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You'll be able to walk much more freely today. You may be slow and take your time, but you're getting there. This new independence will make a vast difference to your outlook on the whole situation. Just going to the toilet without the need of a wheel chair or a nurse to hold onto you is just wonderful.

The breakfast trolley rolls around and you will feast on the cereal of your choice and maybe even some toast all washed down with a hot cup of tea. Lovely.

If everything is okay the surgeon may well say that as far as he is concerned you can go home. However do not get too excited to quickly. The final say on whether you can go home or not will rest with the Stoma Nurse, and seeing how you've never changed a bag she'll keep you in until she is satisfied you can handle the stoma routine successfully with no guidance.

On today's visit the Stoma Nurse will give you your first opportunity to look at the stoma properly when she removes the bag for the first time and shows you how to clean your new stoma. The nurse will take this opportunity to give it a good examination and check for any signs of infection. There shouldn't be any because of the post operative anti-biotics you were given yesterday.

The cleaning only takes a few minutes but the nurse will be going through each step very slowly. Then allowing you to have a go yourself. The stoma will look so red and sore that the mere though of touching it with a wet cloth will send cold shivers down your spine, but remember there is no nerve supply to it so it will be a totally painless experience.

Once cleaned you'll be able to see the stitches around the stoma that hold it in place, these will dissolve away in time. They can take up to three weeks. If they are still in place after this length of time they will be removed by the Stoma Nurse as they can start to be detrimental to the healing process if left for longer than this.

The nurse will cut your new appliance for you and show you all the techniques on fitting it securely in place. The whole process could take up to an hour, but at the end of it I'm willing to bet that you're thinking the stoma isn't quite as bad as you had envisaged and that maybe this isn't going to be too bad after all.

Once the nurse has gone there will be nothing else planned for the rest of the day. You'll look forward to your family and friends visiting you, and they'll be able to see the difference in you from the day before.

Lunch arrives, then there's an afternoon tea break, and soon after that it's tea time. The food will be welcome, although you might not be all that hungry as you may have been delving into the supplies in your bedside cabinet all day.

You should be allowed to have a shower or bath today. You feel more or less human again after this, but remember that if the bag you are wearing has a filter, cover it with a sticky filter cover or it will fill with water.