Month: February 2020

Tips for Traveling With Ostomy

After an ostomy surgery for a few days, you might not feel like being eligible to consider traveling. But that’s only until you get a realization that you can live a normal life from every aspect by being prepared. An ostomy surely brings a change in life. By keeping in mind the fact that an ostomy is not a problem but solution to the problem, it will become quite easier for you to understand that the change an ostomy tends to bring in your life doesn’t have to be an obstruction. It’s all about seeing at the brighter side.

Now, you may wonder if you can plan certain things, like traveling, with an ostomy. An ostomy needs to be managed carefuly and, so, you might think about abandoning the idea of traveling wherever you want to go. Well, that is going to be a bad idea. With effective planning, you can go wherever you want to go without having your ostomy being a major concern.

Here are a few things that you can do to be fully prepared and comfortable while traveling.

Luggage weight limits

You may have to travel with a lot of supplies related to the ostomy management. And those supplies may contribute to your luggage exceeding beyond the normal weight limits. The first thing that you are going to have to do is to check if your airline allows you to carry a bit extra luggage than the limits set by majority of other airlines. You can also seek information about whether or not you can use your medical information to get clearance to carry extra supplies.

Forbidden items

You will need to see which items you can put in the luggage. Normally, you will not be allowed to travel with ether, methylated spirits, or flammable aerosol adhesives and removers because these items are considered hazardous due to their ability to catch fire. You will also not be allowed to keep scissors in your hand-carry luggage.

Pre-boarding security checks

Your luggage will be checked at the security baggage checks before boarding. Since you are going to have to keep your medicines with you, you need to get a medical card, which will explain the reason why you are carrying medications in that much amount. This card is particularly helpful when you have to carry certain medications which are normally not allowed to be in the luggage.

Car traveling

Car traveling is not going to be as complicated as air travel because you will have the freedom of traveling with as many supplies as you need. While you can take care of your ostomy from many other aspects, you need to make sure that the seat belt is not crossing over the pouch and stoma.

Common Problems That Can Occur With an Ostomy and Their Solutions

You should be able to live a normal life once your stoma has settled. Although there are going to be a few ostomy related issues you may have to live with but that shouldn’t be a big concern. Over time, you will consider your ostomy as hardly something problematic given that how committed you are with your resolve to live a normal and healthy life.

But things do not remain ideal the entire time. Ostomy issues can happen more likely than you expect while you are adjusting to a life with stoma. These issues can act like obstructions in your way to be mentally and physically fit. However, the good news is that there are some solutions that you can consider in order to get rid of those issues and prevent them from happening in future.

It may be worth mentioning here that majority of problems that tend to happen with your ostomy have something or everything to do with how carefully you apply the pouching system and how well you take care of the hygiene of stoma and skin around it. Any issue in the digestive or urinary tract can lead to certain complications in the management of ostomy pouching system but you can still prevent those issues from becoming the ostomy problems if you are good with the ostomy management.

Having that said, it may be worth talking about the common ostomy problems and their solutions.

Leakage

Leakage occurs when the stomal output seeps under the barrier and finds a way out rather than falling into the bag. A lot depends on how well you have prepared the part of your skin that has to be covered under the skin barrier. As a best practice, you have to clean and dry your skin before applying the pouching system. You can use an absorbing powder, also known as stomal powder, if you are unable dry the skin.

Skin problems

The skin around your stoma is called peristomal skin. This part of the skin should be as healthy and smooth as the rest of your skin. Irritation or redness in this part of the skin can cause several problems related to ostomy pouching management. A lot depends on how clean and dry the skin is around your stoma before you attach a pouching system. You might have a concern about the adhesive residue removing which turns out to be the tough ask. The best thing you can do to counter this issue is to use an adhesive remover.

Odor

The sound and odor emanating from your pouch can cause real embarrassment and frustration in you. As a precautionary measure and good healthy practice, you need to watch your diet. To ensure proper prevention of odor, you can use pouching system with filter. The best thing about a pouch with filter is the pouch is not going to inflate like a balloon.