I'll start with things pertaining to my disease. To know my disease you have to know that I had surgery related to my Crohn's disease and I now have a permanent ileostomy. Starting on the left and moving across the bottom we have a pile of small post it notes. How do those pertain to my illness? They are the perfect size to cover the little sensors on the auto-flush toilets in public places. YES, they are ANNOYING for those of us who need a little extra time and may have to move around a bit before we are done. Nothing worse than a toilet flush when you are still hovering - ewwww!
A bevy of pens and markers to write down appointments and color code activities.
Instructions for capsule endoscopy. I don't carry it all the time of course, but since I just had the test last week they were still in my purse.
Below the instructions are a small stack of gauze pads. I have NO idea why they are in my purse other than maybe at the end of an appointment I had them in my hand and just shoved them in my purse as I walked out the door.
Mulitiple lip balms and lip glosses. Crohn's disease can leave your body VERY dehydrated - and more so now that I have an ileostomy. I constantly battle dry skin and dry lips. A girl has to have options.
Mints. And mint wrappers. I was advised against gum chewing because it lets a lot of air in your system which in turn causes gas and well, gas just fills up my pouch and can be a nuisance if I am in a meeting - so I do mints. Preferably the complimentary kind from Sonic.
A shit ton of coins. I cannot seem to put change into a designated area and it always just ends up in the bottom of my bag. I cleaned it all out today and put it in the change cup. The majority of this change comes from the coffee bar at the hospital because up until last week they were cash only - and it was pretty much the ONLY place I used cash. They have come into 2012 and now accept debit/credit cards.
That clear thing with the clip on the back is my ID badge holder. You are supposed to put your ID card in it at the hospital when you enter the building. When you leave you are supposed to return it to this huge bin so someone else can use it. EWW - how many people touch those things in a day? I keep mine!
Note from my doctor for expedited pharmacy service. If you have ever been to a military pharmacy you can understand why this is a handy piece of paper to have. I don't use it every time I visit the pharmacy, but on days where I've had a particularly intense appointment it is nice to not have to wait for hours to pick up ONE medication.
Above that - my calendar. Keep up with doctor appointments, kids appointments, husbands test schedule, my medication schedule....yes, I'm still ancient in that way. I don't completely live by my iPhone.
Video camera. Should anything worthwhile pop up whilst I'm out and about I can record it - my iPhone has recently been yelling at me that it is out of storage or something and I don't know how to fix it. I can't even get the music I buy on iTunes onto my phone. Seriously.
My sunglass case. Which hold my big ass Barbara Streisand-esque glasses. They do a pretty good job of hiding my emotions when I want them to. They hide the red/puffy eyes after a downer of an appointment or the welling of tears when a bad phone call comes through.
Pile of keys. To my house - my car - my husband's car - my gun case and a bunch of other stuff I don't even remember. Without them I couldn't get to my appointments, or get into my house when I am clamoring for my bed or get to my gun whenI need to blow off steam at the range.
And an ornament from South Carolina. WTH? I really don't know WHY this ornament is in my purse - I bought it over 2 years ago and I don't think it has made it on my tree yet.
When we travel further from home I take an extra set of clothes and of course a back up bag of supplies for my ostomy. I keep an extra set of clothes and a whole back up of ostomy supplies at work in my locker too. You never knwo when something may happen and I like to be prepared. I have grown more confident in the past months and will go out closer to home without backups.
There are two things missing - because I used them last night and didn't put them back yet because I haven't left the house. Meds. Drugs. The good stuff. I always carry my pain meds and anxiety meds. I don't like to be unprepared.
Tomorrow - a list of 3 things you are thankful for/excited about/inspired by. See ya then!
Thanks for the post. People who are really concerned about their Ostomy health may take help from the
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