I have spent enough time in this blog outlining the depressing catalogue of stoma bag leaks that it is simply repetitive. It happened twice again this morning. Instead, I am going to simply note what I have learned. Firstly my previous solutions have revolved around technique rather than approach. However I now realise my approach was wrong.
In my naiveté I simply changed the bag, admittedly getting better as I went along, assuming that the new bag was automatically OK. But I need to be far more critical and if I am not happy with a bag I must immediately change it and throw the other away. Secondly I need to check the bag occasionally and if I deem the seal starting to decay I need to schedule in a change. In other words I need to manage the bags, not simply be the maintenance guy.
By doing this I am in control and not simply a victim of apparently random events, or assume that I must always be at fault. So each time I change a bag from now on I will check it out as objectively as possible, checking for weaknesses.
This was a good start but I soon realised something even more encouraging. Apart from 2 instances which I can account for all the bag leaks have occurred lying down or just getting up from lying down. But you rarely lie down in a business or public arena. So the chances of a public embarrassment are hugely reduced.
By the way, five weeks now since the operation.
Forget the Rules 