Some big holidays are happening soon and since they’re so often commemorated by gifts I thought it would be fun to put together a little shopping guide with some gift ideas for ostomates. Go ahead, spoil the ostomate in your life a little! Also, as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Purchasing products through the Amazon links below … Read More
Stomaversary Month – Six Years Have Flown By
Holy moly, my sixth stomaversary is here! As with past years, I’ve taken my stomaversary to be a queue to stop, reflect and acknowledge how grateful I am for the life I am living. I started my ostomy journey with optimism. I was so sick fighting my Ulcerative Colitis as I lay on my hospital bed that I welcomed the … Read More
Ostomy vs Colostomy vs Ileostomy vs Urostomy. What’s the difference?!
Ever have a conversation multiple times and think nothing of it, but then suddenly the significance of it becomes clear to you and you realize it’s a pattern and it’s time to address it? My most recent experience surrounding this has to do with the word colostomy and what it really means. I’ve had multiple conversations that go something like … Read More
Published in the British Medical Journal!
I’m so excited to announce that I’ve teamed up with the British Medical Journal to write an article for their “What your Patient is Thinking” series! This series is a collection of patient stories aimed at helping to educate healthcare professionals about what it’s like to live with a condition, from a patient’s perspective. Writing this piece for them was … Read More
Newbie Ostomy has a Store!
You guys!!!! I did a thing!!! My Newbie Ostomy store is officially live! At the same time I started this website, I was brainstorming all the fun shirt and mug designs that I wished existed. I was fresh out of surgery and longed to have some fun ostomy swag, but it was really hard to find what I was looking … Read More
Why I Wouldn’t Wear my Ostomy Pouch Out with my Bikini Again
In my post about the six adventurous activities I did on my honeymoon, I mentioned that I wore a bikini with my ostomy pouch out, completely visible, and I want to expand on this. My Plan for the Hot Springs My plan had been to wear my bikini bathing suit, with my ostomy pouch out for the world to see, … Read More
Six Adventurous Activities I did on my Honeymoon
What’s more exciting than getting married? Going on your honeymoon! In alignment with my intention to stop letting fear hold me back and to continue trying new things even though they feel like they’re way outside of my comfort zone, I agreed to honeymoon in Costa Rica. As we planned the trip, we focused on doing a bunch of outdoorsy … Read More
How I Receive a Massage with an Ostomy
For Valentine’s Day I treated myself to a bag of ghost pepper chips from Trader Joes and a 90 minute massage. It was amazing. I ate almost the entire bag on my way to and home from the massage, and I enjoyed my massage thoroughly. While on the table I realized I’ve had quite a few massages in the time … Read More
Give Your Ostomy a Little Bit of Love
Many people are concerned about their love life prospects as they approach the idea of having an ostomy. I’ve talked about it about my experiences in previous blog posts, Brenda Elsagher has written an entire book about it, and there are numerous other people shouting from the tops of their social media lungs about dating, getting married, and being intimate … Read More
Disneyland with an Ostomy
Shortly after my ostomy surgery I had the opportunity to go to Disneyland, and I passed it up. I didn’t see a point in going because I didn’t think there were things for me to do there since I wasn’t at all ready to be going on the big fancy crazy roller coasters. Looking back, I was holding myself back. … Read More
Six Tips for Introducing New Foods to Your Ostomy
One of the things I struggled with most through my IBD and early ostomy adventures was food. I love to eat, I love to try new things, and yet so often I found myself feeling confined. Before having an ostomy, I struggled with ulcerative colitis. When I was flaring it seemed like everything was a trigger. Going on dates or … Read More
2019 UOAA Conference Registration is OPEN
If you’ve been following me for a while, or have read back through my previous posts, you know how much the UOAA Conference changed my life. It’s like a huge support group with tons of educational and supportive sessions, an expo hall and the opportunity to meet a bunch of other amazing ostomates. The 2019 UOAA Conference registration is open, read on for more about why you should register now and start making your travel plans!
My Top 5 Favorite Ostomy Charities
This year for the holidays my family decided to forgo presents and donate to charities in each other’s names. We each listed two or three charities that we would love to donate to and then we’ll each donate to a charity in someone else’s name. It’s organized so that a donation is made to at least one of everyone’s charity … Read More
Feeling Anxious About Trying Something New, Then Humbled & Grateful for the Experience
Humbled. That’s how I was feeling as I rushed inside to change my pouch after a long day out of town. As I peeled the pouch off I sighed with relief. I had spent a lot of my day trying not to be anxious or worry about the pouch I’d put on that morning and it reminded me a lot … Read More
How Shifting my Mindset Helped me Feel Happier
Sometimes being an ostomy awareness advocate gives me a whole host of emotions. It’s easy to compare myself to all the other outgoing, beautiful, confident ostomates that I see posting on social media. To see how many followers a new ostomate has amassed on Instagram after a few short months of posts and to notice how their numbers quickly surpassed … Read More
13 Tips for Flying with an Ostomy
The holidays are fast approaching and I, like many of you, have travel plans! I belong to a number of online support groups and see a lot of anxiety about flying with an ostomy so I thought maybe I could ease some of your concerns. Here’s my collection of tips for flying with an ostomy. PACKING Bring extra ostomy supplies. … Read More
Open Enrollment – How to Choose Your Health Insurance Plan
Health insurance is a necessary evil, especially for us ostomates. Selecting health insurance is one of those unavoidable things that comes around once a year. It’s a big decision and it can be so hard to get information from insurance providers or healthcare providers about what the actual cost of your supplies, procedures and appointments will be until AFTER you’ve … Read More
Tips for Enjoying Candy & Desserts Post-Op
Halloween kicks off a season infiltrated with candy and desserts. If you’re still in that 6-8 week window of surgery recovery, you’re probably sticking to low-residue desserts this holiday season. The good news is, there are tons of low-residue desserts for you to enjoy. The bad news is, there are tons of low-residue dessert options for you to enjoy. Low-residue … Read More
World Ostomy Day 2018 is on Sat. October 6
World Ostomy Day 2018 is Saturday October 6. The best way to participate in World Ostomy Day is by spreading positive ostomy awareness in any way you know how. Some people feel uncomfortable talking about bodily functions (I know I did…), and because of this, having an ostomy can feel isolating. Here’s the thing though, when we keep silent, we … Read More
Stomaversary Month! Has it Really Been Half a Decade?!
This year marks three decades into my life and half a decade into my ostomy adventure, and here I am, alive, active and working to be my best me. My 5th Stomaversary is this month, and if the math wasn’t there to prove it, I’d have a hard time believing that I’ve lived with my ostomy for 1,825 days. As … Read More
Why I Don’t Always Carry My Ostomy Emergency Kit
A couple weeks into healing from my colectomy (which resulted in an ileostomy), I had built up enough strength to walk for 30 minutes to an hour. A friend of mine that lived nearby invited me to walk with her in the mornings. It was great for her because she planned to walk anyway and it was more fun with … Read More
Sometimes I Get Self Conscious About My Ostomy Showing
Do you have a “get ready” routine for going to exercise classes? I do. It mostly involves grabbing my bag of stuff and rushing out the door! Since I know there are certain things that I like to bring to class to make sure that I’m not self conscious about my ostomy, comfortable in class and taking care of myself, … Read More
3 Ways to Store Your Ostomy Supplies
Everyone has their own system for storing their ostomy supplies, the same way that everyone has their own system for organizing their pantry. Having worked as an organization guru, I’ve seen a lot of pantries in my day. Some people have a spotless pantry, where all the food types are together and neatly placed with the labels facing out, while … Read More
The #AerieREAL Body Positivity Campaign Includes an Ostomate!
The ostomy community had a huge win in spreading awareness this week with the debut of Aerie’s newest releases to their #AerieREAL campaign. I loved this company already, but holy moly this makes me so thrilled! If you’re not familiar with Aerie, it’s a sub-brand of American Eagle Outfitters that make lingerie, bras, undies and some lounge, sleep and active … Read More
I Do’s, Unlimited Tacos, and an Ostomy: I GOT MARRIED!!
Growing up, I was not the girl who spent hours daydreaming about her wedding day. I didn’t really daydream about my bachelorette party, or walking down the aisle. I had no idea what I wanted my dress to look like or what kind of cake toppers I’d have on my cake. I always assumed I’d get married, but I guess … Read More
The Why & How of the Patient Bill of Rights (PBOR)
An updated Ostomy and Continent Diversion Patient Bill of Rights (PBOR) was officially adopted at the UOAA National Conference in August 2017 and I am so excited to tell you all about why this document is such a big deal for us ostomates and how you can use it. Why Ostomy Patients Need a Patient Bill of Rights The PBOR … Read More
How I Sleep With an Ostomy: Then & Now
Support groups are great for talking about things that only an ostomate would wonder about, like how we sleep with an ostomy. A couple of my friends and I were talking about sleeping positions and some of them were expressing concern about laying on their stomach for any length of time. I went through a progression of sleeping positions as I … Read More
Packing for Travel with an Ostomy
One of my travel anxieties is running out of ostomy supplies. To me, it seems like an easy problem to avoid if you do a little planning when you’re packing for travel with an ostomy. Alexander Graham Bell said it best “Preparation is the key to success.” How many ostomy supplies to pack They say to pack 2-3 times as … Read More
Fun Ostomy Halloween Costume Ideas
Halloween is less than a month away and I’m sure some of you want to dress up and feature your ostomy but haven’t decided what you want to be yet. Maybe this post will help. I found some cute ostomy halloween costume ideas for the folks who want to dress up their pouch, and some cute halloween costume ideas that … Read More
Participate in Ostomy Awareness Day 2017
Ostomy Awareness Day 2017 is October 7! It comes around once a year as a day to raise ostomy awareness and work to shift the perception of ostomies into a positive light. My experience has been that many of the people I’ve told about my ostomy know someone close to them who either has an ostomy, or has come close … Read More
UOAA Recap Part 3: Exhibitors Galore
I’ve talked about the friendships made and knowledge shared at the UOAA Conferences, but I would be remiss if I didn’t talk about the exhibit hall. These exhibitors (and tons of other small companies!) are the folks who work every day to make our lives more manageable with an ostomy. Give them a mental round of applause and say thank … Read More
UOAA RECAP Part 2: There’s Always Something New to Learn
Whether you’ve been a part of the ostomy community for 20+ years or joined it yesterday, the United Ostomy Associations of America (UOAA) National Conference is worth attending. There are two main themes that come up time and time again when talking to people about their experiences at the conference: education and friendship. You can read about the bonds that … Read More
UOAA RECAP Part 1: Ostomy Camaraderie
Ostomies don’t discriminate, it doesn’t matter your gender, sex, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, religious beliefs, age, attitude toward life, social status, diet, or activity level. Whoever you are and wherever you come from, if you have an ostomy, you have something in common with 725,000 to 1,000,000 other Americans and a huge number of other people across the world (numbers … Read More
It’s Stomaversary Month Again – Four Years Flies By!
Recently, I realized that that this month marks my fourth stomaversary month. Time sure does fly… Three and a half years ago, I was meeting with Heidi from Ostomyoutdoors.com. She was about three years out of surgery at that point and reading her blog was (is) a huge inspiration to me. She had done so many things I couldn’t dream … Read More
Ostomy Supplies & Staying at Your Partner’s Place
Keeping my ostomy supplies neat and organized is important for my sanity. It’s also pretty simple for me when I live in one place and don’t travel much. I know where everything I need is and I keep it easily accessible in case I need to grab a change quickly. I’ve got a system for storage and do my best … Read More
Innocent Remarks Can Hurt: Stand up for Yourself
The decision to start training capoeira after I felt strong enough post-surgery was not an easy one. I knew that I missed capoeira a lot, but I’m pretty risk averse and training any martial art with an ostomy has its risks. Most obviously, I don’t really want to get kicked in the ostomy or do something that would result in … Read More
How I Built Strength Post-Surgery
I know it’s cliche, but it might be true: You can do anything you want with an ostomy. You might not be able to do it immediately after surgery, or even a couple months after surgery, but with some determination and perseverance, you can make it happen. It doesn’t always feel like that’s true though – when your body hurts and you’re scared … Read More
Winter Clothing Items Every Female Ostomate Should Have In Their Closet
Let’s talk about clothes! Figuring out what to wear was hard enough without an ostomy. Then I got an ostomy and as I was healing, my belly was sore and tender, my clothes were uncomfortable, I was scared to wear anything tight for fear that it would burst my pouch, and I was self-conscious that my pouch was totally noticeable … Read More
Water Adventures: Ready, Set, Wake-Surf!
A couple months ago I admitted that I had only recently faced my fear of going in the water with my ostomy. In that post I mentioned that I intended to go wake surfing later in the summer, and I’m here to tell you that wake-surfing is exactly what I did! It was AWESOME! It’s basically surfing in the wake … Read More
Outdoor Adventures: Backpacking & Camping with an Ostomy
I told my friends I was going backpacking and camping. Just for one night as a trial run. When they asked if I was excited to try out backpacking and camping with an ostomy I could honestly respond YES. But as usual, my brain was also in overdrive worrying about my upcoming trip. I’m always worrying about something, but over … Read More
Three Things I Practice to Build My Happiness
I’ve spent a lot of time on self-reflection in the last few years. My friends and family note how much I’ve changed since my surgery, but this journey started well before that and is going to keep going for the rest of my life. When I make a mistake, I kick myself and question whether I’ve really changed at all. … Read More
Indoor Soccer Anyone?
During one of my hospital stays, I had some incredible medical staff checking in on me. Being at a teaching hospital I had the whole range from current medical students to residents to esteemed doctors on my case coming in to talk to me each day. There were two people who spent extra time listening to me and checking in … Read More
Stomaversary Month, Tackle Your Fears Year
My stomaversary month came and went before I had a chance to give it the public attention it deserves! When I sit and think about my ostomy, I think of life. I begin to reflect on what the experience of becoming and being an ostomate has done for me, and I smile. I also cry sometimes, because like all of you, I’m … Read More
A Dedicated Day to Raise Ostomy Awareness
This year’s Ostomy Awareness Day theme is Resilience: Bouncing Back into Life. Having an ostomy gives thousands of people a chance to keep living, and in many cases, that chance improves their quality of life exponentially. There’s an old saying “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.” I say, “When life gives you an ostomy, bounce back.” The reasons people … Read More
Pushing my Limits! Rock Climbing & Zip Lining
Trying new things with an ostomy can be scary. My doctors freaked me out about trying a lot of foods and movements because of the risk for blockages and hernias. I conquered my food fears by doing my best to understand why certain foods might cause blockages and then using that knowledge to make educated decisions about what to eat … Read More
Is Your Immune System a Hero or a Villain?
The other night I played Scattergories with my family. The letter was P and one category was “Villain/Monster”. Someone wrote PopEye and at first, majority vote was that PopEye was not a villain but it sparked a conversation. From Bluto’s perspective (the antagonist), surely PopEye WAS the villain. This lead to the profound realization that every hero is also a … Read More
Hot Tub Confession
I have a confession to make. I didn’t get my ostomy pouch wet for the first 2.5 years I had it. I know. Crazy right? How did I shower? Carefully. Didn’t I want to go in the pool? Not particularly, plus I didn’t really have the opportunity. What about the hot tub? It’s never really been my thing. ..But even in … Read More
Preparing For Full-Time Employment: Clothes!
One of my first questions when I was offered the job was “What’s the dress code?” My new boss told me to wear business casual and jeans on Fridays. I was really looking forward to Fridays! I hadn’t had to get dressed up very often since my colectomy. The occasional wedding or fun outing, sure, but day to day my clothes were athletic attire … Read More
Preparing for Full Time Employment: Pouch Changes
Believe it or not, most of my stress about starting a new job has not been ostomy related. I wrote about my new job worries and attempts at squandering them here. From an ostomy standpoint, I wonder to myself if my boss googled me and found my website, FaceBook, or Instagram. I also wonder if or when it would be appropriate to … Read More
Preparing for Full Time Employment: 8-5 Here I Come!
Starting a new job is pretty scary. Will everyone like me? Will my boss and I understand each other? Will I learn quickly enough? What is parking like? Is there a fridge to keep my lunch in? Questions we’ve all worried about, right? Now add an ostomy to the equation. Did my boss google me during the hiring process and find … Read More
Are You Out of the Ostomy Closet?
At the UOAA National Conference, I met a lot of people who were in different stages of acceptance of and openness about their ostomy. In my opinion, there are three main types of ostomates when it comes to the level of publicity about their ostomy a person engages in, but I’m sure there are grey areas between each main stage as well. Out … Read More
It’s Not: “Hi, I’m Karin and I Have an Ostomy”
I’ll admit it. I enjoy talking about myself. I like telling my story. I like hearing people tell me how strong I am and how much they admire what I’m doing. Who wouldn’t like that extra push of encouragement, especially on a less than perfect day. That said – I don’t want to be the one to start the conversation all … Read More
UOAA National Conference: Education & Friendship
I’ve sat down to write about my experience at the UOAA National Conference a number of times now, and so far it’s been challenging to put my experience into words. Taking a different approach with this attempt, if I had to sum up my experience in one word, it would be: Life changing. I can’t tell you exactly how my … Read More
Educate about Ostomies, End the Stigma – World Ostomy Day 2015
It’s World Ostomy Day! It’s also Ostomy Awareness Day! This is my third year celebrating Ostomy Awareness Day. It’s pretty surreal. The first year I was just a few weeks out of surgery and remember sitting on my bed posting on Facebook about it. I looked back for my status update and it turns out I celebrated by eating brownies. You … Read More
Journey to my Permanent Ostomy – Part Two
Back at home, I was spoiled. My dad took on chef duty and my boyfriend took on listen to me whine and make sure I take all my pain meds duty. A couple days after I got home my aunt (who is a nurse) came to visit and lend the empathetic ear that only a nurse can lend. She also … Read More
Journey to my Permanent Ostomy – Part One
In honor of having had surgery a year ago to make my ostomy permanent, I decided to strap myself to a chair and write about it. This surgery was a totally different experience for me than my first surgery for a number of reasons: First Surgery Pretty much on my death bed, frail, and in the most intense IBD flare … Read More
45 Things I’ve Done with my Ostomy
Part of what makes people nervous about having an ostomy is the worry that their life will be “over” and they’ll never get to do “normal” things again from eating out to enjoying intimacy. I’d like to settle your nerves. I’ve had my ostomy two years (today is my stomaversary!) and in those two years, even in just the first year, I … Read More
Ever Woken Up With Poop Outside of Your Bag? I Have!
It was 5:30am and the sun was already up. As I came into consciousness from the night’s sleep, I went to feel my bag and instead I felt warm wetness. As if I didn’t know what it was, I pulled my hand up to look at it, saw poop and reached back for more. Coltrane had really done it this … Read More
Traveling – Worry for nothing
Here’s a post I found recently that I wrote just before my surgery last year. It appears that it slipped through the cracks before I got around to posting it – oops! Up until recently, the vacations I’ve taken since I’ve had my ostomy have either been to familiar places or for 2-3 days in a place unfamiliar to me, … Read More
NewbieOstomy Has A New Look!
I’ve been working on a new look (and improved information) for Newbie Ostomy for months. Almost a year, actually. I didn’t want to make it live until it was perfect, but who am I kidding? It will never be perfect. There will always be things to improve and add to the website because there’s always new information and experiences to share. … Read More
Stress: The Common Denominator
When we’re sick, sometimes it’s accompanied by stress. And when we’re stressed, sometimes (read: all the time?) it makes us feel even more sick. When we have surgery coming up, no matter how prepared we think we are, there’s always fear, anger, and stress about the situation hiding in our minds. And when we’re recovering from surgery, every extra, new … Read More
The Chef Learned Something New
On vacation, you get to eat out a lot – it’s one of my favorite parts. I really like to eat. There are two problems with this that I run into pretty frequently. Firstly, I get overwhelmed by busy menus. There are so many choices and it’s such a challenge to pick something within my budget that sounds yummy and … Read More
India, 100 Miles of Running and a Colostomy – Sarah Russell Rocks
Have you ever heard of the Himalayan 100? It’s a race in North East India where you run 100 miles over five days. Running 100 miles seems like quite a feat in itself, now add in a rough, hilly terrain at a high altitude in India. That was one of the races on Sarah’s list of ‘dream races’. Sarah Russell has … Read More
I’ve got a Barbie Butt!
Wow, It’s been a couple months since I’ve posted, and there’s no excuse for that! I had my completion proctectomy at the end of September, the surgery where they took out the remaining bit of my rectum and anus and sewed my bum up shut like a barbie doll. It’s not as pretty as a barbie doll’s butt, but it’s … Read More
Redirecting to Happy Thoughts
“Some of the worst things in my life never even happened” – Mark Twain Whenever I’m stressing about the future, I remember those wise words. With my surgery for a completion protecting just under a month away, you can imagine I’m a a little nervous. I keep cycling through different emotions and realizations about the surgery and my recovery. For the … Read More
Change-Day in Real Life & Vacation
From the start, changing my bag made me really anxious. I’ve been adamant about doing it myself, as I feel that it is an important skill to have to maintain my independence. I realize now that the act of changing my bag on my own served as a way for me to take ownership of my new situation. Though a … Read More
Cartwheel with an Ostomy. Yep, you can!
Before the flare that resulted in my ostomy, I practiced an Afro-Brazilian martial art called Capoeira. Capoeira is a beautiful art form comprised of martial arts, dance, gymnastics, music, culture, tradition, and so much more. I used to be able to judge how bad of a flare I was in based on which movements I could do without too much … Read More
Coltrane for life. Why I decided to make my ostomy permanent.
When the surgeon and I were talking about my colectomy in the hospital, she mentioned leaving a couple inches of rectum partially because it was so inflamed she wasn’t comfortable operating, but also so that I’d have the possibility to have my ostomy reversed and go the j-pouch route. I told her I wouldn’t be doing that but she didn’t … Read More
IBD Flares with Total Colectomy
They’re called extraintestinal manifestations of IBD. Nobody told you about them, and if your doctors don’t talk, they probably don’t realize that your symptoms are all related. A couple years ago I got a weird rash that started on my stomach and spread slowly to my legs and a couple spots on my arms. A physician’s assistant diagnosed it at … Read More
Transit time mouth to bag
This may be TMI, but I like to play this game with Coltrane called what color is my poop going to be! Obviously, it’s not really challenging – I ate carrots today and, you guessed it, orange! Kale in my smoothie? Green! Spinach? Also green! Everyone told me beets would turn it red and that one time I ate … Read More
Lingerie for Ostomates in a Brick & Mortar store
Have you heard of Vanilla Blush? They design lingerie, swimwear and menswear for people with ostomies. They focus on their products being functional AND fashionable so you can get the support you need for your stoma and feel confident in what you’re wearing. Vanilla Blush advertises their lingerie with pin-up models, because ostomates deserve to be feel sexy and what’s more … Read More
NY Ostomy Supply Coverage Success
According to the Wall Street Journal, the New York legislature has voted that health insurers are required to provide coverage for ostomy supplies and equipment. If you have an ostomy, you know supplies are pricey (and definitely not an option). Run out of bags? You got a problem, right? So far I’ve been lucky enough to have insurance that covers … Read More
What tips your iceberg?
Sometimes when we are confronted with a life-changing reality, we get stuck on the small things. It’s the same when a bunch of bad things happen and we take them in stride and then we spill water on our white shorts and react like it’s the end of the world. The straw that tipped the camels back. Whatever you want … Read More
Kiss Me Organics Matcha Green Tea Powder Review
I recently won a giveaway contest for Kiss Me Organic’s Matcha Green Tea Powder, woohoo! This post reflects my honest opinion of Kiss Me Organics’ Matcha product. Before trying this product, my knowledge of matcha was just from the green tea lattes I frequently order at coffee shops (yum!). Typically when I think of matcha, I associate it with green … Read More
A leak and a lesson learned
I’ve been really excited about Cymed, an ostomy bag manufacturer. Way more excited, probably, than I should be/have been because I haven’t had an overwhelmingly great experience with their product. The thing is, I LOVE their concept. I should mention I usually wear a two piece-drainable system and much prefer that over a one-piece. I usually wear Hollister, but I … Read More
Ostomy Fashion Show
Having an ostomy can be fun! The Carmichael Ostomy Association does an annual fashion show and I was lucky enough to participate this year. It was a blast. I am guessing that the models ranged in age from mid-twenties (me) to …who knows… 70s? 80s? Everyone was dressed so nicely. We each picked a song to play while we “walked … Read More
Dinner with an ostomate.
Since becoming an ostomate, I have met some really cool people. There are a number of other young bloggers out there who are so wonderful and responsive when you reach out with millions of questions. One of those wonderful people is Heidi. Heidi runs the blog www.ostomyoutdoors.com and lives an incredibly active lifestyle exploring nature, rock-climbing, skiing, snowboarding – you … Read More
Packing for the Hospital
If you’re lucky and get to schedule your surgery, you will have the luxury of packing items of your choice for your hospital stay. Here’s a list of things that I was glad I brought (or wished I’d remembered) during my hospital stay. Please comment if you have other ideas for things that I forgot! Legal stuff: Identification Insurance Card … Read More
How to Empty an Ostomy Bag
I have been thinking about writing this post a lot lately, so today when a friend of mine asked me if I carry around a spoon with me to help me empty, I decided I should sit down and get writing about how to empty an ostomy bag. So much of the information on the internet is about how to … Read More
Getting a Massage with an Ostomy
As I heal further, I find myself experimenting more and more with food, exercise, movement, everything. Laying on my stomach is included. It took me about 5 or 6 months beyond surgery to feel comfortable “laying” on my stomach. I put the word laying in quotes, because I still don’t lay flat. I usually put a pillow of sort under … Read More
Happy 6 Months to Coltrane!
Wow has it been 6 months already? I remembered the day before and the day after, but on my actual 6 month stomaversary, I completely forgot. I didn’t do anything special, I’ve actually been really tired lately so I took a long nap and went for a nice 3 mile walk along a horse trail and ate a tasty potato … Read More
Coltrane Ran a Mile
The undy5000 is a great event hosted by the Colon Cancer Alliance that I never would have known about if Coltrane was not a part of my life. A few members of one of the support groups I go to had signed up to go so I figured, why not? I have always wanted to do a 5k. One of … Read More
My Ostomy Went Hiking
Hiking! Coltrane and I went hiking! We went to Muir Woods, a beautiful area just north of San Francisco, CA. I was really excited to have found someone willing to make the short drive and go hiking with me. I hadn’t been there in over ten years and it was just as beautiful as I remembered. When we were assessing … Read More
Not Every Day is Easy
I would be lying if I said every day with an ostomy was easy. Today is one of the days that it’s not so easy to stay in a good mood. I woke up early and haven’t been getting a lot of sleep (not ostomy related, just busy). I’m grateful that my body wakes me up when my bag gets … Read More
5 Months and Going Strong
Yesterday marked 5 months and boy am I proud of myself. It’s hard to fathom that just five months ago I could hardly walk 15 feet when today I find myself walking 2-3 miles per day like it’s nothing. I still have a long way to go in terms of gaining my strength back to where I feel comfortable engaging … Read More
I Told Him About My Ostomy
Remember that date I went on? Apparently he thought it went well too, because he asked me out again. I really like being productive when I’m hanging out with people so when he asked me if I wanted to accompany him grocery shopping and then come over for a nice home made dinner I was all for it. We (read: … Read More
Turkey & Avocado Sandwich and Slow Dancing
My date went so well! I wore a long sleeved, blue dress that is tight over my boobs and then flows loosely over the rest of my stomach and legs. I wore “high-rise” leggings that come up and cover my bag completely (also providing support for the bag which is why I love those particular leggings). Boots and a scarf … Read More
Getting Back to Dating – Ostomy Edition
I’m going on a date in a few days. Nervous? A little. The only other date (or something close to it) I’ve been on since surgery, Coltrane was not particularly welcoming toward. Coltrane acting out when I’m nervous is not an acceptable form of stress management. We’re going out to dinner, he let me pick the restaurant so I looked … Read More
Eek a Leak!
I had my first ostomy-related wardrobe malfunction yesterday, big shout out to my body for waking me up before it got messy!! The part of my stomach below my appliance has a little roll when I sit down and sometimes my wafer seems like it melts into it, I don’t even know how to explain it, but it’s always kind … Read More
I get to be an Ostomate Visitor!
When I was in the hospital, one of my “roommates” was a girl my age who had just gone through her 2nd stage of 3 in her quest for a j-pouch. She had had her first step (a temporary ostomy) done a few months prior, this surgery was to build her j-pouch and give her a loop ileostomy, and then … Read More
Just Dance, With an Ostomy
Since I’m still relatively new to the ostomy world, I haven’t had a lot of courage to dance or work out like I used to. Before surgery I was really active and had just started learning samba and afro-carribean dance. I went to zumba class and played capoeira (an afro-brazilian martial art) almost every day. Getting sick really knocked … Read More
Almond Meal is Not My Friend
The other day I met Coltrane’s evil twin for the first time. He’s much bigger than Coltrane and he caused me a lot of pain. I remember him every time I feel guilty for being totally overkill with my diet and not wanting to expand my food horizons. Who would have thought almond meal/flour pancakes would be a problem? The … Read More
An Ostomy is an Adjustment
Today I learned that some close friends were sharing my story with a lot of their friends (no problem with me, more awareness the better!), but the way the verbiage they were using to tell people bothered me. They had been telling people that I had my colon removed because the doctors just “couldn’t save it”. That doesn’t bother me … Read More
Did They Smell Me?
I sat down in my meeting and thought to myself, man, do I smell? I had emptied my bag fairly recently but knew it was starting to fill again – coffee and an apple, peach, spinach smoothie will do that to you I guess. When I got to my car a couple hours later I looked at my bag, wow … Read More
Back to Work. But What Do I Wear?
Note: This post was originally written in December 2013. Today was my first day back at work. I have been really lucky, the company I work for has been incredibly understanding and is very supportive. They even sent me a super sweet care package complete with aloe vera infused socks and a book of texts from dogs. I’m going back … Read More
Healing is a Bumpy Road
Today was seven weeks post-colectomy and my body celebrated by not having nearly as much energy as it had had in the days leading up but after a morning nap I didn’t let that stop me. There is nothing like being able to recognize progress and that is what I have been so lucky to do over the last few … Read More
A Rookie Mistake, Next Time I’ll Taper
Taper isn’t a word typically found in my dictionary. When I decide I don’t want something in my life or diet anymore, I usually cut it out cold turkey, why keep it around? Unfortunately I made this mistake when I decided to cut back on the pain medicine the doctor had prescribed. In my defense, she said to take it … Read More
It’s Been One Month
Note: This was written in October 2013 It’s Coltrane’s one month birthday today! He’s celebrating by giving me my first encounter with diarrhea as an ostomate, at least I think it’s diarrhea but I can’t be positive since I haven’t experienced it before. I can’t figure out what triggered it, whether it’s food, a virus, or a partial blockage (hopefully … Read More
How Did I Get Here? How I Came to Have an Ostomy.
A suburb girl, I grew up near San Francisco, CA. I had a relatively healthy childhood, ate my greens and ate my ice cream. I played soccer for a couple years and played clarinet in a local youth orchestra as well as at school. The symptoms started in High School but I ignored them as any high school kid would … Read More