Scuba

Just tried to book a Scuba diving refresher course, I didn't really think about how the ileostomy might be an issue- if farts fill the bag up it could expand on the way up and blow the bag off...
Need to get signed off by a doctor.

The train to Koh Tao

You haven't emptied your bag until you've emptied it on a Thai train. But seriously, this was a great experience for me- I learned 3 things.
1. Try to always carry toilet paper with you
2. Experience of using the water hose that they have in Asia (called the 'bum gun' apparently!)
3. I can cope with it and I survived! No need to be anxious about these things any more. (Seriously, when I went to India last year I was so concerned about using the toilets when out and about that I hardly drank any water, probably it could have been quite dangerous)

Side note: Big shout out to sensura mio. I've only changed once so far on the trip- it would be much harder with the old bags I used before

Just changed

I just changed my bag in the communal dorm's shower room. Travelling with an ostomy isn't the easiest thing, especially not when staying in hostels

Keeping cool part 2

Met a kazakh guy at the airport who also hadn't booked a hostel yet, and headed to the Koh San road. Found a place called the green house which looked pretty basic but had a bar and looked friendly. I had topped the medicube up with ice from the plane so I figured I could just keep doing the same with the ice from the bar.
Woke up about 6.30am as I had to empty my bag and I saw the thermometer was reading over 14 degrees. So I might have spoiled all that humira already...
I didn't book a hostel in advance because I read or heard that there is much more choice on the Khao San road than you see on the Internet. I'm now thinking that might have been a mistake and I should have booked somewhere that said it had a fridge freezer as one of the facilities.
I'll do that tomorrow

Flying to Bangkok

I had a few things to sort out before I left (completely clearing out my flat!) so I'm writing this on the plane to Bangkok! A girl across the way is so drunk (or on something) that she tried to kiss the lady sitting next to me, and is being restrained by the crew, so that's a bit of a distraction...

Below I've put a photo of all the ostomy supplies I've brought with me, there's quite a lot of it and it fills most of my backpack to be honest - not much room left for anything else.

Here is my total packing list for this 62 day trip:

3x asthma inhalers

10 syringes of Humira in the iCool medicube (I suddenly thought when queuing for security that the large frozen packs might be classed as a liquid and not be allowed through but I was relieved when they passed through the machine with no questions)

About 96 tablets of azathioprine

Ostomy supplies:

  - 30 x sensura mio 1 piece bags

  - 15 x sensura mio 2 piece base 

  - 30 x sensura mio 2 piece bags

  - 20 x oakmed standard bags (these are the ones I used to use and have brought as a safety net)

  - 30 x cohesive slims

  - 30 x cool plats brava rings

  - 60 disposal bags

  - 1 pack of dry wipes (I figure I should be able to buy these and they are bulky so I didn't want to bring more)

  - 60 x adhesive remover wipes

  - scissors

  - 3 x 'bed pad' mats 

Sunglasses

Sunscreen

Sleeping bag liner

60 pairs contact lenses

Padlock

6 x underwear

5 x socks

3 x comfizz level 1 support band (I wear one of these all the time)

2 x comfizz level 3 hernia support band (includes protective guard for when I'm doing kickboxing training)

1 x stealth belt

Lonely planet guide

Mosquito spray

Trainers

Jogging bottoms (aka sweat pants)

3x shorts

3x tshirts

2x trunks

A sweater

Toothbrush

Toothpaste

Soap

iPad

Earphones

Spare phone battery

Earplugs

Phone charger

GoPro

2 credit cards

Under clothing wallet

Dioralyte

Loperamide

Hand sanitizer

Electric plug adapter

Travel pillow. Although it's quite bulky - I might regret bringing it

I hope that's enough!

Preparing to Leave

Less than 2 weeks before I fly to Thailand!! Super excited (and apprehensive!)

Here's what I've been up to:

• Got myself a Thai tourist visa
• My flat is all packed up, all my stuff is in storage
• Lots of goodbye lunches/coffees/drinks with various friends
• Received a very large supplies order, containing my new favourite bags (more below!)
• Asked GP for a large prescription of Azathioprine
• Received a large order of Humira
• Spoken to consultant and stoma nurse
• Tried an improv class

Still to do:

• Get Loperamide and Dioralyte
• Travel insurance
• See my Bro
• Do a final pack of my backpack

It has felt very busy!

I saw this great guide from the White Rose Collection about going on holiday that has some good tips and advice: http://www.whiterosecollection.com/Articles/Holidays-With-An-Ostomy. It also links to this article about the World Assist Alliance, which I never knew about before.

I tried using the SenSura Mio mechanical 2 piece bag last week and I was super happy that it lasted a whole 6 days without needing to be changed (and could have lasted longer as there were no problems when I changed it). I think it's because the mechanical part keeps the bag away from the stoma, helping to reduce potential pancaking. So I ordered a few to take with me - if they always last that long I will only need to change 10 times in my whole trip! The only problem I have is that the opening is a bit more tricky (can be a bit messy) then other bag manufacturers.

If I've forgotten anything I need to do, or if you have any tips on Coloplast bags, let me know in the comments.