Although the stoma usually shrinks somewhat in diameter as postoperative swelling subsides and you resume your normal diet and exercise, the red-pink color remains.
Unlike an incision, a stoma requires little healing. A urostomy stoma starts to expel urine immediately, even before the new urostomate has left the operating room. Colostomies start discharging feces in a few days, usually with a lot of gas and watery stool until the bowel settles down after surgery.
Stomas come in many shapes and sizes, depending on the kind of ostomy and the person who owns it. Since it is made from the large intestine, a colostomy will be wider than an ileal conduit urostomy made from the small intestine. Some "temporary" stomas may be quite large and have two openings in one stoma or two stomas near each other. Most stomas should protrude from the skin enough so that feces or urine discharge away from the skin rather than pooling around the stoma.
At first, it's a temptation to feel overprotective about a stoma. You might feel that it is so fragile it might be damaged by a breeze or a bump. While reasonable protection is essential, the stoma is surprisingly tough. It is not harmed by water, by contact during sex or even by gentle bumps against furniture. But it does bleed easily, even from as little cause as an overzealous wipe with a washcloth, because many tiny blood vessels are very close to the surface of the stoma. A pouch or a soft pad will protect it from the friction of clothes.
