get the wafer the correct size for your stoma. There was another posting on here with someone else not doing that either and it was causing problems. So remeasure your stoma. you want one of the paper circle thingies that fits right over your stoma with the inside edge of the circle almost touching your stoma. That is the size you want. Order that pre-cut wafer.

Then you just take the eakin seal and put it on the back of the wafer. And let it do its thing to "swell" up a bit and give you a good seal.
let me know if you have further questions. I'm happy to help you get your changing process simplified so you feel better about things.

janet, yes great idea, get an ostomy nurse to remeasure your stoma for you. And if it not a solid circle so you can order precut wafers, then have her make you a template that you can use to cut out each wafer. Then you can cut out the wafers in advance. When I had an odd shaped stoma I would sit in front of the tv and cut out batches of wafers so they would be ready.

And you are correct. It is very helpful to have a nurse just sit there and watch you do the whole changing process yourself until you are comfortable. I was never allowed to leave a hospital until I could change everything myself, each time I got a new ileostomy.

good luck janet, you are making some progress.

tkctwbd said...


I am so compulsive about cutting hole the right size and it is hard to apply the bag over the stoma because I am looking at it lying down and it is hard to get perspective. Do you ever feel confident putting the bag over the stoma?

Any hints for beginner? ...Thanks

You will get more and more confident as time goes on. I would agree that it's really difficult to put on the pouch while lying down. What works for me is being in a sitting position (usually on the toilet lid) and I use a hand held mirror to guide my placement of the pouch.

80 hrs wear time? That's impressive! I'm lucky if I can get 48.

May I ask what would cause someone to have 4 ileostomies? I thought once you had one, that was it!

Ddd45...my goodness ! Here is one of those times when I will say that no matter what I am going through with my situation, there are those who have gone through so much more. Thank you for sharing all of your experiences D. Because of where you have been, I am able to benefit.

The last time I put on my new wafer, I did stand up instead of sitting down. I am going to get a small mirror that I can move a little bit closer to me so I can get the bottom of the stoma positioned in the wafer better. I am still concerned about hurting the stoma if I get too close to it. I really like the Eakins seal. I have totally stopped worrying about a leak, and it is comfortable...I have never had a leak and I don't want one.

D...that's a relief... However, I thought that I felt discomfort from my stoma before...it must have been a sensation from the immediate adjacent skin.

Tonight is the Christmas gathering for my local Ostomy group. It will be my first time attending and meeting others who are in my new club, Plus I am hoping at least 1 of the 3 stoma nurses will be there so I can arrange an appointment to watch me, measure me and give me first hand tips! Going to have my first glass of wine and will remember you as I toast my new life.