In the 1950s no one ever imagined we would be walking on the moon in another decade.  But certainly, just a few short years later we were indeed walking on another celestial body.  It truly is amazing what mankind can do in general and how every single time we are told we cannot do something we generally go out and find a way to do it.  That is something that has always stuck with me in life and it is simply determination.  I was determined to enjoy life to the fullest even when times got hard and believe me times have indeed gotten hard.  But the one thing that I have never let get in my way is the fact that I have a stoma.  I still to this day hear from people who have had an ostomy that it ruined their life.  To be honest those people drive me crazy and they are usually so overweight or depressed to be able to tell that it was not their ostomy that stopped them from enjoying life and is still isn’t. I am not trying to be a negative or fat shame, but technology is so good and people can take 5 minutes of searching is see that you can do almost anything on and off this earth with a stoma.  

The fact is that my stoma has had almost zero impact on what I actually do and how I enjoy life.  The main difference is that I have to plan a little more and maybe be a we bit more careful. But that is to be honest about it.  Napoleon Bonapart took over half the world with a stoma back before we had any sense of true technology and nowadays we can literally 3d print ostomy parts in our own homes. I am not saying that is the answer to anything, but the whole point of this is to let you know that you should never sell yourself short of accomplishing great and amazing things just because you have a stoma. 

Now I am not an incredible person to look up to or much a role model.  But the fact is that I enjoy hiking, hunting, and playing sports with my family and friends.  What I have done in my life is simply stay active and continue to enjoy the things that have given me joy in the past.  What is wonderful is that amazing companies exist that have put millions into research and development to allow me to be able to do all of those things still with my stoma.  It doesn’t take a whole lot of extra work to research what may work best for your body and stoma type.  I actually enjoy looking into new gear and calling up companies to see if it may work for me.  What I have found is that many of them are more than happy to send samples and only ask for a review on how it worked for me in the situations I wanted to use it in. In a way, I have helped develop gear that actually helps me do what I love to do.  

I say all this just to let you know that you should not stop enjoying life or being active. Because that is just silly.