The short answer
A colostomy brings one end of the large intestine out through a stoma in the abdominal wall. Output is often softer and more liquid than usual stool. Before you leave hospital, an ostomy nurse teaches you about diet and how to care for it.
MedlinePlus describes a colostomy as bringing one end of the large intestine out through an opening made in the abdominal wall.
Discharge through the stoma is often softer and more liquid than stool passed normally.
Texture varies depending on which part of the intestine forms the colostomy.
An ostomy nurse teaches you about diet and colostomy care before you leave hospital.
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The full explanation.
What has actually been done
MedlinePlus describes a colostomy as surgery that brings one end of the large intestine out through an opening in the belly wall. This opening is called a stoma.
Waste no longer travels the full length of the bowel to the rectum. It leaves earlier, through the stoma on your abdomen, into a pouch worn against the skin.
MedlinePlus lists the reasons for this surgery: rectal or colon cancer, bowel blockage, injuries to the colon or rectum, abdominal infections such as a perforated diverticulitis or an abscess, and wounds or fistulas in the perineal area.
Temporary or permanent
This is usually the first thing people want to know, and there are two answers.
MedlinePlus explains that a temporary colostomy lets the intestine heal. After about 12 weeks, another surgery may reconnect the bowel ends. A permanent colostomy is needed when the diseased part cannot be fixed and reconnected.
If you do not know which one you have, ask. It changes how you think about everything else, and the answer should be in your surgical notes.
What the output is like
Nobody warns you enough about this, and it causes a lot of quiet worry in the first two weeks.
MedlinePlus states that discharge through the stoma is often softer and more liquid than stool passed the usual way. The texture depends on which part of the intestine forms the colostomy.
So output that does not look like what you are used to is expected, not a sign that something has gone wrong. How liquid it is depends on how much bowel the waste has passed through before reaching the stoma.
The person who teaches you
MedlinePlus is specific here: before you leave the hospital, an ostomy nurse will teach you about diet and how to care for your colostomy.
That teaching session is the most valuable appointment in this whole process. It is worth protecting.
Bring someone with you if you can. In the days after major surgery, on pain medicine, learning a brand-new practical skill, most people do not retain much. A second person hearing the same instructions doubles the chance something sticks.
Write down the exact product names and sizes you go home with. Ask how to reorder them and how long the first supply lasts. Running out of supplies at home on a Saturday is easy to fix if you have a phone number. It is a mess if you do not.
What a routine actually involves
Day to day, life with a colostomy settles into a rhythm: emptying the pouch as it fills, changing the appliance at set times your nurse gives you, and caring for the skin around the stoma each time.
Your ostomy nurse will give you the schedule that fits your stoma and your products, since it varies person to person. Follow theirs, not a general number from an article, including this one.
Set the routine up so it stays easy. Keep supplies in one place, with a spare kit somewhere you spend time and another in a bag you carry. The first weeks feel clumsy. Then, fairly suddenly, they do not.
Things MedlinePlus lists as possible problems
Knowing about these is not the same as expecting them:
- Bleeding
- Damage to nearby organs
- Hernias
- Stoma prolapse, where the stoma sticks out further than it should
- Narrowing of the stoma
- Blockage from scar tissue
- Skin irritation around the stoma
- Wound separation
Skin irritation is the one most people run into, and it is usually about how the appliance fits, not something more serious. Your ostomy nurse deals with this all the time.
The emotional part
A colostomy changes how your body works and how it looks. That is a real adjustment, not a small inconvenience to just push through.
Most people find the practical side becomes routine faster than they expect. The emotional side takes longer. Both are normal. Ask your team what support is available, including ostomy support groups, and give yourself more time than you think you need.
When to get help sooner
MedlinePlus's guidance on changing an ostomy pouch sets out when to contact a clinician rather than wait. It says to contact your provider if:
- Your belly hurts a lot or is bloated, you are vomiting, or no gas or stool at all has come through the stoma for 4 hours. Ring straight away rather than waiting for the next working day.
- The stoma has turned a different colour, is bleeding a lot, is draining pus, or smells bad — or you have a fever of 100.4°F (38°C) or higher, or chills.
- The skin around the stoma is bulging, the stoma is getting longer or pulling into your skin, there is blood in your stool, your stools are looser than normal, or the amount collecting in the pouch has jumped.
MedlinePlus does not sort these into urgency tiers. If you are told to come in, go.
Words to know
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Common questions
Is my colostomy permanent?
It may not be. MedlinePlus says a temporary colostomy allows the intestine to heal, and after approximately 12 weeks another surgery may reattach the bowel ends. A permanent colostomy is needed when the diseased portion cannot be restored. Your surgeon can tell you which applies to you.
Why is my output not like normal stool?
MedlinePlus explains that discharge through the stoma is often softer and more liquid than stool that is passed normally, and that the texture depends on which section of intestine forms the colostomy.
Who teaches me how to manage it?
MedlinePlus says that before hospital discharge, an ostomy nurse will teach you about diet and how to care for your colostomy. If nobody has arranged that, ask before you go home.
What can go wrong?
MedlinePlus lists possible complications including bleeding, organ damage, hernias, stoma prolapse, narrowing, blockage from scar tissue, skin irritation and wound separation.
Questions to ask your doctor
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Your next step
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Sources last checked: 2026-08-13 what this meansLast updated: 2026-08-18Next planned review: 2027-08-11
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How this page was created
Cancer Explained does not originate medical claims. Every page restates guidance already published by the National Cancer Institute, the CDC, the USPSTF and the FDA, in plain language, with the source cited so you can check the original yourself. AI does the translating and organizing; automated checks test claims, citations, clarity and safety before anything publishes. We do not employ clinicians and do not intend to — our work is translation and navigation, not clinical judgment. Nothing here is personal medical advice, and no page can account for your particular situation.
Editorial status: Source checked — This page was written with AI assistance and checked line by line against the sources listed on it. That confirms the sources support what the page says. It is not a medical review, and it does not confirm the page is complete or right for your situation.
Human medical review: not completed. Pages here are not signed off by a clinician before they publish. That is not an oversight we are quietly working around: we restate published guidance and cite it, so the authority belongs to the source rather than to us, and every page names where its claims come from — you can verify us instead of trusting us. Where a volunteer clinician has reviewed a page, their name and credentials appear on it; where no name appears, no clinician has checked it. We are glad to have reviewers and are recruiting them, and we do not hold pages back waiting for one. Use this site to understand your situation and to ask better questions of the people treating you.
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