You can bathe or shower with or without wearing your pouching system - the choice is up to you. Water will not enter your stoma while enjoying a soak without your pouch. A well-secured ostomy pouching system will not be affected by water and dries quickly, so showering and bathing can still be completed with or without your pouching system.1
If you're showering without your pouch, remove the skin barrier too. Once out of the bath/shower, your skin should be completely dry before applying a new skin barrier and pouch.
If you're showering with your pouch system, check your pouch seal. Before getting in the bath or shower, make sure your seal is secure. It is recommended to wear the entire pouching system (skin barrier and pouch).
Use all-natural products. If you shower with your pouch off, make sure you use a soap that is oil and residue-free. Shower gels, bath foams, and some moisturizing lotions will be hard to rinse off, making it difficult for your pouching system to adhere.
Listen to your body. If possible, select a time when your stoma is less active. Try to create a routine that coincides with when you're due for a pouch change.
Using a filtered pouch? Place a filter cover sticker over the filter opening before bathing.
Try ESENTA Strips. If you choose to keep your pouching system on while bathing, ESENTA Hydrocolloid Strips may be helpful if you will be bathing or showering.
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1. Brigid Breckman. eBook: Stoma Care and Rehabilitation (page 67). United Kingdom: Elsevier Health Sciences; January 1 2005. https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=F7NE_iXpEvgC&printsec=frontcover& source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false. Accessed January 23, 2024.