Humiliated on the terrace

It started with a first supermarket experience at the Albert Heijn supermarket, where I was not allowed to go to the toilet. I had to put my basket down, jumped on my bike and cycled home as fast as I could. Unfortunately, the damage was done... Since then, I have been using highoutput bags so that I can empty my stoma into bins in case of emergency.

On days out, I feel zero relaxation, even in my own city. When an ostomy bag fills up, it can turn into a leak in a minute, so I can't just go around the shops hoping to find somewhere. Consultation is already a problem and in some cases I get insulted before I am refused. At Plein '44 in Nijmegen, I was refused three times in a row. There I was, walking on a full terrace, with a heavy bag in my hand. Heavily humiliated and with tears running down my cheeks. Because then you feel small, in your own little town ...

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I ran as fast as I could to the nearest dustbin, where I ended up in vain. I would hardly dare to show myself there again... And then I went home quickly, because of course my clothes were completely covered. For this reason, I have had to throw away a lot of clothes. All your plans and appointments are ruined because of this and this happens to me all the time. I really don't dare to go out on a normal day anymore.

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Meanwhile, my days consist of constant planning. For example, not taking my medication (laxative) and eating and drinking less so that I can go out for a while, with the risk of obstruction. I only go to standard shops where I know I can go and that via a cycle route where I know a number of stops along the way. Now that I am writing this, I realise that I avoid everything as much as possible. That I only have these experiences occasionally now because I rarely go out anymore. But when I do go, it never ends in a success story.

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I really think that attention should be paid to this, because it could be better. ❤️

Do you, like Nadï, want to tell your story to create more awareness for this social problem and help us fight for more public and open toilets? Then we would like to hear from you! We will treat your information with discretion, listen to your wishes and never publish anything you do not fully support.

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