Newsletter for December 2022
Officers:
President: Jerry Downs 941-629-7568 fldowns@embarqmail.com
Vice President: Ken Aukett 609-315-8115
Secretary: Lovelle Meester 612-240-2175
Treasurer: Lorelie Godbout 603-474-9063
Directors: Janice Creutzmann 910-382-2509
David Sandora 941-828-1076
Committees:
Newsletter: Lorelie Godbout
Programs & Education: Jerry Downs,
Gloria Patmore, RNET (retired) 941-627-3077
Nancy Frank, RN, BSN, CWOCN 941-629-5118
Marie Michel, RN, CWCA, CHRN, OMS 941-626-2607
Visitation: Nancy Frank, RN, BSN, CWOCN
Library: Lorelie Godbout, RN (retired)
Professional Advisors:
John P. Rioux, MD, F.A.C.S.
Nancy Frank, RN, BSN, CWOCN
Marie Michel, RN, CWCA, CHRN, OM
A 501 (C) (3) nonprofit organization, (tax-deductible donations) Website www.ccosg.org
Happy Hanukkah, Merry Christmas, and Happy Kwanzaa
I hope everyone has stayed healthy and safe through Hurricane Ian. I hope you didn’t get too much damage. We had minor damage to the shop and part of the lanai support beam, but a lot of debris from the fallen trees and limbs. We are still cleaning up debris. I think it will be a while before everything is straightened out.
I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving and found many things to be thankful for, even with all the chaos Ian caused. I know I have many things to be thankful for. I am thankful to God for answering my prayers many times over in unexpected and great ways, my Husband, family, friends, health, ability to still be able to do things, and being able to travel. I am also thankful for being a part of this wonderful support group and being able to serve with the newsletters. I hope I can keep it going and hope we can soon get together again.
Hanukkah, Christmas, and Kwanzaa are right around the corner with the New Year close behind. It can be a hectic time for most of us, but I hope you can still find time to enjoy the season and reflect on all you have and love. Look for the little miracles happening around us and enjoy the spirit of the holiday season.
I am going to write my story of traveling with a Urostomy and what it entails. I have traveled a lot since having my urostomy. My husband and I had a Honda Goldwing 1500 motorcycle and then we got a Honda Gold wing 1800 Motorcycle and a Motor Home and have traveled across the country and through Canada many times and I have also flown on airlines many times through the years. I will write about some of my experiences and hopefully can help a few people plan for trips and not be intimidated or lose patience. I will also try to give examples of how to be prepared for anything.
Lorelei’s Traveling Experiences with a Urostomy
My husband and I traveled a lot before I had my Urostomy. It didn’t take long after I had my operation to start traveling again. My husband talked to a representative at Edgepark medical supply company and he was very helpful and got me some products that worked for me. I was having a lot of leakage at first with the brand the hospital used and after I switched I had no further problems. He also recommended a leg bag for trips. I used it on the first short trip on the motorcycle and I was hooked. I liked the fact that I didn’t have to stop as often to empty it because it could hold a lot. I used the Hollister brand leg bag. You get a tube that you can cut to fit your size. I wear it on my inner calf and I hold the tube on my inner thigh using an extra large flexible bandaid, but I found the Nexcare-2 3/8 x 3.5 in-bandages work well, stay on, and don’t irritate my skin. The tube is able to move up and down so it doesn’t pull with sitting or standing. I usually wear a leg bag when I travel or go on excursions and I wear long loose pants. I wear knee highs so the straps don’t dig in my skin and a short pair of stockings over that to cover the bottom and it makes it easy to pull down to empty.
A few weeks after I had my operation I got a kidney infection and the antibiotic I was on didn’t help, so I got a new prescription and I slowly felt better. My husband, Bob, decided to take me for a motorcycle ride, thinking it may help me feel better and I think he was also anxious to get out again. We only went 10 miles to our destination and 10 miles back. I wore my leg bag and it worked well and now I can’t travel without it. I did start feeling better after that. I think the antibiotic was starting to work and with the fresh air, I was able to eat and drink something for the first time after I had the operation and I got to do something I enjoyed.
We took many more trips with our motor home hauling a trailer with the motorcycle and a motorcycle trailer with our camping gear and extra duffle bags for clothing and toiletries in case we took side trips while staying in one spot.
I was a girl scout and one thing I remember is to always be prepared for anything. I found it came in handy when packing for any trip. I always make sure I bring extra clothes and ostomy supplies in case anything happens. I find that sometimes I overpack, but I would rather have more than not enough.
We were up north visiting with family in late August of 2017 and came home a few days before Hurricane Erma came. I was very much unprepared. I usually keep a well-stocked pantry of food and water, but I didn’t have enough water. I had plenty of food but needed to get some water. The store shelves were empty of water and most food items. I was able to get a few cases of water before the hurricane but had to wait in line for it. Another thing I was low on was my ostomy supplies. I called my supply company and they were sending out my order, but it wouldn’t come until the middle of the next week after the hurricane came through. I called the manufacturer and they were able to send me a box of what I needed but didn’t know when I would get them for sure. I was lucky, the manufacturer’s supplies came in on the Monday after the hurricane and I was all set. The supply company’s order came in at the end of the week. I learned my lesson and keep my supplies well-stocked in case of emergencies.
I also fly a lot. Sometimes I fly alone and other times my husband and I fly together. I always get the alarm when I go through the scanners. The TSA agents are very nice and respectful. The scanner always shows my hip, my stomach, and my calf, because of my hip replacement and my ostomy bag and leg bag. I have my cards for urostomy and hip, but they still pat me down and do the hands scan for drugs. They are just doing their jobs.
One time I had to stay a few months to help my daughter after she had an operation on her hip and was unable to do anything for a few months to let it heal properly. I made sure I brought up enough supplies to last me. If I needed anything, I would have been able to call the medical supply company to get more supplies.
When I travel I usually pack a Coloplast bag with a supply of five changes and a night drainage bag in my carry-on. I also make sure I have a few bed pads and an extra leg bag kit. I also take about 14 belts with me. In my check-in baggage, I usually have a zip lock bag with another 10 changes and an extra night drainage bag. I always carry a few extra leg bags just in case and a few more bed pads. This usually is enough for a two-week trip. When I went to stay with my daughter this past June and didn’t know when I was going to come back home I took up two check-in baggage with another 10 changes and a few extra night drainage bags. I did the same when I went up in August.
Bob and I took a trip to Alaska in July for a 7-day cruise and another trip in October for a 14-day trip from Rome to Athens, Greece on a Viking cruise with pre-stay in Rome and Post stay in Greece. We went on many excursions and visited many interesting places. We enjoyed these trips immensely and I had no problems at all. I know I packed a few extra supplies for the trip in October. It is hard when you have to only bring a certain size suitcase and have a limit of weight, but I did it.
Another problem is drinking enough water. I found the water was supplied on the excursions and in our rooms. I did manage to get enough. At home, I drink 80 ounces of water a day spacing it out throughout the day. On our trips, I manage to get a large bottle at the gate and drink it throughout the flight and also ask for water when the flight attendants come around with food and beverages. I find wearing the leg bag helps to have fewer bathroom trips.
So far so good with sitting in the middle seat. No one likes the middle seat!
