There is really nothing fun about going into the hospital for a surgery. But sometimes from those really hard times recovering people grow and learn so many hard lessons that they can help others with that information. I know that with my certain friend this is really true. Ever since I became friends with a buddy who had a procedure that rerouted his urinary tract (which I later learned to be a urostomy), I feel like I’ve learned so much about medical procedures, genetic differences, and just people in general who may be different from me based on certain conditions or diseases they happen to have. There are so many different people with ostomies out there that it really is incredible. I was amazed at how much I really didn’t know. It’s honestly made me a more open, understanding, accepting, and worldly person because of realizing that we’re all the same. It’s too bad not everyone in the world can have the same acceptance and understanding all at once. I feel if we had, so much of the world’s problems would be solved instantaneously. That is the beauty of learning from others who have already been there. What it does is allow you to be able to not make the same mistakes and to improve upon that base knowledge.
But this is part of the biggest learning section of my life. So anyway, I wanted to note a few things I’ve learned about ostomy care ever since I became friends with this guy. I haven’t helped him firsthand with a lot of this stuff, per se, but through talking about things with him, I’ve gleaned quite a bit about basic care for nicer supplies, like a few different major ostomy supplies companies. And besides learning the terms skin barrier, stoma, urostomy, or even pouching system, I’ve actually been able to keep in mind a few things that come to ostomy accessories. The best part was some of these companies gave me samples of these items to try and see if some of them would work well with me.
Now let’s get back into perspective. So, what have I learned? Well, the number one thing seems to be making sure that no leaks can happen with the skin barrier. Most people have smooth enough skin for this to not be a problem, but a lot out there (more than you’d think) struggle with getting the barrier on right, which is snug against the skin and sealed completely. So, there happen to be some extra accessories you can use to help you ensure such a seal.
But, if you’re against such things and want something a little more friendly on sensitive skin, the powder works extremely well. There are always different options to try. This helps with both dry and oily skin as well, so it hits both ends of the spectrum in sealing a skin barrier nice and tight. And what’s great is that your pouching system never seems to bother you when there’s a perfect seal on the barrier system. It’s one of the best feelings in the world, I’ve been told, when you don’t notice your pouching system at your side whatsoever. So make sure you are doing the best thing for yourself and learning from those around.
Crohn's Chronicle 