![]() ![]() There’s no reason why you can’t get out there and do something amazing yourself – even if you happen to have an ostomy. I’ve done all these things since my surgery, because I’ve seen other ostomates showing me that it can all be done. I had always wanted to compete in a bodybuilding competition, had always planned to hike the Pacific Crest Trail, and didn’t want to stop with all my international travel. Go and do all of things that you were going to go before. If you have an ostomy, go and live the life you were going to live anyways. Those around will usually be very understanding and help you out. And if accidents happen, it’s going to be embarrassing if not down right humiliating, but don’t beat yourself up. I’ve irrigated in a bathroom on a moving train, in a portable restroom, and even in the outdoors while backpacking. If no proper bathroom is available, I make do with what’s available. And if you’re not prepared, just roll with it. I’ve learned the hard way to always have stoma supplies within reach and keep supply caches at work, in my car, in my book bag, and in my back pocket. Life with an ostomy has its challenges, no doubt, but when problems crop up you just have to be prepared. I was standing on a stage in front of people judging my physical appearance while I wore nothing but a spray tan, board shorts, and a colostomy that I knew I was where I wanted to be. But the icing on the cake of confidence came when I started competing in bodybuilding competitions. Regaining my self-confidence took the longest, but being featured as a model for The Colon Club in their 2013 Colondar helped tremendously. ![]() I learned to irrigate so I could spend an entire day without worrying about output. For example, I had to navigate dating with an ostomy, and decide when exactly to tell my date about it. I’ve always been a physically active guy, and I told myself that as long as I was able to be physically active and do all of outdoor things that I liked to do before surgery, I’d be fine.Īdjusting to other aspects of life with an ostomy would take a few more years. I quickly made the physical adjustments, and within a few months of surgery I reached my “comeback” goal with a 100-mile century bike ride. During the start of my life as an ostomate, I was filled with anxiety, depression and uncertainty.Īdjusting to life as an ostomate takes time. I hated how it looked, the noises it made, and having to deal with it throughout the day. Over the next few months, I got used to it, but I still hated it. Having a hole cut into my abdomen where my colon would exit and that waste would pour out of simply disgusted me, and I did everything I could leading up to surgery to have a complete response to chemotherapy and radiation.Īlas, as I was coming to on the day of my surgery, I was able to make out a nurse saying, “looks like he has an ostomy.” I was crushed. When I was told my stage III rectal cancer diagnosis would likely result in my having to wear a bag, I was revolted. That’s the first thought most people have when they’re told they need an ostomy, and I was no different. World Ostomy Day guest blogger Doug Dallmann writes about letting go of disappointment, and embracing the truth that life doesn’t have to slow down because you are living with an ostomy. ![]()
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