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Human beings are naturally social.  This is definitely a challenge however if you have an ostomy, since this can create some factors that will impact the quality of life.

Learning how to socialize with an ostomy is hard, even for the most social of people. Social ostomates do have trouble adjusting to this, so you should make sure to have a community nurse when you begin socializing in many cases.

What factors will affect the ostomate’s social life though? Well, the general quality of life is one of them. Stomas, whether permanent or temporary, does reduce the quality of life, since this does create problems with inflammation, issues with sleeping, and an inability control the gas that  person has.  This can deteriorate the self-esteem and perception of life, creating fear, anguish, and insecurity, since a lot of people worry, they can’t go back to the life that they had before.

There is also the fact that it’s a bit awkward to take care of a stoma early on, and a lot of people struggle with trying to take care of themselves early on. Stoma self-care if a big part of it, since you have to learn, and it can make people feel awkward.

Finally, the outlook on life and the future hopes are also a big thing. For example, work issues, sexual anxiety, a lack of privacy, a fear of finding appropriate disposal areas for ostomy consumables, fears of accidental leakage, and a fear of odor and uncontrolled flatulence.  There are other factors here too, so you should definitely learn to keep these in mind.

How do ostomates socialize then? Well, learning to understand the symptoms is a good place to begin. Retuning to work is a good way to begin with the routine, especially so ostomates can feel good once again.  Ostomates should get there early in order to empty their bags, and of course change the pouches so they feel comfortable without inconveniencing others.  Also, it’s good to do so you don’t waste work hours.  You should make sure to have the ostomate come with food that they can have, which won’t harm the digestive system.  Avoid frequent snacking or sharing food with others.  Ostomates should also bring the extra medications they need too.

The employer should talk to their ostomates, in order to set up a work schedule that can work. If you need to involve a doctor, do so with this, so that you’re able to get the most out of your experience as an ostomate.

When it comes to physical discharge, learning to wear appropriate filters and using products to help with this will make it better for you. Also, look at the food that you eat, keeping a food diary in order to determine how a food affects your body.

Sports and physical activities are something a lot of ostomates struggle with. But you can still take part in recreational activities, just avoid heavy lifting or combative or aggressive contact of bodies, such as football or even martial arts.

Finally, learn how to love yourself.  You should learn how to accept yourself first. Remember, expecting others to accept you is difficult for ostomates, since a lot of people will think that others will, but that isn’t the case. Ostomates need to learn how to love themselves and make their own ideas of self-love totally possible. Take care of that now, and learn to better yourself through this, so that you can have a better body image, and be able to live even with an ostomy.