Now that I am back to an ileostomy, I am trying to swish with water to empty the bag. It's working much better, but I have trouble getting stuff at the top of the bag, above the flange. (I use a two piece Hollister with tupperware flange.) Any suggestions?

Thanks,
Terry Anne

Hi Terry Anne,

I'm not sure that it's essential to make sure the bag is spotless each time you empty but I know what you mean. My stool can be very thick making it impossible to just pour it out, which is why I always rinse.

I hold the tail end of the bag up higher than Wee Willie when I pour the water in so that it will swish around the stoma and top of the bag. Once the water is in and I have a firm hold of the tail I give the bag a bit of a shake to swish the water about. I'm probably a bit more anal about this than most but I feel that not only does it make me feel clean, it also lessens the chance of stool pancaking (I hate that phrase) around Wee Willie and getting under the wafer as I rinse most of it away when I do the swish thing.

Good luck and take care.

Shell

Hi

FYI--There is an older good thread on this if you look it up.

I swish with a turkey baster at home and heard of someone who has one of the kitchen type faucets-with hose/sprayer.

Shell's right, You never get every drop/molecule, I squeeze the 'stuff' down all round the top of the pouch then down to the end like a toothpaste tube, swish, and post-swish, I roll TP in a tube shape and wipe off the inside of the pouch 'dingle-berries' that try to survive the swish.....

PS-I found a big early hurdle mentally is re: getting the pouch clean and realizing you're gonna get 'schmutz' on your fingers-deal with that off-putting idea, wash off when done and you'll take a big step with your esteem and confidence.

Good luck and Good health
Eric

Shell & Eric,
Thanks for the input. I WAS probably being too anal. Fresh from the hospital, I have limited supplies, & after 4 1/2 days, the transparent bag was looking pretty gross. On the positive side, I'm thrilled I got 4 1/2 days from the wafer without a leak! Hooray for small victories!

My output is often very liquid, but the swish technique seem to keep my hands cleaner than the way I was taught in the hospital. So, thanks again!

Terry Anne

Hey, there's nothing wrong with being a little bit anal! I'm probably the most anal person I know. No matter how many people tell me that my bag will only be manky again in 5 mins I still like to leave the loo feeling clean. I would no more not swish than I would consider not washing my hands after I've used the toilet. Of course the fact that my stool is usually so pasty means that I have always had to do this, but on the occasions that it's been watery and will empty easily I still cannot bring myself to leave the toilet without that swish!

Of course Eric is right about getting over the mental issues of getting poo on your hands. I really don't worry if my hands get a little crap on them, that's what soap and water are for.

Do whatever it takes to make you feel comfortable, after all, you are the one who has to live with this and whatever works for you, or as our Jan has been known to say "whatever floats your boat!"

Glad we could help.

Shell

I use a small bottle when I am on the go to rinse my bag out and a larger one at home. However, I don't rinse to get the bag clean really. I rinse to make it easier to clean the tail before I clip everything closed. Without my rinse (esp if my output is thick) it takes forever to get all the "junk" out of the tail. If I am somewhere with toilet paper you can see through that thick output just goes right through and you have a real mess on your hands (literally!). So I rinse about half way up my bag and that's it. If I have some particularly thick stuff stuck higher up I use the old milking technique and push as much down as I can and leave it at that.

Early on when my ileostomy was new I had a compulsive desire to rinse the bag, I found it inconvenient away from home so I got out of the habit all together, I no longer am a swisher.