I've been trying samples of different bags for my ileostomy: I find it much easier to change my bag than to empty it. I even find it faster, I've gotten very good at whipping one bag off, wiping the stoma and skin clean and sticking a new bag on. Sometimes I shower with the bag off and give it a longer clean, but a quick change I can do in about a minute, and my skin isn't bothered by frequent changes, so I've been changing every day.
The only problem is the environmental cost of using a bag a day. But I'm not sure it's all that much worse than emptying, as when I empty a bag, it takes me several sheets of toilet paper and a couple of wet wipes to get the outlet clean. But I've been trying maxi bags to extend the time one bag will last without filling up. I've found that usually I can put a maxi bag on first thing in the morning, and leave it until the evening of the following day without emptying at all; at that point the bag's very full, and I change it.
The ones I'm using seem to withstand that very well and have no problem dealing with being completely full. I have no problem taking a full bag off either, I just stand over the toilet and empty it as I take it off.
I know you can get things to put in the bags to absorb water - would these reduce the volume of output so a bag would fill up more slowly?
Incidentally, another thing I'm trying at the moment is disposable gloves. I have a cut hand and can't wash it too often as the dressing comes loose, and I don't want to scrub with soap with the cut. I also have a lot of problems with fine movements due to another medical condition, plus my right hand (which isn't the cut one) is apparently never going to recover from when my right side was paralysed last year, so basically when I do anything with my stoma it's messy! (I think this is partly why I find changing the bag easier than emptying. Taking everything off and wiping the whole area is less fussy than trying to open and close the outlet and get a wipe inside it.)
So at the moment I'm using disposable gloves instead of scrubbing my hands clean. They actually work very well; I've read a few threads where people mention getting mucky hands when managing their stoma, and I'd definitely recommend gloves to anyone who has that problem. I'm using ones from St. John's ambulance and they're cheap, they don't break and don't get in the way.
The only problem is the environmental cost of using a bag a day. But I'm not sure it's all that much worse than emptying, as when I empty a bag, it takes me several sheets of toilet paper and a couple of wet wipes to get the outlet clean. But I've been trying maxi bags to extend the time one bag will last without filling up. I've found that usually I can put a maxi bag on first thing in the morning, and leave it until the evening of the following day without emptying at all; at that point the bag's very full, and I change it.
The ones I'm using seem to withstand that very well and have no problem dealing with being completely full. I have no problem taking a full bag off either, I just stand over the toilet and empty it as I take it off.
I know you can get things to put in the bags to absorb water - would these reduce the volume of output so a bag would fill up more slowly?
Incidentally, another thing I'm trying at the moment is disposable gloves. I have a cut hand and can't wash it too often as the dressing comes loose, and I don't want to scrub with soap with the cut. I also have a lot of problems with fine movements due to another medical condition, plus my right hand (which isn't the cut one) is apparently never going to recover from when my right side was paralysed last year, so basically when I do anything with my stoma it's messy! (I think this is partly why I find changing the bag easier than emptying. Taking everything off and wiping the whole area is less fussy than trying to open and close the outlet and get a wipe inside it.)
So at the moment I'm using disposable gloves instead of scrubbing my hands clean. They actually work very well; I've read a few threads where people mention getting mucky hands when managing their stoma, and I'd definitely recommend gloves to anyone who has that problem. I'm using ones from St. John's ambulance and they're cheap, they don't break and don't get in the way.