John Davis

No, I don't mean the stockings you hang from the chimney for Santa Claus - I mean stocking up on diapers and incontinence supplies before the Christmas rush slows down the delivery channels. I worry about running out of essential items and not being able to restock while delivery is severely delayed. About this time every year I make an inventory of my essential incontinence supplies - diapers, wipes, underpads, powder, rash cream, etc., and estimate how long that supply will last. I figure I need enough to last until about the 6th of January (the twelfth day of Christmas). By then most shipping will be close to normal. Of course, that means I will have a temporary overstock of diapers and not enough space to put all of them out of sight. Just in case, I also keep a small supply of flat cloth diapers - the kind you have to use diaper pins to fasten, and cloth boosters. As they say, "If you wear cloth, you never run out of diapers." How about the rest of you? How do you handle incontinence supplies during the holidays? --John

CrochetGirl, I think you already have found the solution to living with bowel incontinence - prior planning and preparation. Regrettably, it takes good planning and preparation - and that requires a significant amount of time, as you already have learned. Unfortunately, we tend to lose spontaneity. You are impressively well organized and I agree with everything you are doing. Like you, I have a formal daily bowel program. I have neurogenic bowel due to an old accident and am seen by a SCI Rehab clinic in addition to gastroenterologists, etc. Unlike you, I have very few accidents as I self-administer old fashioned enemas every morning. These are traditional soapsuds or saline enemas from a hanging rubber enema bag, not the chemical Fleets enemas. I will emphasize that an empty bowel cannot have an accident. Once done I can (almost) forget about bowel problems until the following morning. I would rather do this at home than risk a bowel accident in public. I also will note that this is by prescription by my SCI docs and with the approval of my gastroenterologists. Be good to yourself. By that I mean consciously managing your emotional health. Perhaps half the battle to manage incontinence is emotional. Incontinence (and particularly bowel incontinence) causes stress and the stress can increase the incontinence. It is a vicious cycle. Give yourself a break, ie., pamper yourself with something relaxing or enjoyable. It does get better. With time we adapt better to the necessities of living with bowel incontinence. Many things just become "normal" like my diapers just becoming my underwear - not a big deal. Please continue to talk with us. Just talking can be helpful. I am sure you will hear from others here with similar issues. Best wishes, --John

Welcome CrochetGirl! I have both bladder and bowel incontinence. My bowel incontinence is the greater problem. I am old enough to be your grandfather and have worn diapers and coped with bowel incontinence for many years. Please feel free to ask anything or even to vent, as we all do from time to time. Please don't be embarrassed to ask about diapers, medications, rash prevention, odor control, etc. if they apply to you. I, and others here, have gone through the same issues I will note that you are commendably active in spite of having bowel incontinence. Keep it up. --John

Many of us have tried "special underwear" and found that for nighttime wetting they just are not adequate.🙁 Medication often has unpleasant side-effects. You deserve both peace of mind and a decent night's sleep. It is obvious that this has been very stressful for you. I truly can sympathize, having been there. You need to make the decision to change from "special underwear" to a real tabbed diaper. Many of us would recommend a middle-grade or premium diaper with a diaper cover. At night the diaper cover is important, particularly for side-sleepers. At night my diaper is a Better-Dry. Another great diaper is the Northshore Care MegaMax. Read through some of the discussions here about how we have approached the same problem. I am sure you will receive many different recommendations as we have found solutions that worked best for us. Best wishes and please keep us informed. --John

My OAB and level of hydration cause me to suddenly empty a full bladder rather than Brian's "short bursts." The Megamax diaper has extremely tall internal standing leak guards. We tend to associate those with containing bowel incontinence. However, they also keep pee in the main channel of the diaper (over the absorbent mat and away from the leg gathers) until it can be absorbed. As I am double incontinent, this feature is very important to me. Another diaper with very high internal standing leak guards is the BetterDry. It is substantially less expensive than the Megamax. Order it from XP Medical or LL Medico for very good prices. I also wear the Northshore Care Trifecta diaper cover that Brian mentioned. The diaper is made of PUL and is breathable. Although it is a bit more expensive, it lasts for a very long time. --John

David, for those occasions when you need extra absorption such as when you are away from home, use the North Shore Care Megamax diaper. It has a maximum absorbency of 6,500ml and a useable capacity of 48 oz. That should be more than enough. Of course, just to be safe, on top wear a diaper cover. I like Garywear or the North Shore Care Trifecta. --John

Even if the clothing you wear takes too long for you to remove it to make it to the toilet in time, that is considered functional incontinence. --John

Sorry you had to suffer through that. --John

I have been very satisfied with Duluth Trading Company trousers. They have a large gusset in the crotch to provide more space for movement. That gusset provides the perfect amount of space for my premium diapers with booster pads. It also helps to hide the diaper. Iken, do an online search for "adaptive clothing." --John

As I continue to experiment, I now am checking out the Abena Premium Slip Premium and the Incontrol Active Air. Previously I checked out the Semi Super Quatro and found it to be acceptable. The Incontrol Active Air has an ISO of 4350 (size XL) and lists a "capacity" of 4200 ml in size Medium ( am wearing size L. The Abena. lists a "total absorbency" of 4320 ml. So, the two are reasonably similar in terms of capacity. The Abena has a very thin breathable shell - so thin that it feels 'flimsy" to me (recall that I am used to the MegaMax Air) but it has performed adequately so far. The Incontrol Active Air does have a front taping panel, but it seems softer to me than that used on the MegaMax Airlock and did not cause irritation at the top of the diaper after I folded the excess inside. I should note that I am evaluating these diapers for daytime wear. At night I will continue to wear my BetterDry plastic-shell diapers (with a booster pad). --John

Welcome jbond. I share your desire for privacy but this site is the exception as it allows us to share and/or vent. We learn a lot from each other. --John

After a rash developed under a skin fold, I have included a breathable diaper in my daily "ensemble." A major factor in my search for a breathable diaper has been to find one that does NOT have a front plastic taping panel. If it has such a plastic panel, it causes irritation after I fold the unused plastic back inside the waist. After some experimentation I have been using the Northshore Care Megamax Air that I regard as possibly the best breathable diaper on the market.🙂 However, following the general trend of diaper manufacturers of premium diapers to add a landing zone panel, Northshore Care now offers the Megamax AirLock with the plastic panel and has dropped the Megamax Air completely.😱 To replace the Megamax Air, I currently am trying the Seni Super Quatro. Is there another quality breathable without the plastic panel? It needs to have a respectable absorbent capacity. --John

Like Scarth, I think it is a good idea, but, as I change myself I could not use them. --John

Of course. If I were not incontinent I would not be wearing diapers. However, as I am incontinent I am very grateful to have them. --John

This has been interesting. Once I tape on my diaper it stays on - period. I do not untape and retape the diaper. Back when I tried to pee in the toilet, I would pull my penis under a leg gather rather than untaping the diaper. When I started this topic I underestimated the percentage of incontinents who untape and retape their diapers in order to use the toilet. --John

I have been incontinent for about 10 years. I am fully accepting of my incontinence and not ashamed of it. I'm not a "diaper lover" per se, but I fully appreciate and value what a good diaper does for me. I like to say think how difficult life would be without them. If being a DL helps anyone to better cope with their incontinence then I support that. --John

There has been a trend for premium diapers to feature front plastic panels or “landing zones” for taping. The rationale is that the plastic panel permits numerous secure re-tapings. Do you need to retape your diaper several times to get it on right? This probably is something that applies more to diaper newbies. Do you untape your diaper to pee and then tape it back up? Personally, I hate them. I don’t really need plastic panel as I don’t remove my diaper to pee and I never get the tapes wrong when I put the diaper on. Diapers with landing zones do not have lower tapes that are low enough to permit a snug fit around the legs.😕 However, my biggest reason is that once I fold the extra diaper plastic inside the waistband, the folded front plastic panel causes irritation at my waistline, sometimes leading to a rash.😱 —John

If you pee in your diaper at night, do you wake up? If you do not fully wake up, are you half-way aware of what is happening or do you completely sleep through the urination? Do you deliberately pee in your diaper at night? I do both. Sometimes I am completely unaware that I have peed. At other times I am unaware that I have started peeing and wake up when I sense the pee running down my thighs. More often I am aware of what has happened and then fall back asleep. I must admit that sometimes I wake up needing to pee, just do it in my diaper and fall asleep again. If I get up and go to the toilet, I usually will not be able to get back to sleep. I discussed this with my urologist and he agreed that sleep was the priority.🙂 —John

I believe zzyzx is correct. There is more public awareness of nocturnal enuresis today and, while the stigma persists, it seems not to be so bad as it was years ago. --John

So true. No modesty at all. But, when you are that ill, modesty is the least of your concerns. Unfortunately, those who really need our "diaper tutorials" are the hospital administrators who make the buying decisions for the hospital, not the nurses and aides. I would never expect a hospital to buy premium diapers but would hope they at least would improve on what they usually offer. --John

I brought my own diapers - BetterDry and Megamax. As I was badly fevered, I had assistance from my nurse to put the diaper on while standing leaning against a wall. I think it was the first time she had seen a diaper changed that way. Later I just changed myself unassisted. As I recovered I was able to point out the benefits of a good diaper. --John

Do you have problems with any of your diaper tapes popping? I was looking at some old notes from about nine years ago and found that I had serious problems with tapes popping off. The cure was simple. I merely reinforced the tapes with a thin strip of commercial duct tape. Problem solved. However, at some point (about 4 years ago?) I no longer felt the need to reinforce the tapes as I realized that they were sticking much better. As I no longer wore my original brand of diapers it is difficult to make comparisons but I think tapes definitely have improved. In some cases the tape itself is larger. In others I think the adhesive is stronger. Even the mechanical hook-and-loop fasteners work great (these are not the fabric velcro-type). So, what do you think? --John

As those of us on this forum are medically incontinent, I assume that everyone has taken steps to protect their mattresses. However, have you done anything to protect your other furniture, sofas, padded chairs, etc. from a leak? I have gone partway by protecting my most used furniture. I have a washable chair pad on my recliner and on my chair at the dinner table. The fabric of these pads almost matches the fabric of my chairs and so are not very noticeable to the casual visitor. As I usually wear plastic pants over my diaper at home, leaks are uncommon. I recall only one leak onto a chair in the past five years.🙂 What about you guys? Am I a little OC with this? —John

About a year ago I read a report that the cost of the average hospital diaper was $.48. 😱 Of course, buying in such bulk will markedly lower prices but, you get what you pay for. And, of course, it suggests that the hospital was more concerned with saving money than patient comfort. --John

Good points all. However, do note that a thicker diaper is not necessarily more absorbent than a thin one. If two diapers have the same absorbency I will select the thicker one as it probably has more fluff pulp that will help wicking. --John