Which Dr. does best

I am sorry that you are feeling low with the anemia. You should find that you benefit a lot more from the liquid,I know I did. I like Spatone,a very natural form of Iron.

Hopeso, Please tell me that the hospital didnt send you home before you had mastered the art of a bag change? It sounds to me like you have been neglected. I have always stuck to the same cleaning/changing routine I dont actuely know what "caulk" is. Is it some sort of sticky stuff that you put on before the bag to help the bag stick better? If it is then you should be able to get a sample of adhesive remover from your stoma nurse to get rid of that.

I just use water to clean around the stoma and about twice a week I take the bag off in the shower and soap the surrounding skin making sure that I rinse well. Once I have dried off,I put a small amount of OstoGuard Lavender/Aloe Vera cream on my skin right up to the edge of the stoma.This acts as a barrier to any body fluids. Next I put on my bag and it sticks just fine.

As for the lenth of time that you leave your bag on,well that does depend on a few things. Do you have to pay for your ostomy Products? If so then I would imagine that changing every other day(As I usuely do but not always) could become expensive. I get all my Ostomy stuff free on the NHS. Also if you feel that the seal starts to break down after 2 or 3 days then its always better to change before you get to that stage to avoid getting leaks. Some people find they can wear the same bag for 7 or even more days,but I know that I would start to get a bit itchy under the wafer/flange by about the fourth day so thats another reason why I like to change more reguler than that.

If you have any other questions,big or small it doesnt matter,I will try to help if I can.

Sue

Thanks for the help. Yes they did send me home without a clue. I was promised home health, no one came, the nurse in the hosp. did everything while I was laying down and couldn't see. Since then it has been a battle of the bag. Leaks, flat flanges 2 pieces, one pieces, convex flanges. etc. I got this one put on on Thurs and it is Sat. night now. I can't see or smell anything but it sure feels strange. I have to leave it on till Monday when I go back and see the ET nurse again. All this is at my expense. The first week out of the hosp. the ET nurse said use these, and I bought a bunch of supplies as I had none, and that was over 100 dollars, then I had leak after leak, so went back and couldn't return those cause I cut the boxes apart to file the product # in a folder. I went back and saw her again and got another configuration of products, and paid for them, and this time they were also 2 pieces. I thought we had it this time, so I told my insurance lady to order me some from a supplier they use out of town. This she did and ordered 2 boxes of flanges and 2 boxes of bags. They didn't carry much inventory, and they had to special order them. The problem was that I was leaking badly under the seal and didnt' know it. Wen I finally got the bag removed I cried when I saw my skin was gone. So back to the ET nurse again, but this time my stoma had changed a little and so she had me get a convex 2 piece, another 100+ dollars worth. Meanwhile the other ones which are flat are on the way to my house. I tried to call and stop the order, but she said I would not be able to return them as it was a special order. I told her I couldn't use them, and called my insurance lady. She said when they come don't open the shipping box and call her and we will figure something out. This new set up leaked also. So back to the ET again. This time I saw the senior nurse, and she looked at me and said for me to try a one piece with convex wafer. So I did and it feels a lot better. But tonight it feels burny but can't see or smell anything, just like before when my skin was damaged. I am suppose to leave this one on till Monday morning and go see her and she is going to have me change it. I don't know what will happen if it is bad again. I am ending up spending a lot of money and I think I may have some very strange looking Christmas stockings hanging by the fireplace this year, if you know what I mean. Hopeso

     Hopeso, I still cut my wafer after 15 years!  I used the template that comes with my wafers and slipped it over my stoma and the precut are either too large or too small.  You want as close a fit as possible...hopefully only 1/8 of an inch of space all around.  The paste you put on the wafer will fill in that area nicely.

     After surgery, the stoma is swollen and generally misshapen.  Mine was oval for several months and steadily got smaller and rounder so I had to keep checking the "form" I made out of cardboard and changing it to make sure it was small enough to protect my skin.  After several months my stoma stopped changing and it's stayed the same ever since.  By the way, I have used the Convetec two piece flexible system all of these years and have really liked it.

     The burning feeling that you mentioned usually means you need to change your appliance.  (Actually, you need to change your appliance before you feel the burning!)  The output contains a lot of enzymes that break down the food you eat and they can break down your skin too.  Sounds like you need to "snug up" your wafer.  You should be able to get four days wear out of it.

     I know how expensive the appliances can be but, if you have medical insurance, start hounding them about paying for the appliances.  I did and got Aetna to pay for my appliances every month!  (I still had my copay.)  I kept calling them and explaining my surgery and asked them if they thought the appliance was necessary!     I told them they covered artificial limbs, pacemakers, etc. and that ostomy supplies were absolutely necessary for ostomates.  I explained how prejudicial it was that ostomates were excluded from help.  We need appliances and can't live without them.  I never gave up.  After several months of hounding and nicely explaining the plight of an ostomate, they relented and covered me as long as I had their insurance!   

     Best of luck and, if you need more help, just ask and all of us will do our best to get you over this hump.  

 

Sherrine