Post-op -- unpacked & immersible

On Thursday I saw my surgeon for my post-op appointment.  Everything is perfectly awesomely fine.  My GI system is woke a.f., if I may use the parlance of the day.  Also, there is no bag on my belly.  There is still a hole on my belly; it is more shallow by the day and no longer needs to be packed at all.  I don't need any pain medication any more, not even Tylenol.

I even got the okay to shower without said hole covered.  It is okay to let water run over it, around it, into it.  This is a Big Deal.  Do you know how long it's been since I took a normal shower?  By normal I  mean a shower in which I didn't have to think about which part of my body or my body's accessories I should try to keep dry.  It has been A VERY LONG TIME.  It has been since July 28, 2015.  It was always okay to get the ostomy bag wet but if I did it would have to dry before I could get dressed.  (They have various accessories to help with this but I never invested in them; this was me being optimistic about my long-term prospects.  Glad that worked out.)  It was not okay to get incisions wet until they had healed to a certain extent.  It was never okay to shower when the chemo pump was accessing my port.  I am grateful for gymnastics early in life and yoga later in life: these allowed me to take oh so many showers with my belly away from the water, back arched so I could still wash my hair, or with the detached shower head in one hand, balancing as necessary to wash the rest of me, all without getting things wet that should not be wet.

I'll also repeat one thing from above: there is no bag on my belly.  This is also a Big Deal.  I have neglected half my wardrobe since July 28, 2015 because I had to.  I have not done things like run, or swim, or lie on my stomach since July 28, 2015.  I have tried not to eat gas-inducing foods because the ultimate release of that gas could not be controlled.  With the end colostomy that would prolapse at some point each and every day, my insides would get tired and achy trying to keep everything in.  With the ileostomy I was in the bathroom 8 times a day.  All of this no longer applies.

Let the Summer of Belly Rebirth begin.