Thank you for highlighting this! My emptying amounts vary. I'm doing much better at night lately because I don't eat after 7. I've actually had nights with 3-4 solid hours of sleep without interruption!

I'm glad that been working for you! Some people will move their largest meals to breakfast and have smaller meals for lunch and dinner. That strategy may work for you, but it does take some adjustments as you may not like big breakfasts!

Changing my schedule won't work for me because of a very good reason, I am back to work! I'd rather have the increased output when I'm at home and sacrifice some sleep. It's bad enough that after lunch I'll be in the ladies room frequently.

Also I am trying a new food each weekend to see how my output is affected. So far so good, I just miss Panera salads. Once I'm healthy that'll be the first thing I eat. :-)

Yup, it's not for everyone and most will make sacrifices on when they eat to help control their output.

I love that you're experimenting every weekend =) Keep it up!

I am up late. My appetite is large and I am never full. I ante a salad (not very large--would NEVER DO PANERA!!!WHAT A MESS THST WOULD BE AND THEIR SALADS ARE TOO LARGE EXCET FOR THE SIDE SADLAD IN YOU PICK TWO)
I have tried everything except keeping a notebook log and I have enough trouble doing what I need to.
My surgeon told me to do Metamucil and I do so my output is thicker during the day. I am afraid to take it before I go to sleep.
I have been very upset in light of what happened in the US and the crap coming out of 45's mouth supporting White Supremacists and my bag is puffy which I assume is gas.
I sleep through the night but I am on Disability and cannot work so my sleep patterns are irratiic and I am very hungry late at night.
I am trying veggies but my Stoma Nurse said nothing raw, and peeled and steamed well if fresh and very steamed if frozen.
I do have a delima. I eat thickeners, peanut butter, bananas & mashed frozen potatoes from Trader Joe's that are thick circles and you can make as many as you want.
Because I cannot eat flaxseed meal, chia seeds, hemp hearts, and raw nuts and big salads I am going nuts but I do not want a blockage.
Also, I hardly ever left my large Hollister bag (12") get more than a third full. I was drinking Gatorade as it was recommended fir the potassium & electrolytes but cut back due to the Cook County (Chicago & suburbs in Cook Cpunty) sweetened beverage tax and a penny an ounce. I do drink a lot of water. I am thirsty, especially in the hot weather.
I do not know how to eat like I did and I cannot lose the weight I gained.
Sorry this was long and your BIRTHDAY IS DURING THE ECLIPSE ON MONDAY!! How auspicious!! Congratulations!
Any suggestions?

Hi Susan,

Thank you - the eclipse coinciding with my "stomaversary" certainly is interesting!

You've got a lot going on, and I think it would do you good to speak with your stoma nurse to come up with a plan.

Re: replacing Gatorade (which I can certainly understand is quite expensive), have you considered making your own electrolyte mix? I share a basic recipe from the Cleaveland Clinic in my article about hydration: https://www.veganostomy.ca/keeping-hydrated-with-an-ostomy/

Is your hunger being caused by any medication you might be on? Like steroids? If so, then it can be quite a challenge and changing your eating habits alone may not help much for hunger. If it's not related to medication then you may have better luck eating higher protein foods as they tend to be natural at curbing appetite. For me, that might be something like tofu, or "textured vegetable protein" added to meals, or even beans.

I've had an ileostomy for 19 years. It's a part of me and yeah, sometimes I have a blow out but all in all it was the best thing that happened to me after 10 years of ulcerative colitius. I empty every time I go to the bathroom unless very little is in there. It's just a routine that I always do. I usually eat late (after 7 or 8 pm) so I get up once in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom and empty. No big deal. Just part of the routine.

Thanks for sharing, Karen. I'm glad you've found it easy to "go with the flow" so to speak :)

Hi Eric,
Thanks so much for sharing this info! Your links have given me a wealth of detail.
I just recently had a total pelvic exenteration done because of uterine sarcoma.. so I now have a wet colostomy - both urine and stool coming out of a single stoma coming out of the end of my large intestine.
I am still trying to figure out what works best for me.. I have tried coloplast flanges and their urostomy bags - which are quite conveniently large and also capable of expelling solid waste.. and now I am trying convatec just for the incredible advantage of mouldable flanges.. in convatec and coloplast, I find that the colostomy bags get full really fast, because of my wet colostomy and I end up draining every hour or so during the day, and every two hours at night, which is quite irritating.
So I recently tried the convatec high output bag - that's a bit better.. but I keep wondering - if the bag is bigger, doesn't the increased weight of a corresponding third of the bag cause greater tugging on the flange?
What bags do you recommend for a wet colostomy? Also what do you think of bigger bags and their tugging on flanges?
Thanks a ton again for the great info!

I can understand your problem! Thank you for sharing that.

I would say that an ileostomy bag would be the most appropriate - they are designed to handle liquid stool, but will also contain urine just as well.

For dealing with the weight, I would suggest looking into appliance support accessories, such as accessory belts: https://www.veganostomy.ca/guide-accessory-belts/

If you need something else to support the weight, consider adding flange extenders around your wafer: https://www.veganostomy.ca/guide-to-ostomy-wafer-extenders/

Good luck! And feel free to post any other questions in the Community Forums so you can get more detailed replies from other members: https://www.veganostomy.ca/community/

colostomy, 3 months ago, empty 4x/day, no more waking up during night. 7h sleep. happy. no problems.

That sounds wonderful! Did it take long to get to that point or did it happen pretty quickly?

Please, what is a night drainage bag? My dad has a colostomy bag and has to keep getting up every 2 hours in the night to empty it. Any suggestions? Thank you.

Hi Paul,

I have a photo of the night drain bag by Coloplast in this article: https://www.veganostomy.ca/guide-to-ostomy-pouches/

Unfortunately, it really only works with Coloplast systems, but other companies may offer something similar to that. Alternatively, "high-output" or XL pouches may also work. These tend to come in 1100ml+ capacities and stay attached to your abdomen.

I'm working on a new article/video on some newer high-output bags by Coloplast, which I will try to get done in the next week or two.

Hi all: We're considering a colostomy for our teen son with severe special needs. He can't walk but can stand with assistance. He wears a diaper full time and has small bowel movements all day, 5-6. We are feeling like a colostomy would make life easier for him and us. But we're not sure. We keep him very clean and change his diaper often, but are thinking that a bag empty every few hours would be a lot easier on him and us while changing his wet diaper. Any thoughts welcome.

Hi, Chris.

I'd be interested in knowing what a surgeon thinks of this. To be honest, I don't believe any surgeon would give your son an ostomy out of convenience, but I can see how it might appear to be a better option for you and your son. 

Keep in mind that an ostomy can come with its own risks, and if your son developed any skin or stoma problems, it's very likely that it would make life more difficult for you compared to now.

But I do think you'd have to provide an overwhelming case before any surgeon would consider it (and I don't think they would unless the colostomy was a medical necessity).

Best of luck to you and your son!

Hi Guest Chris, If you decide along with your surgeon, I agree with Eric, but first, I would, if this was my child, try out different waffer's on his belly, just to see if any reactions...  and a pouch on him to see how he reacts. This will be a learning account for everyone..  This is a new future for you all and mostly your dear son.  I hope you really read everything Eric and the rest of us put on this blog....... We who have ostomy's here have issues being ostomy's........ Just because..... I am sure you have it hard already-- and this just may help-- but be ready.. EDUCATION IS THE KEY POINT HERE . Remember, there is NO control of bowel movements of this..  IT is the gift that keep on giving.. shall I say.. :-)  I wish you and your son the very best in the future.. and GOD Bless. M.

Hello Chris . Welcome to the forum . I agree with Eric and Marcie . I have an Ileostomy not a colostomy so a little different . But there were different things to deal with after and since my surgery  that I was not aware of before having my surgery .  I understand what your concern is with your son but definitely would suggest doing your homework on this first . Maybe you could check around the area where you live and see if there is an Ostomy support group that you could sit in on a meeting or two with and get a face to face discussion with someone who has one . Before seeing a surgeon .

Chris, Be very careful when you approach the surgeon. You might get in trouble with Child Protective Services or similar agency. As much as we stand up for each and help each other and etc. , we all have been surgically altered. IT WAS NOT AN OPTION .  IT WAS MEDICALLY NECESSARY . IT WAS NOT FOR FUN OR CONVENIENCE! If this was an April Fools joke , I was had. If it was for real, DON'T DO IT.