Living with a stoma

Astoma is just where the ileum is brought out through an opening in the right iliac fossa and attached to the skin,1 right? Wrong. For many patients, a stoma is life changing but for all the wrong reasons.

Medical textbooks tell us that “problems associated with ileostomies include mechanical problems, dehydration, psychosexual problems, infertility in men, and recurrence of Crohn's disease.”1 So do you know what it's like to have a stoma yet? Does this allow us to really be in a position to offer empathy?

In fact, …