Diary of a young colon cancer patient - Ostomy
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My
Temporary Ostomy
"A vast majority of
Ostomy patients have been sic
for a long time and go into the hospital knowing that they will wake up with a
extra bit of baggage. Picture this: I was told that there was an 80% chance tha
I would need one, but we wouldn't know for certain until I was cut open. (No
that I know my surgeon's penchant for fudging percentages, I'll bet that h
meant 100%). For me, the purpose of an Ostomy was not to correct th
medical problem. Instead the Ostomy would divert waste away from the larg
intestine and allow the surgical area to heal. Such a step probably would no
have been necessary had I not been treated with radiation. What would you think? Who could feel attractiv
with a bag of shit stuck to their stomach? How could a person be active again
Would I have to wear potato sack-like clothing to hide what seemed like one hug
plastic terror? My parents gave me the bad news when I woke up
Although I cannot say that I was happy, at least I was prepared. (See the link
page for some of the websites that helped me.) Over the next few days, m
stoma nurse visited to help me learn to empty and change the bag on my own.
was repulsed. The mechanics of changing and emptying are very easy. Sadly, the contents smelt so badly that I threw up every time the bag wa
opened. We finally devised a system of breathing into my hospital gown an
immediately flushing the toilet. Fortunately this condition prove
temporary. For some time after I got home I wa
convinced that I looked bloated and that strangers probably thought I was fat
Although the swelling went down in about two weeks, new problems crept up. You
stoma will shrink rapidly, which means leakage if you do not re-measure it ever
week. For me this meant dealing with burnt skin beneath the bag's wafer. Ther
were a few occasions when the leaking escaped the wafer and got into my clothes
This was my own fault. You see, if you go into the steam room or a hot tub, b
sure to change the bag immediately as your adhesive will wear out. Also, do no
wear inflexible clothing (such as very tight jeans). The fabric rubs agains
your bag and loosens it. It would behoove you to explain you
situation to your employer, in case you should have such an emergency. In som
countries, you may qualify as a disabled person with all due benefits. Since m
Ostomy was only for two months, I did not bother with this option.I wish that I could offer advice o
romantic relationships, but during this time I was not seeing anybody. No
because of the Ostomy, more along the lines of I was busy recovering an
returning to work. Eventually I got my confidence back.
went to the gym and changed my clothes in front of the other women. Mind you,
got some curious looks. Did I care? There wasn't anything to be ashamed of
Guess what else? I wore a spandex workout outfit and even went swimming later
In a solid-color suit! You see, all that is really required to hide the bag i
to turn the clip under once. Now the bad part............* DISCLAIMER-- THIS TAKEDOWN EXPERIENCE I
IN NO WAY NORMAL AND SHOULD NOT BE EXPECTED BY THOSE ABOUT TO UNDERGO TH
PROCEDURE* Cool, now I haven't ruined m
surgeon's customer base. Speaking of surgeons
have you noticed how lucky it is to be one? We all deal with shit at work, bu
these people specifically get paid for it! It seems like we shoul
have left the Ostomy for another two months. I woke to find out that I had bee
under for three hours and my stomach was hurting badly. My Dad explained tha
the radiation damage was so bad that my surgeon found it necessary to reopen th
original incision site and perform the takedown there. He also removed 9"
of small bowel and had to separate many sections that were stuck together. In retrospect, I should have known tha
something was very wrong. My figure became very thick. Such as three month
pregnant thick. I threw up green liquid every day and had to use the bathroo
every few minutes. When they discharged me at the end of the week, I had
fever. Once home I never wanted to see
hospital again. I knew that my energy would be down and that I would need tim
to recover. Yet there were pains running up and down my stomach, and
barely had the energy to get out of bed. Less than two days later, I bega
throwing up at two hour intervals. I made several calls for help to my doctor
who prescribed some medication. Nothing worked. I desperately hoped that I woul
not have to go back to the hospital. Finally, around dinner time, my docto
ordered me to the ER for evaluation.The x-rays showed an intestina
blockage. My heart rate was up to 150. Very, very, sadly, all involved agree
that I would have to be admitted. An NG tube was inserted (a long tube that goe
through your nose down to your stomach and pumps out liquid.) I suffere
through two days of that awful tube irritating my throat and making me look lik
an elephant. Finally, they removed it and put me on a liquid diet. However....Nothing changed! A cat scan wa
scheduled, which revealed a very large pocket of fluid in my abdomen. In short
my intestine was leaking bile and stool right into my stomach! I was given
local anesthetic and a plastic tube was inserted into my abdomen. The cat sca
technicians pumped out one liter of very infected liquid- it looked like cappuccino
My resolve collapsed. All I wanted was to go home and live a normal life. I
looked very grim. Not long after, it became necessary to start artificia
feeding. (I was not given any food or drink so as to decrease the traffic in m
bowel). For three weeks we went through a
endless round of cat scans, abdominal drainings, and artificial feedings.
cried almost every day. My friends brought in loads of chewing gum to mak
life without food easier. Food had never looked so good. Finally, we had th
drainage down to a point where I could wear a bulb drain under my clothing an
do the feedings at night. This meant that a homecare nurse had to come out t
our house and show me how to do everything that the nurses at the hospital did
I had to draw flushes for my IV, prepare the feeding bags, and worst of all
give myself octriotide shots three times a day. Octriotide is meant to decreas
the amount of digestive fluid produced. (Never did I think that I would be brav
enough to give myself shots. In fact, I never want to see a shot again unless i
is being served at a bar). It is horrible for a person to have to be in at a
early hour to hook up to a feeding bag. All of my peers are having a great tim
elsewhere.It took another three weeks for the absces
to heal. Every week I would go in for an x-ray, only to be told that th
contrast they were injecting was leaking into the small bowel. With Thanksgivin
only two weeks away, I prayed that I would not have to sit at the table an
watch everyone else eat turkey. My family was willing to cancel dinner, but
insisted that everyone else's holiday not be ruined. One week beforehand,
finally got my good news- the x-ray showed no leakage! Time to get back on rea
food!Real food actually starts with a clear liqui
diet. My poor stomach! It hadn't seen real food for two months. It took about
week to adjust, just in time for a Thanksgiving dinner. It was the most thankfu
holiday I've ever had."
Copyright © 2004
- 2005 by Michelle Richardson - Church Host - all rights
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