There is nothing worse than simply feeling not you. To me feeling like me is just being happy with who I am and not feeling like something is wrong. That is easier said than done when you end up getting an injury or if you live with a stoma. Nothing is worse than really realizing or knowing every second of the day that you have a stoma. If this is how you feel when sitting down or just enjoying the normal than something is probably wrong with your ostomy gear. The fact is that your gear should meld with your body. You should feel like it is not even there and in fact your mind shouldn't be aware of it subconsciously. If it is not then you probably need to go see your doctor and then find the right gear that works best for your body.
We all have different bodies and our location of the stoma can affect lots about what will work well. The shape of your stoma may require different seals to be used and that maybe all the difference. But if you simply are settling for what was given to you right out of the hospital without working on the best section for your body. So I highly suggest doing your own research and finding what meshes with your body the best. You want to feel good about yourself and not have to think about your ostomy gear. That is why I try really hard to do good research every few months to see if there is something that I am missing. Not that my gear is bad, but if there is something new that is even better I want to be the one enjoying the benefits. I don't want to be stuck in 1980 living with something I don't have to.
That is why I suggest doing research in different areas. The first place I like to go to is a real person. This is my go-to in the industry for big news and that is my local pharmacist. He keeps an eye out for new gear from major companies and talks with lots of customers who have a stoma and gets their feedback. So when I in my local pharmacy I like to see if he is there and chat up to see if anything is new and to be honest I now have a pretty good relationship with him. It is a fun time to head in a talk about business and the industry.
But there is always the latest information to be had online and through company reports. I like to keep searching through the major brands online and see what products are being released. What is great is that the customer service for these companies is pretty great and they are usually happy to answer questions on the chat or on the phone. I have gotten really good advice and even free samples from doing this and I have made some consistent purchases based on their advice which really improved my life. So keep up on your research and also don't be afraid to hop onto forums or even social media for great advice on things and lots of things not to do as well.
Great details on stoma care
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