{"id":7728,"date":"2026-08-11T14:49:59","date_gmt":"2026-08-11T14:49:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.eakinostomy.com\/GB\/?p=7728"},"modified":"2026-08-11T14:58:23","modified_gmt":"2026-08-11T14:58:23","slug":"what-does-daily-life-with-a-stoma-look-like-by-rachel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.eakinostomy.com\/GB\/blog\/what-does-daily-life-with-a-stoma-look-like-by-rachel\/","title":{"rendered":"What does daily life with a stoma look like? | by Rachel"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/span>
\n

What does daily life with a stoma look like? | by Rachel<\/h1>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n
\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n


Daily life with a stoma will look different for everyone, depending on your lifestyle. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A stoma does not define us, and when you are past surgery and the initial recovery stage, it shouldn\u2019t take up a lot of your day.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this blog, I hope to shine a light on my life as a full-time mum, with a stoma and my children, who have their own health challenges. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our family is far from conventional, but we don\u2019t let stoma life take over and define us. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We are so much more, and we try to live life to the full every day, despite what extra fun we have been dealt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What does a stoma care routine look like?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This fits in with our bedtime routine, as that is what works best for us as a family. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Building it into the end of the day, after a bath for my child with a stoma, makes it feel less like an event by tagging it on the end. It takes no time at all when planned appropriately, with everything to hand. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A matter of minutes and it\u2019s a fresh bag done. For me, it\u2019s the same when the kids have gone to bed and I can shower, doing a fresh bag change at the end of each day. With our ileostomies, changing the bag every day is what\u2019s needed for our output.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How often do you empty a stoma bag?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s like asking someone, “how long is a piece of string<\/em>?”! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I don\u2019t count or keep note of this, and I think when you are years down the road of your journey, you instinctively know when it\u2019s too often and the consistency has changed. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you don\u2019t feel right and you begin to feel poorly, you\u2019ll know when you need to monitor it. Overnight, I try to avoid eating and drinking close to bedtime to avoid a wake-up. I am waking up for my toddler and mini ostomate to empty their bag, so if mine has got output, I will do it then.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Throughout the day, my golden rule is to always empty when I use the toilet to urinate<\/strong>. I am there already, so why make double the trips? This also keeps it from filling up too much most of the time, unless I have a large output in one go, then of course I will make the necessary toilet trip.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Managing the stoma life admin<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

When you have multiple members of the family living with a chronic illness, medical admin can feel overwhelming<\/strong> at times. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I have to be super organised with appointments which, no matter how much I try to avoid it, all seem to come at once. Regular appointments for the kids and myself, sometimes an hour away, require lots of juggling between my fianc\u00e9\u2019s job and childcare.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We have a shared calendar on our phones, a calendar we update on the wall, and still we seem to forget things! That\u2019s before you are chasing monthly for medication, test results and urine sodium checks, which are common for children with Hirschsprung\u2019s Disease. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s very rare that a month runs smoothly without me having to chase things with the pharmacy. Speaking to other medical mums in the community, I am not alone, and this unfortunately is the norm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Common misconceptions about life with a stoma<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

When you have stoma surgery, there is a period of wondering how it will change your life and what you may have to change. For me, it has only enabled me to do MORE! <\/p>\n\n\n\n