Advice about Stomas needed

[greybeard]

Following a prolonged flare-up of ulcerative colitis, my wife who is in hospital again, was today told that a considerable section of her colon was beyond saving and must be removed. The Stoma surgery will take place in the next few days.

I believe some forum members have a stoma, so I would appreciate any information based on personal experience, eg. what to expect, what to watch out for, what to avoid, and anything we can do to make her recovery as smooth and speedy as possible.

Thank you.

[Burgerman]

Not sure how anyone can help. In all seriousness its a pain to look after. Takes a little time to get used to it. In the end it all becomes 2nd nature and wont bother her so much. And listen to the stoma nurse a lot... And of course watch diet.

[martin007]

Good luck with the surgery.

[F3Head]

You can check out YouTube I've seen some good colostomy videos and associated hardware.

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=colostomy

I just searched colostomy and I reviewed quite a few videos that were helpful and interesting.

F3HEAD

[greybeard]

Thank you all.

[Burgerman]

What she will have is most likely to be an ileostomy though. Which is the same but different!

[Burgerman]

Whatto look out for and what to avoid?

Oily food, like makerel, or anything thats really oily makes the things come unstuck faster. Which may be bad news. Doesent mean dont eat. Just dont eat if you are going out for the day or a party!

Things like peanuts dont get digested and come through like gravel. And get under the bit where it sticks, with similar results. If you like peanuts, eat them when not planning on going out the next day.

Starch, and carbohydrate causes a lot of gas, especially initially for a few months post op.. So avoid bread, crisps, and chips in large quantities. Basically that leaves anything with a face. Thats fine by me. Great excuse to live on steaks and stuff.

Did you know that a burger and chips is a vegitarian meal?

Bread, wheat etc.
Letuce, tomato sauce, onion, and the chips, all vegetables. Chips fried in vegi oil.
Burger, made from a cow that is made from grass.

[greybeard]

Thanks BM.
They keep delaying when to operate because she's full of C-diff bacteria. They don't like that in hospitals, understandably, as it's so easily spread to others. I just wish they would get on with it because her condition has deteriorated considerably while she's been banged up in her isolation room. When they operate they will remove the entire colon so you are correct about the ileostomy. Can't fault the care she's getting though.