Being back at work since Easter, a break over the 2nd May bank holiday was greatly recieved. Even though we’d only been back at school for a month and a half. It had been an extremely busy time: SATS for year 2 and 6 and the splitting of my class after 7 new members had joined were just a few of the events happening. 

This break allowed​ for my wife and I to meet up with some university friends. One couple were having their baby Boaz dedicated – what an awesome name! This occasion led to seeing friends who hadn’t seen me since I was ill or since just after surgery. The amount of times I was told I was looking well took me a-back. When you look at yourself in the mirror every day you honestly don’t think about it. But I’m obviously looking healthy and I feel I should embrace the complements (although it does get awkward when ladies say “Well you’ve put the weight on!” What do you say back? Answers on a postcard).

My stoma this month had been getting sore, especially where it joins the skin. A stoma, for those who don’t know, is the end of the small intestine rolled back on itself (like you would do with a pair of socks) forming a small spout which protudes from the right-hand side of the abdomen. Because it is essentially sewn onto the skin, it can pull and get sore. 

To combat this I’ve been changing my bag regularly and cleaning it thoroughly. However it was still quite sore. I therefore tried a few ideas of my own. First I thought Vaseline. Seems like a good idea, but I nearly got a leak due to it interfering with the adhesive seal. Not good. This led to me trying my 2nd idea. Talcum powder. Yes, that would dry everything out. So I put it on, this led to things getting worse…

My third idea was sudecream. Before applying I thought I’d just give my stoma nurses a call. Their immediate response was “No! Don’t do it!” At this point I said powder is ok though? To which they responded “Yes, the specific stoma powder,” I now informed them I was just using talcum powder. This is when I realised the error of my ways. I was using treatment for external use on an internal intestine. This is why I was having a burning pain and it was getting​ worse.

Lesson now learnt!