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June 2009 We Are Back!
After our experiment with moving our monthly meetings to a new location, we overwhelmingly decided to return to where we are loved, Advocate Lutheran General Hospital. LGH is very happy to have us return our meetings to their facilities. We will once again meet on the 10th floor in the Special functions Room—about the middle of the 10th floor. We had the privilege of having our friends from Hollister Inc. come to talk to us about new ostomy product issues. You see, they will show us brand new products they are thinking of developing and will ask our opinions on how these particular products may serve us—the ostomy community—better. Attend the meeting the next time they visit us and provide your opinion to influence the state of future generations of ostomy equipment. Next month, we are having a favorite of our group come and speak to us yet once again, Connie Kelly, CWOCN from Northwest Community Hospital. Connie will talk about issues unique to ostomy patients. You want to be sure to be here to ask that question about your ostomy surgery that you are just not certain how to approach. Not only that . . . but our experienced members always offer new insights into common ostomy issues. So, whether you are new to this ostomy business or an old hand at it, stop by a meeting. We sure need you here. We hope to see you June 17. UOAA National Conference--New Orleans, Louisiana The Second National UOAA Conference will be held at the Sheraton New Orleans from Wednesday, August 5 through Saturday, August 8, 2009. For hotel reservations, call the Sheraton at 800-325-3535. Mention the UOAA Conference and you will be given the reduced room rate of $109 per night plus tax. More information and on-line registration will be available on their website at www.uoaa.org . If you have any questions or concerns, please call the UOAA office at 800-826-0826. OAGC Meeting Dates for 2009 June 17—Connie Kelly,
WOCN July 15 August 5—National UOAA
Convention August 19—Ally Bain (inspiration for Ally’s
Law) September 16—Bernie
auf dem Graben, WOCN October 21 Southwest Suburban Chicago The Southwest Suburban Chicago Ostomy
Support Group is an entirely volunteer ostomy association dedicated to the
mutual aid, education and moral support of people with ostomies and their
families. Meetings are held at For information regarding this special
ostomy group serving SW Sub All meetings are held at Little Company of Mary Hospital, Evergreen Park, Mary Potter Pavilion, June 15 Lower Level, 2850 W. 95th St. In a hospital's Intensive Care Unit, patients always died in the same bed on Sunday morning at about 11:00 AM, regardless of their medical condition. This puzzled the doctors and some even thought it had something to do with the supernatural. No one could solve the mystery as to why the deaths occurred around 11:00 AM Sunday, so a worldwide team of experts was assembled to investigate the cause of the incidents. The next Sunday morning, a few minutes before 11:00 AM, all of the doctors and nurses nervously waited outside the ward to see for themselves what terrible phenomenon was about to happen. Some were holding wooden crosses, prayer books, and other holy objects to ward off the evil spirits. Just when the clock struck 11:00, Kenneth Roberts, the part-time Sunday sweeper, entered the ward and unplugged the life support system so he could use the vacuum cleaner. FOW-USA Friends of Ostomates Worldwide—USA is a non-profit, all volunteer organization, which collects new ostomy supplies and distributes them to needy people with ostomies in third-world countries. If you have new ostomy supplies that you are not going to use anymore, please bring them to one of our General Meetings, where we will ship them, or send them yourself to FOW-USA 1400
Arlington Ave. Louisville,
KY 40206-3177 Be a
Total Person with an Ostomy By Albert Lyons, M.D. The person with an ostomy as a total person includes the worker, the family member, the social being, the sexual being and the physically active being. To achieve this totality after ostomy surgery, a person needs doctors, WOC nurses, friends, family, and his/her own individual will to become a more total person. A proper mixture of optimism and realism is needed. Some modifications may be needed in one’s lifestyle. It is all right to be upset by this drastic change, but it depends on how well this mixture is worked out, whether the person adjusts well or not. Ostomy support groups can help with this. Right after surgery, most people feel like a small person attached to a large stoma. Everything seems to revolve around this stoma—daily cares, adjustments, even the simplest of movements. As days go by, the person with an ostomy begins to feel once more like a person, this time with a stoma. Adjustment has begun. This may take a long or a short time, depending on the person. Anger and depression after ostomy surgery is perfectly natural. Becoming a trained visitor is one of the best ways after ostomy surgery to adapt to his/her own surgery, as well as being helpful and providing support to someone else. Each visit helps reinforce the visitor’s own attitude toward his/her situation, while providing positive reinforcement for a new patient. During explanations to the patient, the spouse, or another family member, can be present. They will all be involved and should be included. The family also requires some adjusting to the ostomy surgery. Answer questions in private if needed. Most people have some difficulty in making changes in lifestyle or body image. This is to be expected. However, if progress is not made in a reasonable timeframe, then psychiatric help may be needed. If a relationship can be established with a counselor before surgery, it can help the person with an ostomy make a smoother transition to his new life after surgery. Of course, this situation is not always possible, as some surgeries are done in an emergency with no prior knowledge of the illness. Different types of ostomy surgery may result in impotency and/or sterility. One’s sexuality need not depend on one’s capacity to perform sexually. There are many forms of sexual expression. One’s sexuality depends on how one views him/herself. Ostomates want to share and help others as well as maintain their own personal space. They may not wish to discuss their surgery with everyone. It is up to each person to decide who knows about his surgery. In the beginning, a person with an ostomy may feel that “everyone knows”, but this is not the case. Participating in an ostomy support group does not need to invade the individual patient’s privacy. The group will respect his /her wishes. It is perfectly all right not to tell everybody he/she has had ostomy surgery, as long as this does not progress into hiding at home to avoid facing reality. Remember–every day there are new people having ostomy surgery who could use your help. Water By Wanda Herdzina Water is important. A person with an ostomy especially needs to drink enough water. It is necessary when you want to take better control of your life. Along with a balanced diet and regular exercise, water has many positive benefits you may enjoy which provides good health for your body and mind. Water keeps us fit. We all want to stay lean and avoid adding fat. Dehydration slows down our metabolism, which leads to a reduction in the number of calories we burn. Did you know that sometimes when we feel hungry it might just be we are thirsty? Next time instead of snacking, drink a bottle of water. You actually train your body to be thirsty. Drink water regularly, and you will be thirsty more often. Your body will know when it needs water and will begin telling you, if you train it correctly by drinking enough water. Water helps prevent headaches, dizziness and cramping caused from dehydration. You will also be able to think and remember more clearly, when you drink enough water throughout the day. Water distributes the chemicals our bodies need. Enough water distributes vitamins and minerals evenly and dilutes them enough for us to use. Water helps us normalize our body weight. Water washes fats out of our bloodstream. If we start drinking about three liters of water a day, our weight will increase the first few days. Then, amazingly, our weight goes down sharply. The water we drink is washing the waste out of our bodies while making our metabolism more efficient. Fashion models that need to maintain very thin figures drink water so their tissues do not store it. Water reduces itchy skin. It you have ever had itching around your skin barrier, try drinking a glass of water. People with ostomies are notorious for being dehydrated. Our skin will become dry and itchy when this happens. People with new ostomies have the most trouble with itchy skin while their bodies adapt to their new life. Drink water to reducing itching and dry skin. Water helps lubricate the joints in our bodies. Not only that, our skin will feel softer and it will be smoother. Drinking water removes wrinkles and creases in skin. You will look better. The water we drink combines with nutrients in our body to create the oils and lubricants necessary for a healthy and good-looking body. Water is especially helpful to people with ostomies in preventing kidney stones and promoting a healthy liver. When the kidneys are overworked because of a lack of water, the liver must assume some of the kidneys' tasks. This is not good. Because minerals may not be removed from the kidneys, stones may form more easily. Simply drinking enough water helps prevent this condition. In addition, excess bile salts are utilized and disposed of more easily. This assists the body in efficient operation effecting multiply organs and body units. Water is an excellent remedy for a hangover, which exists partly because of dehydration. Drinking caffeine drinks like coffee, alcoholic beverages, sodas and the like will actually dehydrate the body. Drink more water after enjoying these drinks. You do not need to remove them from your diet, you just need to drink more water when you imbed. Water fights fatigue. Many people have tiring schedules, and by the day's end are exhausted. One source of fatigue might be that we fail to drink enough water during the day. Make sure you always bring along a bottle of water. Drink water on the way to work, at work, at home, away from home . . . all the time. You will feel much more energized. Water should be obtained from a high
quality source. Tap water should only
be used in moderation. It contains
toxic chemicals that are poisonous to our bodies when overdosed. Bottled water should not contain these
toxins. Reputable water vendors have
high quality water, preferably in glass bottles, that contains minerals
beneficial to us, and which allow us to drink in sufficient quantity as to
obtain the good results promised here.
One of the easiest things you may want to do to be healthier quickly
is to start drinking three liters (that is about eight, 12 ounce glasses) of
water throughout every day. We value
each of our members, and we value the good health of each one of you too. World
Ostomy Day October 17, 2009 For our liability disclaimer and privacy policy
visit http://www.geocities.com/mr-ostomy/liability.htm. Pain from Effluent Q Apologies in advance, I know this is gross to read about, but I am desperate. I am having problems with my output being so thick and paste like that it sticks the sides of the ileostomy pouch together. It also stays up around the stoma without falling down into the pouch. This happens especially at night and wakes me up with excruciating pain every few of hours. It happens during the day when I am standing up, too, but at least then, I can keep more of a watch on it so it does not get quite as bad. I am disabled and at home all the time. The stoma cannot push the effluent down into my pouch. I have to move it manually. What am I doing wrong? A We will assume that your stoma is not blocked, tight—stenosis—or twisted by strictures. If this is so, then a few techniques you may wish to try are 1. Leave a little air in your pouch after each emptying cycle so that the walls of the pouch are separated enough to allow the stool not to become readily "trapped" between the flattened walls of the pouch. However, this may not be as helpful as it sounds because of the very sticky nature of your stool, what we professionals call an inspissated stool. 2. Have you considered using a larger capacity pouch? Some of the major manufacturers have larger capacity pouches, typically targeted for high output stomas, on the market now. 3. Hollister makes a combination pouch deodorant and lubricant (Adapt brand) that may allow the stool to slide down with greater ease. 4. Make sure your clothing and sleeping postures are not causing undue impingement or entrapment of the stool at the stoma level. 5. Finally, you may want to review with your medical providers whether some dietary or medicine regimens might ease the passage of the stool out of the stoma. It may still be worthwhile pursuing additional strategies with GI specialists and or pharmacists to figure out better ways to help ease the stool out of the stoma. Mike
D’Orazio, ET Back in 1909 Here are some of the U.S. statistics for the Year 1909, 100 years ago · The average life expectancy in the U.S. was about 47 years old. · Only 14% of the homes in the U.S. had a bathtub. · Only 8% of the homes had a telephone. · The maximum speed limit in cities was 10 mph. · The tallest structure in the world was the Eiffel Tower! · The average wage in the U.S. was 22 cents per hour. · A worker averaged about $300 per year. · A competent accountant could expect to earn $2000. · A dentist $2,500 per year · A veterinarian earned between $1,500 and $4,000 per year · More than 95 % of all births took place at home. · Ninety percent of all doctors had no college education. · The five leading causes of death in the U.S. were: · Pneumonia and influenza · Tuberculosis · Diarrhea · Heart disease · Stroke · Two out of every 10 U.S. adults could not read or write. · Only 6 % of all Americans graduated from high school. · Marijuana, heroin and morphine were sold retail. · One fifth of all households had 1+ full-time servant(s). Did you know that we have our own Internet site? Next time you are on your computer, check
out our site at
www.uoachicago.org . A Logical Approach By Bernie auf dem Grabem, WOC nurse, Resurrection
Hospital One of the most difficult challenges facing both patient and clinician is selection of an appropriate ostomy system. There is a logical approach to finding the perfect pouch. Modifications in pouching techniques or product usage can resolve peristomal skin issues, stop leakage and dramatically improve the quality of a patient’s life. Because there are so many different brands, as well as multiple options within each brand, deciding on the right product can be a challenge. The first step is to become as familiar with ostomy products as possible. You can accomplish this by reading ostomy journals, attending seminars, surfing the Web and meeting with manufacturers—a great source of information. Once you obtain certain knowledge of product options, the next step is to develop a methodical approach to ostomy system selection. Ostomy products have two components: a skin barrier and a pouch. Each of these components is available in a variety of shapes, configurations and formulations. Because the skin barrier is the most important portion of the ostomy system, it should be the first decision point. Three other decisions regarding the skin barrier include formulation, dimension and the type of stomal aperture. The newest skin barriers are available in two formulations—standard or extended wear, and in two dimensions: flat or convex. They are also available in precut, cut-to-fit or moldable stomal aperture. The next decision is the pouch. This should be influenced by the patient’s preference, functional limitations, nature and quantity of stomal output, and lifestyle. Again, there are three options at this point—design, fabric and style. Ostomy systems are designed as one-piece or two-piece and are available as urinary, closed or drainable. The outside covering may be opaque or transparent with a fabric finish or a plastic one. Pouch styles are designed to offer alternative management methods that are aesthetically pleasing, meet lifestyle needs, and manage urine or stool, gas and odor. Of course, not all these choices still consider every ostomy accessory and product available. However, combined with a thorough assessment, it should provide adequate guidance on appropriate pouch selection. The patient’s ability to participate in learning self-care also influences selection. Each point and each scenario differs—that is why ostomy care is considered as much an art as it is science. It is each clinician’s responsibility to keep abreast of innovations in ostomy system products and technology. Something as simple as modifying and updating an ostomy system can be the difference between night and day in the quality of life of the person wearing it. Food and Your Ostomy Forwarded By ReRoute, Evansville, IN There used to be, and to some extent still are, some out-dated theories about what foods people with ostomies should and should not eat. Mushrooms, onions and fresh vegetables were considered troublesome, along with some meat. Today, we find that the old food “taboos” do not necessarily apply. In moderation, most foods need not be avoided. If you have any questions about food and the way your body reacts to it, consult your doctor. Here are some common foods and hints on how to enjoy them without causing excessive gas, irritation or stoma blockage. Fibrous vegetables—Vegetables like celery, asparagus and broccoli have long, fibrous strands running through them. Onions can produce odors in the stool. Such strands are hard to digest and can form a “ball” behind the stoma. When eating celery choose the hearts. These are tender and the fibers are not as thick as those on the outside stalk are. If you must eat the other stalk, peel down the outside strands. Always chew, chew, chew and drink lots of water. Asparagus—Medium stalks are usually the most tender. Start at the tip and work down. As soon as the spear gets tough to cut, go down to the next one and you should have no blockage concerns. Asparagus causes odor in the urine, which may be a bit bothersome to a person with a urostomy. Broccoli—the same principal applies as to asparagus. Vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower and turnips are considered “gas producers” and may require an extra trip to the restroom to relieve the pressure. However, they are worth the trip. Fresh fruit—in moderation, fresh fruit can and should be included in a well-balanced diet. If you have trouble digesting oranges and grapefruit, then try squeezing the juice and discarding the skin. Apples, pears and peaches are great without their skins if you find them hard to digest. Fruit is a natural cathartic. Keep this in mind when you are eating a picnic or the beach or anywhere bathroom facilities are not readily available. Oysters, clams and mussels—though delicious treats, mollusks can be more difficult to digest than other types of seafood and can cause a minor blockage behind the stoma. Be sure to chew them well, and avoid tough mussels the major offenders. Seafood of all kinds can cause odor in the stool. Pouch deodorants are most helpful in controlling this problem. Nuts—the most difficult nuts are the hard ones, such as peanuts, almonds and hazelnuts. Chew them well, and be careful not to overindulge, no more than a handful at a setting. Even non-ostomate nut-lovers can experience discomfort after enjoying more than a reasonable share of nuts. Meat—most meat and poultry do not present any concern, however, those with fat content or heavy casings can be somewhat more difficult for the bowel to handle. Try sausage patties instead of links or hot dogs with the skin removed. When eating fatty cuts of pork, lamb or beef, cut it into small pieces, do not eat the gristle, chew well and limit your intake. Corn on the cob, popcorn, dried foods and coconut—When it comes to obstruction behind the stoma, these are the major offenders. In fact, even people without ostomies can suffer major tummy aches after indulging. Chew, chew, chew and remember to limit your intake. Spices and carbonation—heavily spiced foods and sauces can act as cathartics for people and can produce gas. Carbonated beverages are gas producers, too. One great way to get the bubbles out of the carbonated drinks is with a dash of sugar. It will cause a frenzy of fizz and leave the beverage safely flat. Medications from Other Countries Published by the FDA There are serious risks you assume whenever you purchase medications from outside the country or from questionable sources, like Internet spammers. These medications may be unsafe or ineffective. It may not be prudent to risk your life purchasing these questionable products. · Some of the same medications that are made in the U.S. may be made in other countries. However, they may use unsafe procedures during manufacturing; or techniques during the manufacturing process that renders the medications dangerous or ineffective. · Some imported medications are fakes. This is becoming a growing problem especially with high prices drugs; e.g., you can be sold Nexium when the product is actually ranitidine, which works like Nexium but is less effective. You may not even know how the right medication is supposed to react and settle for less satisfactory results. · Some imported medications may claim to have the same effectiveness as one made in the U.S., however, they may not have been checked for safety and efficacy. · An imported medicine may not have information for treating side effects. · The medications label, instructions and list of possible contraindications may be in a language you do not understand. · The label of some imported medications may make claims or suggest uses that have not been proven to exist. If you have any concerns about the use of these imported medicines, contact your doctor, local pharmacist or state board of pharmacy. They can help guide you to make an informed decision whether or not to use an imported medication. Continuing Your Social Life Forwarded By The
Pouch Your social life can be as active as it was before surgery. You can enjoy all activities; e.g., socializing with friends; attending concerts, sporting events; civic and social club meetings; parties; religious services; or whatever you did before surgery. The first time you go out of the house after surgery, you may feel as if everyone is staring at your ostomy, even though it is not visible under your clothing. You may be able to feel your ostomy system on your body, but no one can see it. Consider this: Did you know what an ostomy was, where a stoma was located or what it looked like before you had surgery? For those with fecal ostomies, you may also worry about your pouch filling with gas and sticking out under your clothing. Remember: a quick trip to the washroom can remedy this situation. If you are worried about your pouch filing up immediately after eating at a social event, you should know that it is natural to go to the bathroom after eating. People without ostomies usually need to go to the toilet after eating. Nobody will think it is unusual if you do the same. You probably will find that you need to empty your pouch less often than you need to urinate. You may be wondering about your relationships with others. Now that you have an ostomy, you may feel that it will change your present relationships and decrease new opportunities for friendship and love. True friendships and deep relationships on any level are built on trust and mutual understanding. These qualities depend on you and other persons. You have the same qualities you had before surgery, and your ability to develop friendships is unchanged. If you care about yourself, others will
care about you. They will feel your
strength of character. If your ostomy
does cause a break in a friendship, a lover or even a marriage, this
relationship was not built on trust and mutual respect. It probably would have crumbled some time
in the future anyway. Up-to-Date With Your Ostomy? By Fred Shulak, Ostomy Assn. of Greater Chicago
As people with ostomies, if we are not having any difficulty with our ostomy, it is very easy to become complacent and set in our ways. As a person who has had an ostomy for many decades, I thought I knew all there was to know about my ostomy and how to care for it. I was not having any problems and everything was going well. Consequently, I did not bother to continue attending meetings. One day I started to develop problems with my pouching system and was not sure where to turn for help. I did the most logical thing that I could think . . . . I called my nephew who also has an ostomy. He was able to give me a few suggestions, one of which was to go back to my local ostomy association meetings and seek the help of the other people with ostomies and an ostomy nurse. When I had my surgery in 1957, I was given a rubber pouch. It needed to be changed on a daily basis. This was an inconvenience to be sure, but much better than living with ulcerative colitis. The pouch being rubber was not good when it came to containing odors and the deodorants available at the time were not very effective. I decided to take my nephew’s advice and was glad I did. I found out from the members of my ostomy group and the WOC nurses—they were known as ETs at that time—that there were literally dozens of choices available to me in the way of ostomy pouches and systems. The new pouches were lightweight, odor proof and more comfortable than the pouch I had been using. I found a pouching system that I liked and it stayed on far longer than my original system. I was able to wear a pouch for five days without having to change and it was wonderful. If you are having a concern with your ostomy or are not aware of the latest developments in pouches and related supplies, I urge you to contact your local ostomy association, attend meetings and talk to the WOC nurses that attend most every meeting. These sources have all of the information you could want to bring you up to date with the management of your ostomy. Even if you are not having problems with your ostomy, please confer with the sources available to you. There is so much new information for a person with an ostomy that you will undoubtedly benefit from learning about the new developments. Another excellent source of information is The Phoenix magazine, the official publication of the UOAA. It is full of new and useful information and I consider it the best and most reliable source of data for people with ostomies. When you subscribe to The Phoenix, not only will you be doing yourself a favor, but you will also be helping the UOAA as they receive half of the subscription price from the magazine. Visit www.uoaa.org for details. A Note Friendships and deep relationships on any level are built on trust and mutual understanding. These qualities depend on you and other persons. You have the same qualities you had before surgery, and your ability to develop friendships is unchanged. If you care about yourself, others will care about you. They will feel your strength of character. If your ostomy does cause a break in a friendship, a lover or even a marriage, this relationship was not built on trust and mutual respect. It probably would have crumbled some time in the future anyway. Irrigations—To Be or Not To Be By Susan Wolf, CWOCN Many people with a colostomy just do not like to irrigate. They find the whole procedure disagreeable, time consuming and often not very successful. In addition, despite irrigation, they still experience passage of stools one or more times a day. Irrigation does not work for everyone. For one thing, your colostomy has to be in the descending or sigmoid colon. A colostomy in the ascending or transverse colon will not be able to be controlled satisfactorily with irrigations because the stool is too watery. One should never attempt to regulate an ileostomy with irrigation. People who had a very unpredictable bowel schedule before surgery will probably continue to do so after surgery, despite efforts to achieve regulation with irrigations. On the other hand, some people whose bowel habits were irregular before surgery find that irrigation helps them achieve regularity. Some people have work schedules or lifestyles that do not permit them to irrigate at a consistent time each day. This too can cause irrigation to be unsuccessful or inconsistent. You do not have to irrigate your colostomy. Your bowel will work anyway, irrigation or not. The purpose of irrigating a colostomy is to achieve regulation of the bowel so that no stool is passed between irrigations. The main reason for regulating the bowel is for the person with a colostomy to have an alternative in his/her ostomy management. The goal is to be as comfortable as possible. If irrigating is not accomplishing regulation and is in fact making you more uncomfortable, you should not be doing it. My son Bosco, age four, came screaming out of the bathroom to tell me that he had dropped his toothbrush in the toilet. I fished it out and threw it in the garbage. Bosco stood there thinking for a moment,
then ran into my bathroom and came out with my toothbrush. He held it up and said with a charming
little smile, “We’d better throw this one out too, because it fell in the
toilet a few days ago.” Northwest Community Hospital An ostomy support group formed last year at Northwest Community Hospital in Arlington Heights. They wish to extend a welcome to all of our readers to visit them. The WOC nurses at the hospital lead the group. For more information, please contact Diane Davis-Zeek, 847-618-3215, ddavis@nch.org . They meet every other month on the second Thursday at 1:00 PM at a new permanent location, the Busse Center, B1 level, Room LC7-8. This building may be accessed from the garage at the west end of the Busse Center. It is easiest to enter from Central Road. NW Comm Hospital Meeting Dates for 2009 June 11—A physical therapist presentation August 13 October 8 December 10 The Right Thing to Do By Raymond Miller
A male acquaintance of mine has a colostomy. When asked why he did not join our local ostomy association said, “I have adjusted just fine. I do not need the group.” His complacency set me back a bit. I thought it over. Therefore, maybe he does not need our support group—whatever that means, however, our group needs him. We need well-adjusted people with ostomies who walk around flat tummied, non-odorous, who look and feel good. An ostomy support group is not a half way house sort of thing. We do not come together to feel sorry for ourselves or to talk exclusively about all the problems that arose because of our operations. We get together because we want to help each other or maybe to obtain some advice with some little issue that has been bugging us. Some things our doctors and nurses cannot answer for us but another people with an ostomy can. We want to prove to all those skeptics and non-ostomates who may think an ostomy is the end of the world that it is not. In most cases; that is, what is most usual is that ostomy surgery is a wonderful beginning. All of us are alive because of ostomy surgery. Isn’t it wonderful? The Nerve of Those Stomas By Mike D’Orazio, ET The question or comment about stomas lacking sensory nerves, or the more broadly stated claim that stomas have no nerves, is a myth that dies very hard. Allow me to borrow from one of my presentations that partly address this issue: “. . . most of the information carried by gastrointestinal primary afferent neurons is not consciously perceived. This is nicely demonstrated by tests on fistula patients who report no sensation when the healthy stomach is probed or in patients that have had the intestinal lining cut to take a biopsy.” quoted from Gastrointest Liver Physiol 277:922-928, 1999. John B. Furness, Wolfgang A. A. Kunze and Nadine Clerc; page G924. Additionally, we have “There are more than 100 million nerve cells in the human small intestine, a number roughly equal to the number of nerve cells in the spinal cord. Add in the nerve cells of the esophagus, stomach, and large intestine and you find that we have more nerve cells in our bowel than in our spine. We have more nerve cells in our gut than in the entire remainder of our peripheral nervous system.” Quoted from The Second Brain by Michael Gershon, M.D. page Xiii Alas, stomas do have nerves! So, now let us put to rest the misstatement about the bowel and nerves, and bother to reeducate those who have misspoken early on. There are nerves; but the sensory nerves of the bowel between the esophagus and the rectum, for certain types of painful stimuli, such as cutting or cautery, are either very low in number and caliber or the brain is not readily able to perceive the pain. Of course, one can still be a pain in the ass; however, this is a topic for other times and places. By Mohna Bos When I had my colon operation and became an ostomy patient, I thought I was unique. I had never heard of an ostomy before this. One visit to the Metro Maryland Ostomy Association meeting opened my eyes to the fact that I certainly was not the only person to have this kind of challenge. Back home after surgery, one of my neighbors came to welcome me back from the hospital and wanted to know what had happened to me. I told her that I had a colon operation and was now an ostomy patient. Promptly, she asked the question, “What is that? Never heard of it” Halfway through my explanation, her face looked as though I was telling her a dirty joke. “Please stop.” She said. “This is awful. Don’t tell anybody.” “What is so bad about it?” I said. “So I had an operation and am now wearing a pouch. So What?” Her remark reminded me of the fact that, just about one year earlier; she had been in the same hospital for a cancer operation. When I visited her at that time, it never occurred to me to say, “How awful. Don’t tell anybody.” It was just one of those things that happen to women all over the world. Why was it then that her remarks to me made me almost feel guilty? Was that just my impression, or do other people also have that problem? Is it because of the area of the body that is involved? Is that why an ostomy is known so much less than cancer, diabetes, Parkinson’s disease or any other condition? I have never seen the health section of any newspaper or magazine mentioning ostomy. Are we the “forgotten people?” What can we do about it? My first answer might be, “Nothing, just grin and bear it”. However, we can change people’s perceptions by the way we accept our ostomy. Only then can we inform people. Someday the word “ostomy” may not be so unmentionable as “cancer” once was. Without realizing it, I had just educated one more person whether she liked it or not. |