Having a loved one with an ostomy is a change in your life, too. Your loved one may cope well with the ostomy and resume former activities at a surprising rate. Some individuals need more time to regain their confidence. There is no set timetable; we all adjust at our own speed. It is important however, for a new patient to resume their normal routine as before, and to learn to manage their ostomy by themselves. Unless your family member is physically unable to change their own appliance, they should not be relying on you to do this for them. Independence is vital to regaining self-esteem. Dealing with a new ostomy can be frustrating so encouragement and patience may be needed.

Just as a new ostomy patient can feel overwhelmed with it all, you may feel overwhelmed yourself. If this is the case, seek out other spouses or caregivers with whom you can share your feelings. SASO (Spouses and Significant Others) is a volunteer group formed by spouses and partners of people with ostomies for the purpose of providing support and encouragement to the spouses, partners, parents, families, friends or caregivers of persons with an ostomy. SASO has representatives at the local, regional and national levels through the UOAC and offers special programs at conferences and chapter information sessions.

If you would like to be involved in the SASO program at Ostomy Toronto, please contact the resource centre at info@ostomytoronto.com.