www.incontinentsupport.org

I have had bowel incontinence since I was 15. After a short time I realized the only decent diapers were the ones with tabs. This has one drawback, they are really hard to take off in a hurry. After having a bunch of accidents, I decided it would just be simpler if I just went in the diaper. It felt weird at first for a while, but I slowly got used to it. Now I am 19 now I hardly ever notice anymore. I also wait until I get home to change. I do this because I have tried to change a messy diapers in a public stalls but I have never been able to do it.

Doodler,

Changing a messy diaper in a public restroom is a "challenge" and not for the faint-of-heart. Of course, it can be a character-building experience.

It sounds like you are handling the emotional side of incontinence very well.

Rushing to take a diaper off too quickly when you are just about to have a bowel accident is a risky step. There is the danger of an accident while your diaper is halfway down and thus soiling your clothing. It is safer to just complete the void in your diaper. Of course, if you have more warning and do not have to rush, I would remove the diaper and use the toilet.

This will sound strange, but, after your next bowel accident at home, try changing the messy diaper at your toilet just as you would have to in a public restroom. This will give you a safe and private place to practice to find out what works best for you.

--John
(old enough to be your grandfather)

One difficulty with bowel accidents is that they are far more corrosive to skin than bladder accidents. Even if you have found a way to manage the odor issue, your skin will always be at risk. This makes cleanliness an absolute necessity. You might consider pelvic floor physical therapy, if you have not already done so. Although it has not cured me, it has improved my management skill, which is enough.

What JD says is true, it's good to wait till you have finished having your accident.
Once on the bus home I had a big bowel accident, it's not unusual since I can have them any time, but what I didn't expect was a few minutes later another really big bowel accident happened, it was really bad. The diaper became really full >.<
Once I was at my stop I had to awkwardly walk home and to make things worse I was having more wetting accidents along the way...... It was an emotionally difficult day.

Cleaning up in a public restroom is a good thing to learn because staying in a already filled diaper isn't good for your skin and can increase the risk of a UTI. For me because I can have 3-4 bowel accidents there's no way not to be able to use public restrooms,
If available a handicap restroom which I could use.

Yeah - I have to admit that it was pretty easy for me to decide to just use my diaper. Getting out of my diapers (and all the stuff I wear over them like plastic pants and snapsuit) is a lot harder than just pulling down my underwear was. I had more than one incident where I'd literally get down to my diaper and then void in it before I could start getting it off. These days I just don't even bother and fill my diapers instead.

Oh man that's the worst. So relatable. Live and learn I suppose.

_________________
I decided I didn't need a signature

Having been bowel IC for years I've faced having an accident in every situation. I find changing a soiled diaper in public near impossible for me. I can never get clean enough and have decided long ago that it's just easier to wait until I get home for a proper change and shower. (ocd for being clean). I have several rather large BM's everyday (I use a lot of psyllium-Metamucil to keep my stool semi-firm). I used to have nothing but loose BM's which I hated. Doctor recommended I use the bulk producing fiber supplement which has worked wonders. The trade off was increased frequency and volume. Still, better than loose stool. But changing in a public bathroom? Forget it. I'm used to having a load or more in my diaper and I've grown used to it. I use Desitin (zinc oxide) and Nullo. I wear a CONFI-dry 24/7with a booster along with plastic pants. I could be standing in line next to you with a load in my diaper and you would never know. My skin is well protected with zinc oxide and with the Nullo and plastic pants I'm not offensive to anyone. I will be honest and say it took a few years to get used to running errands, going to the library, shopping, golfing or being out on the boat with a dirty diaper on. But I much prefer it to trying to change in public which always seemed to end in disaster. When I am suffering through a bout of diarrhea, I will change in public. I find the loose stool uncomfortable and down right disgusting. But the rest of the time whatever ends up in my diaper stays there until I get home.

Everyone here has some useful tips and information, especially JD from Virginia. I think the best advice is to experiment and practice until you find out what works best for you.

Jack,

Excellent post. I will add "amen" to what you have said. It is obvious that you have gone through the pains of trial and error to determine what works best for you.

Agreed re the near-impossibility of getting adequately clean in a public restroom after a fecal accident. Like you, if the situation permits, I will wait until I can return home to clean up properly.

Like you, I use Desitin, Nullo and wear ConfiDry 24/7 diapers with a booster and plastic pants.

For me, Nullo very effectively eliminated the odor, but to achieve that I had to take the maximum dosage. One effect of large doses of Nullo can be constipation. As I already have chronic severe constipation I cannot take Nullo every day as one should in order to get the best results. As you were trying to achieve a firmer stool I presume you did not have that problem?

--John

May I add one more skill here? Knowing all of the useful handicapped restrooms on my usual haunts, along with a good guess as to their likely cleanliness, together with an adequately equipped gym/diaper bag has made functioning in public much easier for me.