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Clothes to hide bag!!!

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Posted 8/21/2007 10:51 PM (GMT 0)
I was wondering what I can wear to hide the bag??? Either it puffs and it needs to be drained or it's long that I have to wear long shirts. i'M 31 years old and like to dress very stylish but don't know how to work around this. i feel like I can't wear jeans or slacks anymore. Any advise??  Also...how do you all sleep? I've been sleeping only on my back because I'm afraid if I roll over to the side of the bag it'll pop and if I roll over to the other side the stool will sit on the wafer soak it and allow it  to leak. Please help I don't know how to live a normal life with this appliance.  Thank you
Posted 8/22/2007 1:19 AM (GMT 0)
Here are the best under pants you will ever find! You can hind your bag under almost anything you wear. http://www.whiterosecollection.com/
Posted 8/22/2007 2:59 AM (GMT 0)
I'm 36 and have been into wearing umpire waisted tops lately. They're stylish and cover the tummy area nicely. You can wear them with jeans, pants, capris, bermuda shorts, and skirts.

At night, I start out sleeping on my stomach when the bag is empty. After a while, I'll roll over and lay on my side while hugging a pillow. Having the pillow pressed up against my tummy helps hold the bag in place.

I wouldn't worry about popping the bag. They are very durable. To prevent leaks, I recommend using Stomahesive each time you put on a new wafer.
Posted 8/22/2007 3:09 AM (GMT 0)
I'm 30 and i still wear the clothes i wore before hand. I don't know if i am stylish or not, lol. I wear Levis and Apt 9 jeans and i really like those shirts from wal-mart with care bears and such on them (i'm a nerd, lol) but they aren't long, they come a little below my waist. I like to wear a 10 instead of an 8 though, just because that way it doesn't rub against stuff.  I put those gel caps in before i leave for somewhere and they usually keep things under control.  I work for about 5 and half hours and sometimes i wouldnt' HAVE to change it but i usually do, but only once.  As for sleeping, for the first two months or so i slept on my back or propped up where i wouldn't roll on my stomach, just because it hurt too much.  Now i sleep on my tummy again, well actually i sleep sort of on  my tummy, but there is pressure on the bag, and so far (knock on wood, probably it will mess up tonight, lol) i have had no problems.  I got some of those waterproof pads to sleep on though, that way if it does leak all i have to do is change the pad and clean me, not the whole bed. 
Posted 8/22/2007 2:05 PM (GMT 0)
I got 2 pair of jeans, denim and khaki from soft surroundings.com.  Do a search for denim stretch leggin on the site.  They look and feel exactly like jeans.  They have a flared leg, and elastic in the back of the waist.  They don't stretch out and the front has pockets and a waistline.  I wear my tunics with them and sometimes wear a belt as my waist is the smallest part of me.  I get so many compliments on them!

Posted 8/22/2007 6:17 PM (GMT 0)
I just wrap an ace bandage around my waist or wear spanx to keep it close to my body. I'm 48 and wear low cut jeans and JUST about anything I wore before except for short tops, but then again, at 48 I shouldn't have worn 'em anyway. Unfortunatly, I am too small for the lovely undies at the white rose collection. They really are nice!
Posted 8/23/2007 1:24 AM (GMT 0)
Aren't spanx tight? I was afraid to try them.
Posted 8/23/2007 12:08 PM (GMT 0)
I used to wear the tightest jeans imaginable when I was a teenager and no one could see my bag (it just meant I emptied a little more frequently). Nowadays, I still wear them fairly tight. I can't wear low waisted jeans but the others are just fine. I usually wear a longish t-shirt - not to hide my ostomy cos no one can ever pick it under my jeans - but to try and hide my huge backside :) I also wear slacks every day to work with a stylish blouse over the top. The smock tops which are in style right now are wonderful too.

I hate sleeping on my back so I roll over onto my tummy and bring my right leg up (my bag is on my right side) which lifts my tummy slightly off the mattress giving my bag room to grow. You can also try arranging your pillows so you can lie on them leaving a gap between your tummy and the mattress too. Where there's a will, there's a way :)

btw, I'm 40 years old but have had my ileo since I was 10 years old.

Good luck.
Posted 8/23/2007 1:46 PM (GMT 0)
Spanx are tight, but not too tight to expand with the bag.
Posted 8/23/2007 3:45 PM (GMT 0)
thank you everyone for your help.  How do you deal with the bag puffing under the jeans and it being noticable and are there better bags to use for jeans?  I feel like I can't even wear low cut because my wafer would be in the way.....i admire all of u....i"m just so discouraged!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Posted 8/24/2007 2:35 AM (GMT 0)
mine only puffs when i have alot of gas, some gas-x before you go out will help. And i think of it this way, if someone does see a bulge there, they aren't gonna say, OMG she has an ostomy and it needs emptying. I mean, they are gonna think it's your phone or some kleenex, or maybe they will even think you are rich and have a wad of money! But mostlikey, they won't even notice, before you had your ostomy did you ever once look at a person and say, i wonder if they have an ostomy? I had to keep reminding myself that people don't just go around expecting that for a while. Some of my jeans are lowcut, i wear them just fine.
Don't be discouraged, you will be fine!
Posted 8/24/2007 2:37 PM (GMT 0)
I have had my ileostomy for a week and I tried to wear my jeans yesterday. The top of my pants fit right on top of my stoma. I am not sure if this is a big No, No when it comes to wearing clothing. I did notice that my wafer was sticking to my bag because of the pressure from my jeans. So when I went pee and tried to pull my jeans down, my wafter pulled away from my stoma a little. Does this mean my pants cannot be on my stoma? Even my shorts lay right on my stoma. Now, I am not sure what to wear.

Thanks
Posted 8/25/2007 4:13 PM (GMT 0)
if it's only been a week, yoru tummy is still swollen, and when that goes dwon, your stomach will be smaller, so then your waistband won't be so tight on it. My pants fit right around there, but i have just gone to buying a 10 instead of an 8, that way they are a little looser in the waist. I wouldn't try to wear jeans for a while, was it not uncomfortable?

I meant to tell this story earlier, i read it on another board i think, i hope the woman doesn't mind me telling her story, i probably won't tell it exactlyt he same, but the point will be the same, lol.
The woman was worried about the bag showing in a pair of jeans so she asked her friend if it showed, and her friend looked at her and said, yes it does so the lady asked her where she could see it, and the friend pointed ot her left pocket. Well the lady started laughing, becuase her bag is on the right side, and what her friend was pointing out was some kleenexs.
Posted 8/25/2007 5:23 PM (GMT 0)
Hello everyone...

I've been reading and reading all the different threads and just wanted to put my 2 cents in on this one... for what it is worth.  I don't know if I am "in style" either, but I too still wear my jeans, but I really like the stretch ones they have out now.  Ya can't really tell that they are stretch, but are more comfy, IMO.  I almost always wear shirts that I don't tuck it, but that too, is a comfort issue for me.  Not necessarily long shirts either.

You all are just a wealth of information.  I thank you for all the great hints and suggestions, and the open honesty.   The internet was not around when I had my surgery, nor were a lot of the new drugs,etc.  OH, and what's this about being able to have laproscopic surgery to perform a TC/Ileostomy?!!!   Did I really read that correctly?  WOW!

Tellin' my age....but happy to be alive and healthy.

Posted 8/26/2007 12:46 AM (GMT 0)
I work in a manufacturing center and one of our dress code rules is that you have to have your shirt tucked in,  I have an ileostomy and have developed a hernia around it and believe me, it is noticable when I have my shirt tucked in.  For the past few months, I have been wearing my shirt out and Friday, an auditor came around and made note of my shirt being out, the supervisor said something to me, so now I have to tuck it in again and am dreading it so bad.  We just wear jeans and t shirts, so I don't know what the big deal is, I wish I could go to the doctor and get a note about it, but then, if one person found out about my ostomy, everyone would know and I would be horrified.       I never wear a shirt tucked in anymore at home or out.  I understand where you are coming from, I am 47 now and had my surgery when I was 30, I have gained right much weight since then too.  I have to sleep on my sides or back, I miss sleeping on my stomach so bad, but I can't.  I wish I had some good advice for you, I do know how you feel tho, because I get discouraged real easily too  and depressed a lot.  Sorry I couldn't help, I just wanted to comment.

Posted 8/26/2007 2:12 AM (GMT 0)
LFW, could you wear like a longer shirt so that when you tucked it in the rest would come out farther? did that make sense?
Posted 8/26/2007 2:50 PM (GMT 0)
Yes I know what you mean, like wear a big shirt and kind of pull the excess out and have it to kind of hag over my waist.  Most of my shirts are more fitting than that, but I could get some big ones, I may have to do that to hide my buldge.    I know that auditor has no idea about my situation, but it still upsets me.  I don't look sloppy or anything, I do my job and go to work every day, we used to have to wear uniforms, but they let us wear jeans and t shirts and I guess they don't want things to get out of hand, but I still don't see how wearing my shirt tale out effects my job performance, it makes it better because I am not worried about my buldge showing !!  Thanks for the help!!

Posted 8/26/2007 7:27 PM (GMT 0)
I buy long T shirts (tunics) from Landsend online. They have a great selection and it keeps me from having to worry about if my pouch is puffy or not. No one knows I have an ostomy unless I choose to tell them.

LFW, what about going to your boss, and telling them and letting them know it's confidential. Their are HIPPA laws that govern this sort of thing. Maybe you can come up with a compromise, a little different style of shirt so that if everyone wants to do it, they will have to buy that style shirt.
Posted 8/26/2007 9:11 PM (GMT 0)
Like I had mentioned earlier - can you wrap an ace bandage around your tummy? Not tight, but enough to hold it close to your body. I sometimes wear things tucked in. I just pull alittle fabric out to make a slight bulge anyway.
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