It’s UOAA National Election Time! This year there are openings for 2nd Vice President, Secretary, and three Director positions. Most are unopposed, except for the 2nd Vice President position.  Voting concludes at the end of June, and as results are known I will post them in a future newsletter.

Blockages

The WORST an ostomate can expect is a blockage.  Do you know what to do?  Do your family or friends know how they might help? Often, even if you end up in the emergency room, the doctors there won’t have seen an ostomy blockage before, and won’t know for sure what to do. The UOAA has developed a handy card that you can print and carry with you for caregivers and doctors. I keep a copy on my computer home screen that can be printed out by a family member, if needed. It includes what symptoms to look for, home techniques for moving things along, and a guide for clinicians if you need to go to hospital.

Mental Health with an Ostomy

Getting an ostomy is a traumatic event, whether you’ve done your homework and expect it, or whether it happens overnight after going to the ER with what you hope is a simple tummy ache. In this video, Shield HealthCare’s Ostomy Lifestyle Specialist, Laura Cox, discusses the mental health challenges she faced before and after surgery, and how she’s learning to cope and handle the stress that comes with being an ostomate.