How to manage food at Christmas with a stoma | by Nikki

Drinking alcohol – if you love a Christmas tipple, having a stoma doesn’t mean the end of that. It just means we have to been a bit more mindful. For every alcoholic drink you have, have a soft drink – it will keep you hydrated and could even lessen the hangover! I would also probably take it easy if you’re not sure what your limit is, I’m still in the stages of working out if I am less tolerant of alcohol… don’t be heading to the bar to do a round of tequila shots before you’re ready. Take it slow and hydrate, hydrate, hydrate.
Don’t try foods you’ve not tried yet… nobody wants a blockage on Christmas. I’ve been there, and it wasn’t my favourite thing to be doing at Christmas. Even before stoma life, I indulged on one or two, too many nuts and ended up in A&E due to strictures. This is more likely to happen with a stoma, so I would say, Christmas is not the time to be doing the ‘trial and error method’.
Make sure veggies are well cooked. Take it from me, an undercooked broccoli stalk can land you in agony. Make sure the veg is cooked and soft and chew chew chew everything else.
Most of all, have a Merry Christmas!

And let’s hope the next year is filled with happiness and health for us all!