It has been a little while since I shared a tip I had, or someone else had that they shared with me. This one is pretty simple and I guess you could say obvious to some degree.

If you live with any type of ostomy, you are familiar with some of the challenges of emptying the contents of the bag. It is usually fine and we can go about our merry way but there are times when things get all over the place, forcing a clean up, and then possibly needing to continue your day in clothes covered in *you know what*

I honestly forget who shared this with me but a long time ago, someone mentioned putting some toilet paper in the toilet before emptying the bag. This minimizes any type of splatter that may occur.

I stopped doing it for a while because I was using an insane amount of toilet paper (and still do. Seriously. It is embarrassing how much money is spent on that.) BUT anyway, it absolutely makes a difference for me. It even muffles the noise as stool is falling into the toilet which is good when you are using a public restroom.

Do you have any tips about life with a chronic illness? Either Inflammatory Bowel Disease or another type of illness. The more we share what we have learned, the easier we can make it for those out there who are still trying to find their way. Please email me at marisa@JournalingIBD.org if you would like to share something