www.incontinentsupport.org

Doug,

I think you are correct that the alternatives to diapers are more troublesome than just wearing good diapers in the first place. I am not changing over to external catheters completely or for my normal daily routine. I am satisfied with my use of premium disposables and cloth diapers. However, I need to examine possible alternatives for special situations.

Recall that my primary objective has been to reduce the large number of diapers that I have to carry with me for extended vacation travel, usually foreign travel or a lengthy cruise. Previously, I barely could manage that when I could get by on only 2 diapers a day for my bowel incontinence. I paid the airlines extra for a complete duffel bag of nothing but diapers (and had more in my suitcases). Now, with urinary incontinence added to the equation, I need 3 to 4 diapers a day, a number which adds up to too many diapers to be practical to carry. The condom catheter offers the possibility that I can reduce the number of diapers back to 1 or 2 a day when on a cruise, which may make the difference between going or not going at all.

--John

I tend to tape the tubing at the top attachment area to my leg, keeps it from pulling and such, and I wear compression shorts over that. I could not stand no securement, it would make using them much more of a pain, always worrying about kinks and such. I use the Urocare tubing leg strap at the bottom section, has two Velcro tubing holders, and stops and kink at the bag entry, very foolproof, but took a few years to figure out that anchoring the tubing down is very helpful! Puffy

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Puffy
BC, Canada
Fighting the "Bladder Battle" since 1995

Thanks for the good advice, Puffy, as usual.

When wearing the condom catheter, I am learning that I dislike having my private parts "flopping" around loose down there. I do worry about the tubing pulling on the catheter, kinks, etc. I now am using the UroCare leg strap to hold the tubing in place on my upper leg and find that it is working very well.

I have worn a onesie with the condom cath and that was comfortable. I often wear compression shorts with a diaper but have yet not done so with the condom catheter. It makes sense. Probably nothing would stabilize the tubing and penis/condom better than compression shorts.

Once I have the basics of wearing the condom cath down well, I will order a more permanent latex bag such as the UroCare. Again, I want to know ahead of time just how far I can push the system and still be able to have confidence in it.

I am trying to iron out the bugs far in advance of a foreign vacation or cruise as we will have to place a significant deposit far in advance of the trip. Because of my bowel incontinence and use of preemptive enemas, we try to reserve a cabin with a small bathtub for my morning "procedure." To do that we have to make arrangements much earlier than otherwise would be the case.

Given my age and health, I may not have many more opportunities to work on my "bucket list" items.

--John

Glad to see your are still doing well, john.

A word of warning. The latex urine bags are not necessarily a good idea. At one time in the sim and dark past, I worked as a red cross volunteer doing some nursing at a spinal unit. In those days, the only urine bags were latex. Despite hospital style disinfecting, it was not without cause that they were called kippers! Broadly, the start to stick after a while. With the advent of plastics for urine bags, semi-disposable ones are a much better choice as they don't have much affinity with smells.

A bag can be simply washed out with water each day and over here in the UK we are told to replace then weekly.It's better not to try and sterilise them as one doesn't need them to be bacteria free with a condom and it is easy to make the flap-valve at the top of the bag sticky so it won't open properly and everything above the bag can then leak!

I have used the Hollister leg bag for years, the only one I liked for comfort and no leak issues at the tap, and latex free too. The Urocare ones are a lot more money, I couldn't drop that much on a leg bag! http://www.hollister.com/canada/products/product_series.asp?id=3&family=22&series=183 Ebay is a good souce for stuff too, I got 25 leg bags e or 5 years ago for $40 shipped, deal of the month! Puffy

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Puffy
BC, Canada
Fighting the "Bladder Battle" since 1995

Wheels and Puffy, thanks for speaking up about the latex leg bags. I had thought that they were supposed to be better.

So, you would recommend going with the standard plastic leg bags from a good brand like Bard, Coloplast, or Hollister?

For reliability for a three-week vacation, would you just take more of the regular plastic leg bags with you?

Puffy, the Hollister with the pleated sides sounds interesting.

What about noise? Does the shape or material of the leg bag affect the noise? Sometimes I can hear a "sloshing" sound. Can anything be done about that - other than draining the bag? Would a fabric leg bag holder reduce the noise (something I have not yet tried)?

--John

I would just take the regular bags, and the bedside for at night. As for the sloshing, I stay away from the vented bags so no air can get in, and once the tubing is "primed" and some urine is in the bag, I invert it, and open the valve, squeeze any air that is in it OUT, and close the valve, thus NO sloshing around, silence. Learning all the tricks now JD! Puffy

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Puffy
BC, Canada
Fighting the "Bladder Battle" since 1995

Coloplast bags have vertical channels in them that not only mean the bag sits better on the leg but also stops the sloshing.

Puffy and Wheels,

Great information guys!:D

Puffy, I have not read anywhere about purging the air out of the bag. It makes sense. Why don't the manufacturers tell you about things like this?!

Wheels, I am trying a Coloplast bag now, but I don't think it has vertical channels.

--John

I have no idea why they don't tell you stuff like this, makes all the sense in the world, but I went into this totally alone, and with the exception of my continence nurse friend that knows what I use and wear when needed, no one else knows, or is there to offer help. Trial and error, so I feel it is beneficial to share anything that makes the journey we face a bit easier to navigate, kinda like to give back. Any other questions come up, fire away! I WISH I had this site 20 years ago! At 26, I was far to embarrassed to register anywhere or even post anonymously on a message board, heaven forbid someone I knew read it and found me out! Like that matters anymore! Puffy

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Puffy
BC, Canada
Fighting the "Bladder Battle" since 1995