When Rebecca Zamolo was 22, she moved to Los Angeles to become an actress. About a year later, she was out running when she had the urge to go to the bathroom—bad. After about a week of pooping way more than usual, she visited her doctor thinking she had a stomach bug. That's when she was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis, a chronic, inflammatory bowel disease that irritates the digestive system and causes serious pain.
"Basically, it’s constant diarrhea with extreme pain that feels like a knife in your stomach, says Rebecca. "Some days are worse than others, but every time you eat, it hurts."
Over time, the disease got worse, and Rebecca ultimately had to get surgery to remove parts of her large intestine and create a J-pouch, or a substitute colon, out of her small intestine. Part of that surgery includes wearing an ostomy bag so that poop can be passed out of the body while her updated digestive system heals. That experience, along with the amazing Instagram photo of makeup artist and aspiring model Bethany Townsend, inspired Rebecca to create a documentary about her experience to help others better understand what it's like to wear a "poop bag."
WH: What was the hardest part of dealing with the disease?
Rebecca: My whole day had to be calculated according to my bathroom schedule. I would go to the bathroom between 20 and 30 times in 24 hours. And I had a one- to three-minute window to go the bathroom after I realized I had to go.
When I was on set for a commercial or TV show, I couldn't just tell everyone to wait for me to finish going to the bathroom while we're shooting—it doesn’t go over well. When I was working, I would just take a lot of Imodium [a medication used to treat diarrhea]. It sounds simple enough, but when all of my poop would come out the next day, I would bleed. Outside of work, I was just trying to live a normal life, but the disease limited me.
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When did you realize you needed an ostomy bag?
After three years of no luck with medications or changes to my diet, my doctors encouraged surgery to get a J-pouch and an ostomy bag. I thought there was no way I could have one with my career goals.
But before I got married in May 2014, my stomach was getting worse. I thought maybe it was just from the stress of planning a wedding. Despite that, my doctors suggested I go in for my 12th colonoscopy. Afterward, my doctor told me that the lining of my colon had changed—it was precancerous. I realized that I had to do get the surgery or die.
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What was it like to see yourself with the bag for the first time?
For the first day, I wouldn’t look at it. When I finally did see it, it was traumatizing to see this massive thing coming out of my stomach.
What's life like with an ostomy bag?
Learning how to deal with things like a bag leak was tough. One time, I fell asleep and my bag swelled up, which it does when I have gas, and it actually exploded and poop got all over. Now that I know what I'm doing, I empty the bag three or four times a day and change the bag every few days.
How do you fit the bag under your clothes?
When I work out, I wear a belt that kind of looks like a fanny pack to hold the bag in place. It must be pretty convincing because sometimes people ask me if I can hold their keys and I’m like, "It’s a bag of shit, so, no."
There's even lingerie that's specially made for ostomy bags since you can’t just go to Victoria's Secret and get typical underwear.
Speaking of lingerie, does the bag ever get in the way of having sex?
I’ve been with my husband for 12 years, so he’s been through this whole thing with me. My husband was like, "As long as we can still do it, we’re fine." At first we were really careful, but now it doesn’t get in the way at all.
Now you're proud to wear your bag. What's changed?
Even though it was an adjustment, it’s so freeing not being in pain anymore. I [hadn't] felt good on a run in eight years [that's how long I felt sick before I got my ostomy bag]—I’m just so thankful to not be jumping into bushes and port-o-potties on the road anymore. The bottom line is: We all sh*t. I sh*t into a bag, you sh*t into a toilet. It’s not that big of a deal.
Inside/Out My Battle with IBD is available on Vimeo on Demand. Check out the trailer:
RELATED: Your Definitive Guide to Pooping
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