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TheMailbag UOA Jacksonville Chapter #211 November 2002 Volume 4 Issue 11 Meetings are held at the Baptist Medical Center 8th Floor - Meeting Room C - 3rd Sunday of each month 3PM Contacts:
President's Report
A Message From the President, We have had a stable, dedicated group of officers. We managed to send a delegate to the National UOA Conference. We have kept our visitor program alive and made it bigger and better. We now reach more new ostomates than ever before. We had a booth at the WOCN Nurses Conference this past March which was a great success. We passed out lots of information and brochures to all the nurses attending - you can see my picture in this month's Ostomy Quarterly. Thanks to all of you we have grown and now will continue to grow under new leadership. Congratulations to Brenda Holloway on being elected our new President. I'm sure Brenda will do a great job. Thank you to all the officers who worked with me. Patti - thank you for all your tireless devotion to the group. Mamie - your diligence and attention to detail was fantastic. Beth - thank you for being there and taking over when I couldn't be there. Look for Brenda's
message here next month. Look for me as your new Vice President.
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VISITATION COORDINATOR’S COLUMN: Our other patient is a man that we also are following from back in July, has been in St. Vincents Hospital for a month now and is slowly deteriorating and our hearts go out to him and I hope that he is not in any pain. Other complication has grown worse and he may not survive them. Like I said our hearts do go out to him and he is in our prayers. I would also like to thank Mamie Davis for the guest speaker last month. She was Dr. Janet A. Betchkal, MD (904) 384-3500; she is an eye doctor and spoke to us on Glaucoma It was very informative and we appreciate her taking the time to come and give such a good presentation. I am now going to be the President and the Visitation Coordinator after we had elections last month. I have one wish for now, DONATION TO PURCHASE THE GUIDE WE NEED TO PASS OUT TO NEW PATIENTS. We do not have any of them left and this is a great need. So please see what you can do to help our association even if it is $5.00 it will, as it is very important to reach out and give these packets to new patients We are having a Thanksgiving theme so please bring a baked good with you to share with the association We are doing our formal meal at Christmas in December, 2002. Also do not forget a toy for our donation to the Ronald McDonald House. It doesn’t have to be expense just something to brighten up a child. ALSO ON NOVEMBER 4, 2002 AT 7:00PM AT THE SOUTHEAST BRANCH OF JACKSONVILLE PUBLIC LIBRARY IS THE MEETING FOR THE CROHN’S & COLITIS FOUNDATION OF AMERICA. ANYONE WISHING TO ATTEND PLEAS CAL ME AT 282-8181 OR 742-6504 SO THAT WE CAN COORDINATE A MEETING PLACE SO WE CAN GO TOGETHER. Thank you for your help and please keep all of our new ostomy patients in our prays. Hope to see you at our next meeting on November 17, 2002. Sincerely,
UROLITHIASISby A. Trudeh, RNET, Lexington; via Worcester (MA) New Diversions Urostomates, ileostomates and transverse colostomates have one thing in common: continuous output with a loss of fluids. If the liquid intake does not exceed the output, these ostomates may be dehydrating their bodies, making themselves prone to a condition called "urolithiasis," which refers to the presence of stones in the urinary system. These stones may be found anywhere from the kidney to the bladder. They vary in size from mere granular deposits, called sand or gravel, to bladder stones the size of an orange. In the majority of stones, 90% are composed of calcium, with 5-8% uric acid and 1-3% cystine accounting for the rest. Conditions which predispose to stone formation are: (1) infection, (2) periods of immobility, (3) concentrated urine, (4) abnormally high concentration of calcium in the blood, (5) heredity and (6) dehydration. If you were to develop urolithiasis, the symptoms you may experience are: (1) low back pain and/or severe, sharp pain in the lower back radiating to the groin; (2) chills, fever; (3) difficulty or burning with urination; (4) blood in the urine; (5) nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. See your physician as soon as possible if any of the above symptoms appear. Measures to prevent stone formation are: drink 2 to 3 liters (quarts) of fluid daily--preferably water and juices. Include acidic juices such as cranberry to maintain acid urine which helps prevent infection. Urinate during the night if necessary. Exercise daily. Use caution with foods containing calcium. Since a certain level of calcium is required for good health, restrict your diet only with the advice of a physician. From United Ostomy Association (www.uoa.org) Frequently Asked Questions Following Ostomy Surgery What about showering and bathing? Should I bathe with or without my pouch? You may bathe with or without your pouching system in
place. If you wish to take a shower or bath with your pouch off, you can do
so. Normal exposure to air or contact with soap and water will not harm the
stoma, and water does not enter the opening. Choose a time for bathing when
the bowel is less active. You can also leave your pouch on while bathing. Ostomy Discussion Forums Ostomy Related Discussion Forums where one may post and or find answers to questions about living with an Ostomy: International Ostomy
Association:
http://www.ostomyinternational.org/cgi-bin/dcforum/dcboard.cgi ___________________________________________________________________________________________ Tips for Exercising in Cold Weatherfrom Mayo Clinic; via Metro Maryland The winter weather probably has you feeling like hibernating instead of exercising. But by making a few changes and following some common sense tips, there is usually no reason you cannot exercise year-round. This winter, consider: Mall walking; Joining a health club; Working out in a pool; Purchasing exercise equipment; Bundling up appropriately when walking or jogging outdoors; Learning a new outdoor sport; Doing outdoor yard work. Whatever you choose, balance the four main types of exercise - endurance, strength, balance, and flexibility. Schedule some form of exercise each day. If you miss a day, just get back on schedule as soon as possible. Always check with your doctor first before starting any exercise program. ______________________________________________________________________________________________ Acidic Urine -- A Must for the Urostomatefrom Metro Maryland; via Tucson (AZ) Courier Very often, a person with a urostomy is advised not to drink orange juice, but is not given an explanation as to why. The rationale behind it actually applies to everyone at one time or another. If you get a bladder infection, your urologist may give you the same admonishment, and for the same reason. Acidic urine tends to keep bacteria in check, thereby lessening the incidence of infection. Orange juice is not used by the body as acid, but as alkali. Alkaline urine can also cause crystal buildup around the stoma. When the food that you consume is burned in the body, it yields a mineral residue called "ash." This ash can be acidic or basic (alkaline) in reaction, depending on whether the food eaten contains mostly acidic or basic ions. The reaction of the urine can definitely be changed by foods like orange juice. Most fruits and vegetables actually give an alkalized ash and tend to make the urine alkaline, but there are some exceptions. Meat and cereals will usually produce an acidic ash that will acidify the urine. Some acid-producing foods are breads (especially whole wheat), cheese, corn, crackers, cranberries, eggs, nuts, macaroni, pastries, rice, plums, prunes, meat, fish, and poultry. Some alkaline-producing foods are milk, bananas, beans (lima and navy), beets, greens, and spinach. Some neutral foods are butter, cream, honey, salad oils, syrups, sugar, tea, and tapioca. Normally, the urine in the bladder is acid in nature, so watch your diet. Nature knows what she is doing. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ Hints from Alice by Alice Bowman, Stillwater-Ponca City (OK) UOA Chapter Here are a couple of new hints that I picked up in the
Detroit area: Ostomy Chat Room Weekly Meetings
Yahoo
Peoples with Ostomy2*
- Mondays, 8:00 pm US Central time
StuartOnline Ostomy Chat*
- Tuesdays, 8:00 pm US Central time Community
Zero (Ostomy) Support*
- Wednesdays, 9:00 pm US Eastern time
Shaz &
Jason's Chat* -
Saturdays, 8:00 pm UK time / 3:00pm US Eastern Time Yahoo
UK Ostomy Support*
- 1st & 3rd Sundays, 8:00 pm UK time / 3:00 pm US Eastern Time Provided as a courtesy
by Jacksonville UOA Chapter. |
