www.incontinentsupport.org

Greetings. I deal with chronic diarrhea (and malabsorption of fats) and secondary incontinence issues from pelvic floor damage.

I am generally under good control from can usually deal with it all with high-end protective underwear and stunningly expensive medication. In the deep past I used to use the older Depend "briefs" (diapers) at night; it was pretty horrifying to wake up and discover I had suffered from that sort of fecal leakage and would find a puddle of oil or mucus in my bed. The protective underwear got better and my disease calmed down, so I needed them less and less over time.

What made the Depend products work so well for me is they had a great waistband. So I could tape then a bit loosely and pull them up-and-down easily during my multiple bathroom visits, as I can generally make it.

But last time I purchased a package of what they now call "depend protection with tabs" before a bowel prep, they had totally changed the product; it was much thicker and had some sort of star-design on the inside liner--I don't know if this is because they were courting the fetish market or they were sharing materials with some sort of toddler-aimed product, but it wasn't the quality product I remembered. Worst of all, they got rid of the waistbands, which means I would either have to completely untape it every time I run to the restroom, or tape it really loose and try to shimmy out of it. Without the waistband it was worthless.

My goal is to make it to the toilet and get my pants down in time. Having to fight with a diaper when I get there is an additional delay that can cause me a lot of problems. I got so frustrated I threw the whole package in the trash.

Lately I am having some worsening symptoms and I would like to find a new diaper product I can use for days when things are gong wrong. Is there a good tab-type product with waistbands? There used to be several but they are hard to find now. I see some with elastic sides, but in the past (10-15 years ago) I found they would stretch once But Never Again, so those don't work well for someone who pulls the up-and-down.

You must deal with a seriously challenging situation. Other than advise you to experiment with different brands of disposable protection, if you have ready access to an adequate laundry facility, I would suggest trying washables. Removal and reapply are easier, and absorbency is less concern. Internal deodorants and lots of Clorox in the diaper laundry, and occasional stripping may be more labor than you are willing to undertake. However, even considering the cost of hot water, detergent, and Clorox, washables are still cheaper. For folks with GI issues, this can be a convincing advantage.

I have some washable pull-up ones I use when I am doing well and don't expect an accident. They are basically one of those cloth underpads sewn into underwear.

When I am sicker and the disease is bad, I have no desire to have to pack up and haul home a cloth product full of semi-digested goo. You can literally smell it through plastic after a while. No thanks.

I don't have more than tiny accidents most days. And like I said, I can get by with disposable pull-up products most of the time. Not Depend because they have no protection in the back, but Abri-Flex and Tena both work for me.

I am just looking for some disposable diaper-type products with a waistband, like the old Depend ones. I would prefer them to be silent.