My husband had his done 2 years ago now and it really bleeds when he changes his bag like the skin has split and he has been using the crusting method with no joy i sent him yr video as I just want him to not bleed really to have healthy skin around his stoma .

Hi Gemma, that must be alarming for you and your husband. If the skin is separated, I do recommend that he have a stoma nurse have a look. Does he play sports or do a lot of physical work? When he makes a hole in his wafer, does he leave it a little larger than his stoma or is it a tight fit? Either of those can cause bleeding. Good luck.

Hi Gemma, As Eric has said getting a stoma nurse/ medic to have a look is important, even in these strange times there are still ways to do this. Can you think of when things changed and what maybe differently he has been doing. Could he be putting the wafer on sitting and then it’s causing it to pull when standing.their is always a reason and always a solution. Keep in touch and best wishes ?

Posted by: @veganostomy

@Kevin Dieffenbach

Hi Kevin,

Welcome and thank you for asking. 

I haven't personally used aloe on the skin under my wafer, nor have it heard of any stoma nurse recommending that, so I hesitate to recommend it. 

Barrier rings have helped me more than any other product in this regard, however, the cause of sore or raw skin would need to be addressed as there could be different ways to tackle the issue. 

Do you know what's causing your skin to be damaged? 

 

Hi after my surgery the stoma nurses here in the UK used a Manuka honey gauze pad, they cut it into strip and applied directly to the bleed. seemed to work quite well at healing it quickly. The pads were also used extensively on the patient in the next bed who had lots of weeping pressure sores on the advice of a specialist wound nurse.

Chris not be posting of late. still in recovery from the chemo/radio. I thought this bit of information might be helpful

Back soon when I'm more awake and Bagpus is less grumpy :-? 

@Gemma SMITH Can you contact a stoma nurse? It can be hard to actually see someone in person these days but even oven getting on t he phone might get things started as we move towards “elective” surgeries (in our state they began to do these again just a few days ago). Eric mentioned barrier rings, for some relief. I have recently started using CeraRings which are soothing to my skin, which was irritated (though not like your husband’s - I am so sorry he is experiencing this misery) and occasionally bled at one edge of the stoma, where the stitches had been. They are helping quite a lot. I hope things resolve soon for your husband and he feels much better.

ps - A little applesauce can gently thicken output - he might try it if he hasn’t already.

@chrisandbagpus i have been thinking of you. Chemo and radiation made my stoma grumpy, also (I, however, was a little ray of sunshine, as always - well, maybe not). Have you finished with the treatments yet?

@chrisandbagpus We all hope that you are feeling better soon!

Thanks so much everyone for your help he left a message with his stoma nurse no ring back yet tho :( and he is trying to change his bag every day method and soaking it in the bath to c if that helps at all I will get him to read this as soon as as all great methods and super helpful thanks so much xx

Hi Gemma, If you don’t use already a can of Adhesive removal spray can make the process of removing the wafer a lot easier

Thank you Eric for your amazing videos. I am a bit confused. I mainly use Hollister 2 piece. Can you apply it without a barrier ring? I just continued changing the same way as in hospital with the ring. Again thank you so much for your calm advise.

Larry

Hi Larry. Barrier rings are completely optional for most people and only needed in specific cases for some. Unless you need to use a barrier ring, just use your wafer "as-is".

My name is JoAnn and I had a lot of irritation and it itched so bad and I didn't know what was happening. My ostomy is a few months old and I called my ostomy nurse and she told me to try nasal spray (any kind) and see if that works for me and so I did and I was so relieved. She told me it is an old remedy that has been around a while. It truly works. I now keep it on hand always. Give it a try and good luck.

I clean the area good and put the nasal 6on with gauze and let it dry and apply the ring and then put everything else back on as usual. I don't use anything else, just the nasal spray.

Posted by: @JoAnn

My ostomy is a few months old and I called my ostomy nurse and she told me to try nasal spray (any kind) and see if that works for me and so I did and I was so relieved.

Thanks for sharing that, JoAnn! Yes, I've heard of others using that trick with success. Glad it worked for you!

What does the nasal spray help with? And How! I’ve had a stoma for a few years now, but I am still trying to learn.
I was in a coma when my surgery occurred and suffered with seizures after that and I have problems with memory. My husband was taught to change my appliances and slowly over a long period of time, I learned to do it for myself.
Any tips will be a welcomed change.

Posted by: @Rhonda

What does the nasal spray help with?

I can't speak to all nasal sprays, but many will include antiinflammatory, steroid, antihistamine, or all of the above, and that can sometimes help with skin problems. I DO suggest speaking with a nurse before using any around your stoma as there may be unexpected side-effects. 

Tell me more about nasal spray and milk of magnesia How and wear.
My amazing caregiver is throwing his hands up I leak often sometimes 3 bags in a day My stoma is SO Sore and bleeds I don’t know what to do first Ostomy was 9/23/2917 that failed in 4 days 2 weeks later 2nd Ostomy that failed 3rd surgery was the illiostomy I had that was in Dec 2017 besides an open wound that has a fistula that’s leaks. Soooo sore I had a surgery 9/2019 take down for 8 fistulas at Mayo Clinic in Minnesota all from bad surgeries and mesh I have had many wound care nurses not too many stoma nurses. Please help Mayo saved my life but these leaks bleeds and sore and pain thank you

Hi Rosemary, I am sorry to hear of those troubles. A number of things come to mind. The stoma is it flush or raised. If it’s flush a convex wafer May be needed. Barrier rings and proper measuring of the stoma can help plus making contact with a stoma nurse would be important. Stay in touch 

Rosemary, my situation is not like yours - goodness, what a trouper you must be - but one thing that made a difference for my skin was the Hollister Cera Plus barrier ring. My skin seems to be very sensitive to that material and the Cera Plus was so soothing. Perhaps after you heal up this might be something to try to keep things calm. Best of luck to you with this, hope things  get resolved soon so that you have no more soreness.

@Rosemary Purdy

I am so sorry for what you are going through. I can empathize, as I have had many problems with leaks. You have 2 issues to deal with.  Preventing future leaks and healing/protecting your skin. 

As far as preventing leaks, you first need to identify what is causing them. In my case, it was a combination of a recessed stoma with openings on both sides, and significant scar tissue and unevenness in the skin to the left of my stoma, which is where all the leaks occur. For me, a combination of a deep convex wafer and stoma paste are the most helpful.

For your skin, my stoma nurse recommended using nasal spray to reduce the redness (I believe it has a mild steroid in it). She said to just spray it on the red skin around the stoma and let it dry before putting a new appliance on. For protecting the skin, you can use barrier wipes and stoma powder to form a protective crust on the skin. I believe the milk of magnesia does something similar. The best thing for me personally has been Marathon. It comes in little tubes with a sponge end to apply it. When it dries, it leave a protective layer on your skin. It is rather spendy, but it was a life saver (or rather a skin saver) for me when my skin was at its worst. 

Please feel free to ask any questions. If you determine why you are having leaks, people may have more specific advice to prevent them. 

 Best wishes to you.