Stealth belt?

Anybody tried it? it's called the stealth belt.. and they are saying you can play football, wakeboard, (hopefully race motocross in my case), water ski, cycle, ANYTHING with this belt... I can't see how you could play football or anything like that with the chance of somebody SLAMMING your stoma even with a piece of fabric over it?

hope somebody's tried these!

http://www.stealthbelt.com/

It won't get damaged?? the skin can't break around it or anything once it's healed up? i would just be scared to death... I might have a diff feeling right now since I"m still in recovery.. I'm starting my 3rd week tomorrow of recovery.. have my follow up w/ my surgeon tomorrow at 1.. been doing a lot better this past week! gained 10 pounds back so far in like one and a half weeks.

Very very very very happy to be feeling GOOD! no more stomach pains! bags a lot to get used to but i'm deff getting used to it.. once my incisions all healed and my stoma sites all healed (am on prednisone and was on a HEAVY does before surgery as I was in a flare so it's slowed down healing) I know I'll feel even better

But once again nothing can happen if you get hit here? I could ride motocross again when I feel up to it? just wear extra padding?

The thing with the belt is trying to empty. I guess it is good for keeping it against your body, but you can buy a small tank top and cut it so it just goes around your waist. Or you could buy one of those under armor shirts for when you are swimming or playing sports.
But I got to thinking, how exactly do you empty a bag that is turned sideways? It would be kind of cumbersome.

I have only had my ileostomy for about two months so I am still that "afraid-to-damage-stoma" mode. The first week out of the hospital dealing with the bag doing somewhat regular activities I could not stand when a little bit of stool would get in the bag and start pulling on my skin. I just wanted something to support the weight. I also hated the fact that it would hang out from underneath my shirt. I chose the stealthbelt for its ability to keep the bag secure to my stomach and basically hold the weight of the stool and I liked the flexibility of the lycra material.

As far as the "ease of emptying" issue, I have found that it is difficult to completely empty the bag while wearing the belt, but you can get MOST of it out, enough to be comfortable. The bottom unzips and you can turn the bag down enough to empty most stool. A two-piece bag is not mandatory but is highly recommended. My routine is to turn my bag horizontal in the morning when I take a shower. Empty it when necessary during the day. I turn it back vertical during my evening shower. At that point I like to get it completely cleaned out.

I have to say that the stealthbelt has made having an ostomy very manageable.

Eric

Hey I didn't mean break I meant rip, damaged, etc... like right now I have that skin seperation from my stoma to the surrounding skin (from stupid prednisone not letting the skin heal before stitches dissolved) But yeah I just have that scared to hurt my stoma feeling... I Guess there will be no need for that when I'm all healed up!

Wow thank you for that link... probably about to make some orders. I'm only 3 weeks out of surgery but when I get back to feeling great and strong this is going to pick up my spirits that I can truly live my life still

Seriously check out the ostomysecrets.com page and look at the wraps. I wear one all day every day and I don't have to turn my bag sideways. Also, it is extremely easy to empty with it on since its just an elastic waist wrap with a pocket for support.

it looks like this thread came to a halt a long time ago, but came up when i did a search online. i recently ordered a stealth belt and i am waiting for it to come in the mail, so my search was about if anyone had problems with the product or the company. wearing my pouch horizontal is not a new concept to me, so adjusting to that part of it won't be an issue. i have been using a support belt from ostomysolutions.com for about 10 years now, and for me, this type of belt has changed my life. as as them working for everyone, that is impossible, because everyone is different, that is just the way we are. as for playing football or other contact sports, ask yourself a question; would you protect your head with a piece of cloth? even before surgury, wearing the right gear is a must, afterwards, even more so. i have had my stoma for going on 30 years now and would only recomend taking full advantage of every piece of prtective gear possible when it comes to volentary physical contact. as for the horizontal belts go, personally, i can't live without mine, but like i said, not everyone is the same....

 

at first i thought it would be awkward, but then i realized that before i started using the horizontal belt, when you go to empty a verticle pouch, you have to tilt it to open it anyways, so the difference is very minimal, and after doing it over and over, it becomes second nature like all the other "hoops we gotta jump through".....

thanks for that tip duggin, but i do have another question about the belt. the one i have been using, to get access for emptying, it;s a velcro system and i know the stealth belt is a zipper system, has the zipper ever caused problems as far as catching on the pouch/ in my mind, that would be something that could ruin your day for sure. the zipper system is a big part of why i am looking to switch from this belt, for example, in a public restroom, opening the velcro sounds like i am ripping my shirt apart and i would love to get away from that. also, when laundering this belt, the velcro going through the clothes dryer has rippled to the point where it looks like a piece of Christmas ribbon candy and causes bulging under certain clothes, another reason to switch.....thanks for replying....Doug