Back To The Workplace With An Ostomy

From the board room to the construction site, people with ostomy work every job. The change after ostomy surgery is the new normal that a person with an ostomy has to embrace to be able to live an active life, which also includes going back to work.

According to the American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons, your ostomy should not limit your return to work once you are recovered from surgery. The right time to return to work depends on your recovery, ease of ostomy pouch management, and the level of physical activity involved in your job.

You can choose to tell, or not tell, your employer or coworkers about your ostomy depending on your work situation. Most of the time, letting these people know about your condition can be beneficial because a person with an ostomy requires frequent breaks or other accommodations. Your coworkers might not know about your ostomy until you tell them.

Here are a few tips that can help you return to your workplace without any issues.

Be prepared

You will need to be fully prepared for any leaks, and its resulting requirements such as change or ostomy pouch and/or change of clothes. Preparing a backpack to deal with such circumstances can be plenty helpful in this regard.

Know your rights

American Disabilities Act gives you some legal rights against employment-based discrimination. Most of the people understand the situation, and they remain helpful instead of being harassers, but you should know the rights that protect you against any discrimination or bullying.

Dispose of or empty your pouch properly

During working hours, you may have to change or empty your pouch. Find an appropriate place where you can change or empty your ostomy pouch.

Find the best clothing for your job

If you are going to have to sit for long hours, you will need loose clothing. If your job requires you to bend a lot, you are going to have to wear an ostomy belt. You will need to pay specific attention to the skin barrier if you perspire during job hours.

Hydrate

An ostomy on the intestinal tract would mean that you will have to lose your entire or a part of your colon. One of the main functions of the colon is to absorb water from the stool as it moves towards the rectum. With the colon gone, your body will be deprived of a re-hydrator, which means you will be more susceptible to dehydration. Increasing water intake can help you avoid issues in your GI tract.

Caring For A Urostomy: Some Useful Tips

The more you learn about your urostomy, the more you will know that there is a lot to learn. In this article, we are going to talk about the ways to take care of your urostomy. It is worth mentioning here that every case is different from others, which means there are no set rules regarding how to take care of your urostomy perfectly. You can, however, get help from some general tips in this regard.

Emptying and changing a urostomy pouch

Before leaving the hospital, your nurse will teach you how to empty and change your urostomy pouch. You are not going to have to use sterile supplies to change the ostomy pouch. Daily use items such as facial tissue, toilet paper, or paper towel can be used to clean the skin around the stoma.

Emptying the pouch is a fairly easy process. Each urostomy bag has a drain valve at the bottom. You can open the valve to empty the bag any time you want. The frequency, at which you need to change the pouch, depends on your fluid intake.

To empty the pouch, sit as far back on the toilet as you can. Place a small strip of toilet paper inside the toilet to avoid splashing. Open the valve and empty the pouch right into the toilet. Close the valve after emptying the urostomy pouch, and dry the end of the valve using toilet paper.

When it comes to changing a urostomy pouch, you first have to keep in mind that different urostomy pouches are made to last different lengths of time. Some pouches require changing every day, some every three days, and some once in a week.

Before changing the pouch, get into a position that allows you to see your stoma. It doesn’t matter whether you sit, stand, or lie down; you just have to make sure that you can see your stoma while changing the pouch.

Before changing the pouch, clean your hands and put all of the supplies on a clean surface. You don’t want germs to get into your urinary system. Pick a time for pouch change when there is no urine left in your kidneys.

Use plain water to clean your stoma and the skin around it. Avoid using soaps that contain lotions, perfumes, and oils.

Protecting the skin around the stoma

The skin around the stoma should look the same as the skin anywhere on your body. That said, the peristomal skin, after being consistently in contact with the stomal output, can develop rashes, irritation, and other complications. That makes it crucial for the person with urostomy to ensure a tighter and leak-proof seal between skin barrier and the skin that comes under the skin barrier. For this purpose, the hole in the skin barrier must fit the shape and size of the stoma. An over-sized hole can expose the peristomal skin to the stomal output, which can lead to the urine spreading underneath the skin barrier. It will not only compromise the seal but will also lead to the irritation of the skin. The best practice is to change the pouch regularly.

Eating restrictions

A urostomy doesn’t have anything to do with whatever happens in your intestinal tract, which means that anything you eat is not going to have a direct impact on your urostomy. Unless you are suffering from a kidney infection that tends to get worse when you eat a specific type of food, you are good to go with your normal diet plan.

Stay in touch with your doctor

It is necessary to stay in touch with your doctor. Visit your doctor regularly to get your stoma checked for any infection.

Fall and your Stoma

This is my favorite time of year.  There is nothing more fun to me than enjoying the cool weather and all the social visits with friends and families.  And let's face it pumpkin spice is such a win.  But with this part of the year comes a lot of different foods and drinks and if you have a stoma, it may mean a whirlwind of changes.  Sometimes the extra food you eat can have some rather annoying side effects.  The reality of eating all of these new foods means you simply need to be a little more careful. 

 

I have to admit that my first few holiday seasons were met with me really being frustrated.  First I was frustrated because I was told to not eat most of the foods I really enjoy.  So that is what I did, I literally stuck with my strict diet.  My diet was not very fun and to be honest it made me stand out at my holiday parties and so on.  It was a bit frustrating.  I know that instead of learning more than I should of I simply just listened and didn't research on my own.

 

The next season instead of simply sticking to my insane diet, I went on the opposite end.  It was certainly a big issue because I went all out.  I just enjoyed all the foods I felt I had been stripped of.  Now I do not suggest this at all. I had so many digestion issues and let's face it I felt super fat.  No way was this a win in any shape and form.  And believe me it felt like I was shooting out my dinner and snacks like a rock.  So now you know a few different ways not to go out and enjoy the fall and holiday weather festivities. 

 

So I think that you should take a nice balanced approach to your ostomy care.  When it comes to the holidays, enjoy it in moderation.  That is what I think is the most important part.  Moderation is good for most things in life.  My ostomy does not hold me back, but the more I learn the more I am able to enjoy life.  I now know what had more fiber in it and it took years to learn.  So feel free to make mistakes.  It is not the end of the world, just bad sounds and feelings. 

 

I also suggest looking at what others are doing and not having to make all the mistakes on your own.  What I am talking about is doing self-research.  I think that going online and learning your social media outlets is a great start.  There are entire websites dedicated to diets and food knowledge for all types of ostomies.  It is really incredible how much knowledge we have.  IT is insane the knowledge that is available.  I suggest starting on the web.  Find a few good forums websites and learn what you can and then move on.

 

The next area that you should possibly check into is the social media side.  Youtube and Instagram are amazing for finding people who are willing to share their life with you.  Remember though that most of those people want to be paid.  So take everything with a grain of salt.