Well…all of greater Cleveland has now seen my bag!
I just finished watching myself on TV 
. Back in May I was invited to be a part of a medical show produced by the local NBC affiliate and sponsored by the Cleveland Clinic. It was focusing on digestive disorders and being restored to health. Here’s a blurb on the show off the Clinic’s website:
Here’s a blurb about the show from the Cleveland Clinic website:
“Most of us don’t give a second thought to the complex digestive processes that take place every time we enjoy a meal. However, for patients with a gastrointestinal disease, digestion is synonymous with frustration. Discover how three patients restore a vital function during Medical Miracles: Renewed Confidence.
Observe a local physician who undergoes minimally invasive surgery to end a bout with searing abdominal pain; watch a revolutionary, outpatient procedure to heal a patient’s pre-cancerous esophagus; and share in the bittersweet joy ostomy patients experience when they learn to adjust to life with a permanent stoma.”
FYI…I’m the ostomy patient experiencing “bittersweet joy” as I learn to adjust to life with a stoma. LOL…kinda cheesy,but whatever..
So anyhow, we just saw the show, and it turned out pretty good. I was a bit terrified all day, because I hadn’t seen the finished product . While filming, they did get some shots of my belly, bag and all, and it really hit home this morning that in a few hours, the whole Cleveland metropolitan area would get a gander at my goods. But not to worry…it was edited very tastefully. No head on shots of the pouch, just some shots from over my shoulder as the nurse was examining me. No biggie! I’m really proud of the producer of the show. He made sure that ostomies were described simply and correctly, and I think this piece of media will (has) do alot to educate the public that ostomy surgery is not the end of life, but really an opportunity for a new beginning. At least it was for me, and the others in the program.
I have never been one to hide the fact that I have a stoma. All my friends know about it, and I talk about it freely to strangers too. But I guess now I’m officially “out of the closet” considering it has been broadcast city wide. 
Hmmm….
