u/ElleBell1268

This is my stoma, Charybdis, and we’ve been having issues lately with blood coming from inside the area around the stoma (yes, it’s quite painful). I’m bleeding enough that it gets through the brava ring, the bag’s barrier, and gauze I taped around the edge to catch leakage. I spoke to my doctor and they’re worried it might be a GI bleed and are sending me to the ER.

What I want to know is have any of you dealt with this issue? Is this normal (well not normal but does it happen often)? What did you do to make it stop? I’m only two weeks post op and have been dealing with regular leaks to the point of changing my bag at least once a day. However, the blood part is new and I’m a little worried. Thank you for your help and I hope you all have a wonderful leak-free day!

Hi! I’m new to the ostomy family and feeling completely overwhelmed with this new lifestyle. My nurses at the hospital were wonderful, but I still have so many questions bouncing around in my head and I would appreciate any help you all can provide me. I’m also all ears for any advice or wisdom on how to adjust to living with a colostomy bag. Please bear with me as I’m fresh off of two weeks in the hospital, on pain killers, and drowning in anxiety. Needless to say, my brain is a bit foggy right now and I’m struggling to stay at peak mental function.

How do I order bags? The nurses provided me with a bunch of samples and I received the ConvaTec starter kit, but I can’t figure out how exactly to order bags. The websites are all so confusing and just redirect you to ordering samples.
Wraps and belts. I want to order something to hold my bag against my belly and to provide me with an extra level of security, but I don’t know what is better. My stoma is located higher on my belly, above my belly button, so I’ve read that some people recommend a wrap. However, what is the difference between them to begin with? Also, I’m a plus-sized woman and don’t want something that will constantly roll anytime I bend or reach for something.

2a. Where should I purchase a wrap/belt? I want something that is good quality, but I don’t have a butt load of money to spend. Are there are any brands that everyone recommends?

How do you all prevent leaks? I had like two good bag installations at the hospital, but since then I’ve had four leaks in a row over three days. Also, two of the times it leaked the bag was placed by a WOCN, so it wasn’t only my fault. We found a bag size and set up that works for me (at least I thought it did), but my skin is so irritated and bleeding from the multiple leaks and I’m exhausted (and paranoid tbh) from all of the bag changes.

That’s all of the questions I can remember for now. I might ask some more at a later point, but thank you to everyone who has read this far. I appreciate your help and I hope you all have wonderful leak-free days!

Bleeding Around Stoma

New and Overwhelmed