If you like to read, I’ll expand more below. But in a nutshell, here are the key points to caregiving for someone from before surgery to after. The two types of support you might offer are physical and emotional.


Emotional Support

  • Educate yourself. Learn about ostomies!
  • Encourage them to get educated about their ostomy
  • Be Patient and empathetic
  • Listen
  • Encourage them to get back to normal activities and exercise (per their doctor’s permissions of course).
  • Be prepared and know who to call in case of emergency

Physical Support

  • Help by cooking, doing laundry, offering to run errands, etc.
  • They might need help changing their ostomy bag
  • Go for walks with them
  • Lift things for them
  • Open doors
  • Offer to wash their hair if they aren’t ready for a full on shower