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Rox healing through humour. My personal journal through hospital trauma, healing and stoma friending

03/11/2026

PALOMA SAVED MY LIFE.
I INTEND TO USE IT. 💗💩

Getting a stoma was the hardest thing I’ve ever been through.

The surgery. The recovery. Getting my head around a completely different way of doing things.

But once I’d recovered and got used to managing Paloma, something rather bloody lovely happened:

I started doing more. Including things I’d never done before.

My first Reading Festival. New experiences. Days out. Making memories with a bag along for the ride.

Apparently my plus-one is permanently attached. Bit clingy, but we’re working through it. 😂

For me, Paloma has given me my health back—and I appreciate the opportunities that come with that.

Do I enjoy every bag change? Behave.
Can I be grateful and still say “oh, b*llocks” when something leaks? Absolutely. 🤣

My warrior mindset plays a part in how I approach life. As I’m well enough, I like to ask, “What CAN I do?” and give myself permission to find out.

That’s my experience. Someone else having a difficult recovery or ongoing complications hasn’t failed a positivity test. We’re working with different bodies and circumstances. 💗

But there needs to be room for this story too: life with a stoma can hold joy, adventure and some genuinely brilliant firsts.

Paloma, you little s**t bag… thank you. Now, where are we going next? 😂

What’s something you’ve enjoyed doing again—or tried for the first time—since surgery? Little things absolutely count. 👇

03/11/2026

Thanks for being a top engager and making it onto my weekly engagement list! 🎉

Anna Curtis, Teresa Lillian Mcgrath, Shep Shepherd

01/11/2026

SOME PEOPLE GET PAID TO POO.
I GOT PAID TO CHANGE A S**T BAG. 😂💷

An unexpected workplace perk. Wasn’t in the job description, mind.

The other day, I had to change Paloma’s bag at work for the very first time.

Only a little leak—nothing major—but the setting wasn’t exactly my lovely familiar bathroom. The cleanliness situation had me sweating for a moment, so I cleaned first.

Thankfully, I had my spares, we weren’t busy, and I was with a very understanding colleague. That made such a difference. 💗

I’ve only had about four or five emergency changes away from home, so this is still fairly unfamiliar territory.

But I got it sorted.

And then came the thought…

People joke about having a poo on company time. Well, apparently I’ve found the ostomate equivalent. 🤣

Paloma’s imaginary contribution:
“You’re welcome. Shall we discuss my pension?” 💅

There’s the little snapshot of life with my bag: a moment of “oh, b*llocks”, a practical job to do, and a laugh to be found afterwards.

She’s helped give me my life back. Occasionally, she also adds an unscheduled task to the working day. 😂💩

What’s the most unexpected place you’ve had to do a bag change? No competition for the worst one—sometimes “somewhere other than home” is a big enough milestone. 👇

Sh!tBag 💗

31/10/2026

🎃 THE PHANTOM OF THE PLOP-ERA 🎭💩

If Paloma had a Halloween alter ego, this would be it.

A tiny cape.
A completely unnecessary microphone.
Absolutely no intention of being a supporting character. 😂

You can just imagine the audition:

“Can you sing?”

“No.”

“Can you act?”

“I can act like everything revolves around me.”

“You’re hired.” 👏🤣

Her imaginary dressing-room demands would include flattering lighting, her name above the door and a formal apology for any outfit that didn’t coordinate with her cape.

Honestly. Give a stoma a stage name and suddenly you’re managing a West End production from inside your knickers. 💅

Tonight’s performance: Much A-Poo About Nothing.

Reviews:
⭐ “Full of s**t.”
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “Yes. That’s rather the point.”

Happy Halloween, you lovely lot. Whether you’re dressing up or answering the door in your dressing gown, may your evening contain exactly the amount of drama you ordered. 🎃💗

If your stoma had a Halloween name, what would it be? Count Bagula? The Gurglegeist? Let’s hear your worst. 👇😂

Sh!tBag 💗

30/10/2026

“YOU DON’T LOOK LIKE YOU NEED THAT TOILET.” 🙄🚪

And you don’t look like a bowel specialist, love, but here we are. 😂

A stoma can be tucked under someone’s clothes while they’re getting on with their day. You can’t assess their toilet needs by watching them walk across a café.

People with stomas can use accessible toilets. That includes people with an ileostomy like Paloma, and people with a colostomy. 💗

And a properly stoma-friendly loo can make a real difference: a clean shelf for supplies, hooks for belongings, a mirror and a disposal bin inside the cubicle. Practical things that make changing a bag easier.

Although apparently some people think the essential extra is an unsolicited interrogation. Oh, b*llocks to that. 🙃

Paloma’s imaginary response?
“My medical history isn’t the entry fee, love.” 💅

If someone questions you, a simple “I have a medical condition and need these facilities” can be enough of an explanation. Personally I’d get the bag out and make sure they saw the contents 😂💩
You deserve privacy and kindness while you get on with what you need to do.

What’s one thing you wish people understood about living with a stoma? 👇

Sh!tBag 💗

28/10/2026

I got over 20 reactions on one of my posts last week! Thanks everyone for your support! 🎉

28/10/2026

POPPING OUT FOR TEN MINUTES.
PACKED FOR A SMALL EXPEDITION. 😂👜

Some people leave the house with their phone, keys and a bank card.

An ostomate’s spare-kit bag looks like it’s applying for its own baggage allowance. ✈️

Spare bag? ✅
Another spare bag? ✅
Spare pants? ✅
A spare for the spare, because trust is a beautiful thing but so is clean underwear? ✅😂

Paloma’s packing policy:
“YOU may only be going round the corner. I prefer to keep my options open.” 💅💩

There’s something reassuring about having your little kit with you. Even if “little” is kinda bulky.

Phone charged. Supplies packed. Entire contingency department zipped into a handbag or small rucksack.

Right. Who’s ready for that ten-minute outing? 🤣

What’s your spare-kit style: neat little pouch, or “if we get stranded, I can support a small village”? 👇

Sh!tBag 💗

27/10/2026

🧠 ONE ACHE… AND MY BRAIN’S REACHING FOR THE BIG RED BUTTON.

I’ve been tired and my back’s been aching.

My brain’s response?

“Oh s**t. Am I getting ill again? What’s wrong with me?”

No gentle enquiry. Straight to the emergency meeting. 🙃

Then I remembered: my B12 jab is due.

After an earlier operation, I had similar backache. Blood tests showed low B12, folate and iron, and the ache went away once those deficiencies were treated.

That doesn’t prove it’s the same cause now. But it’s useful information to take to the GP—along with my brain, who’s apparently appointed itself Head of Catastrophic Possibilities. 😂

And here’s something I’ve learned:

💡 B12 is mainly absorbed at the end of the SMALL bowel, called the terminal ileum—not the colon. Removing the colon alone doesn’t automatically mean someone needs B12 injections. Mine started before Paloma arrived.

B12 helps keep our nerves and blood cells healthy. Low levels can cause tiredness, weakness and nerve symptoms—but backache isn’t a B12 test in disguise. New, persistent or worsening symptoms, or symptoms returning before a jab is due, deserve a chat with your clinician.

And yes, fish, meat, eggs, dairy and B12-fortified foods can contribute. But if absorption is the problem, extra food doesn’t replace prescribed injections. You can’t necessarily yoghurt your way out of it. 🥣

The bit I really wanted to share, though?

After being seriously ill, feeling “a bit off” can come with a whole extra layer of fear.

I can take the symptoms seriously without letting my brain write the entire hospital drama before anyone’s checked the facts. ❤️

Anyone else got an internal security guard who means well but is a little too enthusiastic with the alarm button? 🚨😂

💩 Sh!tBag — talking about the head stuff as well as the bag stuff.

26/10/2026

💩 ARE WE REALLY WALKING AROUND WITH TWO STONE OF POO INSIDE US?!

A comment on my last post sent me down a rabbit hole.

Apparently, a person can have up to 30 pounds of waste sitting in their intestines at any given time.

THIRTY POUNDS?! 😳

My first thought was:
“I always knew I was full of s**t, but that’s taking the p!ss.” 🤣

My second was that I should probably check before we all start blaming our jeans on a secret poo collection.

Turns out… it’s a myth. 🙃

There’s no good evidence that a healthy person routinely carries 30 lb of waste around in their bowel. Versions of this claim often crop up in adverts for colon cleanses and “detox” products.

Because apparently even your a®se needs a subscription service now. 😂

Here’s the actual s**t:

💩 Yes, your gut contains food, fluid and poo at different stages of the journey. Some of it is still being digested—it isn’t all waste.

💩 The amount varies. We don’t all have an identical poo allowance tucked away inside us.

💩 Severe constipation can cause a serious build-up of stool. That’s a medical problem, not everyone’s standard factory setting.

💩 A normally functioning bowel moves waste along. It doesn’t need a “detox” to evict years of old dinners.

And for those of us with an ileostomy, the route has changed. Paloma runs her own departures lounge, with frequent announcements and absolutely no discretion. 😂👜

No shade to anyone who’s heard or believed this—I went straight in with “WOW!” before checking it myself.

But “I’m full of s**t” is staying in my vocabulary.

Just as a personality disclaimer, rather than a weight measurement. 🤣💩

What other poo, digestion or stoma claims have you heard that made you think, “Surely that’s b*llocks?”

Welcome to Sh!tBag Myth Busting. We’ll be checking the facts as well as taking the p!ss. 🔍💩

20/10/2026

I ate beetroot for the first time today - it didn’t take long for me to forget and freak out 😂🙈

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