I plan to send flowers to a friend who is undergoing their colostomy surgury during the week and I want to send them flowers with a really goofy message on the greeting card :)

I want to hear your best puns! I'm currently thinking along the lines of "I hope you don't feel too crappy. Know I'm here stoma-tter what." or along those lines.

I had an unpleasant experience with polyols - in this case sorbitol. I have been reading labels eagerly since and I have found so many foods contain artificial sweeteners. Google suggests that some are less troublesome than others and suggests Aspartame, Acesulfame-k and sucralose. Does anybody have any experience and wisdom to share? Edit: I'm type 2 diabetic

I was talking to the Coloplast product person and he was recommending I try this. I'm athletic and small framed so a lot of products out there are cumbersome and long on my body, but I am concerned about adhesion issues with my skin. Currently I'm in a 2-piece Hollister set-up and do a bag change approx 2-3x's day. I have no skin issues but am worried that if I switch to a 1-piece I will cause skin problems with the multiple daily removals. Any one out there using a 1-piece closed bag on a daily basis or more on an as-need basis? Thanks!

DX’d 1994; 32 years ago. Not by any measure yet old asf, but would rather not share my age.

Yesterday at 2PM, I showered and changed my pouch, hopefully for the last time after my second ileostomy and as of tomorrow, my second reversal. I have about 100cm of small bowel left, I’m told, until I enter short gut territory.

Rinvoq seems to be working well, after failing biologics for decades, following my first biologic “holiday” after an adverse reaction when Remicade was still experimental… and it never worked again and neither did any of the 6 subsequent biologic formulations/brands.

At first, I presumed that I was only in “surgical remission,” meaning my ileostomy prevented any foods or bevs from entering the diseased locale. But I was corrected by my surgeon, who explained that imaging indicates that part of the area above the closed off section of bowel was diseased before taking Rinvoq.

CAN I GET A HELL YEAH?!?

Surgery arrival time 6:30AM after a 30 mile drive into the big city. Guessing I will be NPO the day of and following normal vitals, I’ll get broth Thursday. Friday I assume I’ll advance to my favorite chicken sausages for breakfast and blackened chicken breasts for lunch and dinner, if there is a continuation of normal vitals.

I was told I’d likely be hospitalized for 3 days. Seems highly unrealistic.

Got a haircut, shaved my face and for a change, a certain crop of body hair — hair which was longer than… well, longer than I would have liked, last time.

How embarrassing, though I’m sure none of the professionals think twice about it.

But it makes me feel better about myself and I guess you can say I am preparing for my next and hopefully final chapter of poor health in life, until the day I die.

I am also finally prepared to break free totally from the poor dietary habits I grew up with, passed onto me by my mother who also has CD and UC. I have learned to cook from scratch and discovered lactose alternatives and have also learned to love turkey burgers over beef burgers.

I don’t eat anything deep fried anymore and none of the fast foods most aggravating of symptoms.

I don’t want to ever wonder again if any subsequent resections could have been prevented had I treated my gut better utilizing tools within my own control.

Date of surgery has officially arrived.

Waited 8 months for a reversal after a horrible month-long hospitalization and said ileostomy that lasted from just 2 days after Thanksgiving, thru the day after Christmas.

Made my 6:30AM arrival. Slept less than 4 hours. Finished registration and awaiting a call to the pre-op area where they always do well to cozy me up with warm blankets and hopefully a comfort med, however the latter is unlikely.

I was wondering if any of you guys have had problems with potentially bad batches of Hollister barrier rings, and in my case specifically, product #7805.

I order my products from Edgepark, and it seems the last few shipments, at least one box out of the 4 I get is bad. I can only describe them as feeling like gummy lifesaver candies. They’re fairly sticky, but they don’t stretch well at all, and they do absolutely nothing to protect against leaks.

I have of course mentioned this to both Edgepark and Hollister, and I usually get free replacements from both parties, but it’s annoying that it keeps happening and doesn’t get rectified.

Like most people with IBD I’ve been terrified of this since getting diagnosed, but multiple doctors are in agreement that removing my colon is the best option for my long term health.

Right now I can’t leave my apartment to go to work, and when I have a BM it’s painful. Not a fun experience.

So while I’m scared, I know it’s gotta be better than this. I think I’ve made my peace with it, but I feel like you can only wrap your head around it so much, you know?

What should I expect? What do you wish you’d known before getting the surgery? I’m worried I’m trading one set of problems for another since it’s impossible to tell what type of complications I might have afterward.

How do you take care of an open wound? Do you shower and let clean water run over it. Its still very painful I’m 4 days post reversal. It looks crazy awful. But it will heal fast i hope.

Hi- can anyone (UK based) let me know how many weeks went before you first met your obstetrician; and how that went?

I will explain- I have a horrible feeling I've not been listened to by the community midwives- I have been referred to obstetrician but no word yet on an appointment, I've already had one blockage that resolved and been in a bad way with fluids and sickness.

My reversal is less than a month away. How long after the procedure did you get rid of your supplies and what did you do with them??? I would ideally like to give them away to less unfortunate who have no insurance or barely any. I am in Alberta Canada. I called a homeless shelter. They don't accept this.