What a Difference a Support Belt Can Make!

By Ben Raybould

 

Starting a fitness journey after stoma surgery can feel daunting, but with the right tools and mindset, it’s entirely possible.

For Ben Raybould, a.k.a @stomadiaries on Instagram, finding the right support belt made all the difference, giving him the confidence to embrace weightlifting, football, and a healthier, happier lifestyle.

His story is a testament to resilience, self-discovery, and the incredible strength ostomates bring to their journeys.

Below, Ben shares his personal experience in his own words:

 

“For too long, my Crohn’s had controlled me and prevented me from doing physical activities. When I could no longer lift my kids up prior to surgery, I knew that was something I wanted to change after I had recovered.”

 

It was September 2022, and I was just about to finish my 12-week advised recovery period before going back to ‘normal’ routines post stoma surgery. I had undergone an ileostomy created alongside a subtotal colectomy in June and was itching to get back into physical fitness. This itself was quite an unusual desire for me. Exercise and looking after my body had never really been high on my to-do list before. 

But, when you go through a period of illness – in my case, a prolonged and medically uncontrollable Crohn’s disease flare – you tend to strive for the ability to finally do something with your body. 

For too long, my Crohn’s had controlled me and prevented me (at least in my mind at the time) from doing physical activities. I had seen my body waste away gradually, noticing how frail and weak I had become. When I could no longer lift my kids up prior to surgery, I knew that was something I wanted to change after I had recovered.

So, during my recovery I set myself the goal of shifting my mindset, to think more about my diet and what exercise I did.

Whilst weightlifting had never really appealed to me before, that yearning to be strong again, following my illness and then gradual recovery was intense.

So I set about learning from others with stomas who weightlift.

I got the basic advice I needed from them and felt mentally ready to step into the gym for the first time in my adult life.

 

Overcoming Initial Challenges

But there was a significant problem in my way. Prior to and all through recovery, I was warned of the risk of hernias and not to lift things heavier than a kettle. During that recovery period, I had stuck reasonably close to this. But now I was fully healed, mentally ready and had been signed off by my surgeon to start exercise. I wanted to push myself more and see what I was capable of. This is where Suportx comes into the equation with the best solution I could have hoped for.

I spoke to my community stoma nurse about my plan to start weightlifting and she got me measured up for a Level 3 support belt. We discussed my needs and what exercise I was planning on doing. We collaboratively decided that due to my wish to lift weights and play contact sport, predominantly football, that I would be best using a stoma guard too. So she got me three Level 3 Suportx Shield Belts.

 

A Game-Changing Support Belt

 

Trying on the belt for the first time was great!

The strong elastic band held me firmly and gave me all the support I needed, and the stoma guard gave me immense confidence that I could do contact sport without worrying of damaging my stoma. 

The belt is so easy to adjust with its excellent wide double velcro straps that adjust neatly at my side.

I got the deeper belt so that it fully covered my stoma bag – this way I had more self confidence that people wouldn’t even know I had one, and I felt more reassured that the belt was not going to restrict my stoma bag volume and therefore cause potential leakage issues.

 

 

 

 

Taking the Plunge

So I took the plunge and got myself into the gym. I was nervous and apprehensive, and to be honest, I had very little idea of whether what I was doing was right, both from a technical movement perspective and also from a safety point of view. 

So I took sneak glances at what others were doing to try to replicate it, and watched YouTube videos of different movements.

I shied away from exercises that would directly impact my core and instead focused on arms, shoulders and back, starting exclusively on low weight dumbbells and kettlebells. 

Eventually I gained more confidence both in what I was doing (this was quite a slow process), and rapidly in my faith in the Suportx Shield Belt.

I eventually progressed onto the barbell and movements like the overhead press, bench press, barbell rows, deadlifts and squats and added the weights on too, reaching goals that I could continually set for myself. This did wonders for both my mental and physical health, and the constant setting and resetting of targets got me hooked.

 

 

A Transformative Experience

I have been using my Suportx belt for every football match and every gym session since and I couldn’t be without it. The confidence it gives me to exercise with a lowered risk is just incredible and the fact that it is available on prescription is just perfect. 

With my Suportx belt I have full self-belief and have achieved lifts that I had never imagined was possible for me even prior to having a stoma, let alone now I have one. But more than that, it has enabled me to finally develop a hobby and a passion, something that I do for myself. The gym is my escape route from all the stresses in life – it is where I go to get out of my head, and I know that I can only do that with the help of my Suportx belt.

 

Thank you, Suportx!

Ben Raybould

---