Bowel Incontinence Supplies

Sandy1956

DH and I are moving into new territory with bowel incontinence over the past 48 hours. Casualties so far: 2 white comforters, copious fitted sheets, 1 mattress. I expect all to make a full recovery.

Recommendations for battle supplies? underwear/diapers, bed pads, mattress protectors. He’s 5’11” and 172 lbs.

Had my pity party. Transitioning to humor. And perhaps an adult beverage this evening.

Sligo177

God bless you Sandy!! So, if your DH will wear Depends, and he or you are able to pull them up and down, I did OK with those daytime, and it's a good transition, tons of people wear them. At night the staff at memory care would put a heavier duty diaper on my DH as sometimes the depends don't protect well enough. Yup, get a comfortable waterproof mattress protector and on top of the sheet, we had a comfortable waterproof bed pad. A commode is another thought, I don't know if that would solve any problems. And yes, we must maintain our humor, however we can manage.

Lgw

I went with a dark colored sheet as it is a long time still ahead. I finally, during a time when he realized that he had a problem, hid his underwear. He actually didn't fight me too much after I stressed how much easier it made it for me. I use lots of waterproof pads (called chucks- who knew). It was nice when Hospice started supplying all of those. Good luck with this transition.

Ed1937

When we began dealing with this, my daughter was helping me pick out things. She told me if I got white sheets, I could use bleach, but colored sheets might not show stains as badly. I told her to order brown and yellow tie dyed sheets.

Seriously, I think parentgiving.com is an excellent site for ordering incontinence supplies that are of higher quality. You can opt for different pull-ups and/or diapers. You can order samples, and that is what I would recommend because what works best for us might not be best for you. Samples are $2.99 for a pack of 2, but they take a little longer to receive them than a typical order. Regular orders are dealt with very fast, and if you look at the site, there is a number to call for help picking the right option. I believe they will also answer general questions about incontinence also.

Ed1937

More on this subject: I used large size waterproof washable pads. They are especially helpful if the PWD moves around during the night. If you're not familiar with layering, this is what I did:

Waterproof mattress cover followed by a waterproof pad (to keep the waterproof mattress cover from being soiled), followed by a fitted sheet, then a top sheet. Next is a waterproof pad, fitted sheet, and a top sheet. This gives you two layers. Make as many layers as desired. If you need to change the bed in the middle of the night, it takes only a minute or two to remove the top layer, throw it out of the way to wash in the morning. You now have a dry bed again with minimal effort.

Beachfan

In addition to Parentgiving.com, there is a site called Carewell.com which specializes in incontinence supplies as well as additional caregiving supplies. They probably operate the same way. I used Carewell.com and had Prevail briefs and wipes delivered by the case to my home which I, in turn, delivered to DH’s MCF. Prevail was the brand used in the MCF, if families didn’t care to provide supplies. DH was not a big guy, 5’8”, about 160 and there were no issues with leaking or “explosions”. Prior to placement, DH wore regular underwear; I considered him “continent” because I watched him like a hawk 24/7 and did not allow accidents! Looking back, it was exhausting and he was wearing incontinence briefs within one week of admission to his MCF.

JudyMorrowMaloney

Have you had him checked for C-Diff? That could be the cause of the incontinence. If it is, it can be treated.

Sandy1956

Thank you all for the recommendations and advice! Had a trip to the ER Yesterday, as there was an acute change in mental status and weakness. ER drained almost 2 L of urine, which, according to ER doc, could certainly have been the cause of the drastic mental status and weakness. DH was discharged with a catheter and instructions to follow up with a urologist on Monday. There’s been definite improvement overnight.

Thank you again so very much.