Autumn/Winter Fashion With a Stoma

Autumn is here… the leaves are falling, the rain and wind are incoming and I absolutely love it. With my current health issues and long-standing Crohn’s disease, I have never been a fan of the summer months. My Fibromyalgia means I am not overly good at controlling my body temperature, I’m either really cold or flaming well boiling hot. This doesn’t bode well for me in the summer months and now Autumn is here. I am going to enjoy the next six months of feeling more like myself. Living with a stoma in the hotter months is something that drives me slightly crazy. Not being able to be completely naked during the heat and the adhesive with the stoma bag sometimes gets me down. 

Is dressing with a stoma more difficult? 

For me it’s not – I still wear jeans, jumpsuits and jumper dresses. The one thing I struggle with is short skirts as I always wear a large bag due to my high output but this is easier as in the Autumn and winter months as I can wear tights. 

I managed to get myself some Aura Jeggings in the sale and I will be living in those a lot. The thought that has gone into making these stoma friendly jeans is amazing and with the inner material at the front of the jeggings you can’t see my convex base plate showing through which is amazing. I find I struggle with mid waisted jeans as they pull at my baseplate. 

All the burgundies, yellows and greens are back in fashion and I will be living in jumper dresses as they are back in fashion. I will admit some of my clothing is nearly as old as my daughter but I am a lot more conscious about being eco-friendly instead of sticking up for fast cheap fashion. 

Where do I buy my clothes?

I will admit that I am slightly tight… oh who am I kidding, I don’t like paying full price for things and you will always see me in the sale section either in the shops or online… 

Stuff that no longer fits me goes onto eBay and I sell it and then I use the funds to buy other clothing back off of eBay. I suppose you could say I am a bit more of a vintage clothing wearer. 

I also ask for things from Fatface, Joules and White Clothing- these will always be sale items at the time.

I also use a group called Bellies clothes donate or swap group on Facebook. This group is primarily for those who like me have a stoma or IBD, we aren’t always in control of our weight so being able to swap clothing is handy but also eco friendly. 

Tips for dressing with a stoma

• High waisted jeans or jeggings
• Skater style skirts and dresses so it’s not tight against the stomach
• High waisted knickers so you can tuck your bag in for a smooth silhouette

These are tips but not words to live by – you can pretty much wear anything you would like. In the winter I wear girl shorts which my bag sits on top of and then I will either wear tights to tuck the bag in or I wear jeans or trousers. 

Your stoma shouldn’t change the way you dress but for some, the surgery may have a negative impact and you just have to find what’s right for you. 

As always

Many thanks for reading 

Louise Xx