me to thank you stphn


>From: "Mike" <daysofthundr46@...>
>Reply-To: Incont@yahoogroups.com
>To: Incont@yahoogroups.com
>Subject: [Incont] Re: Disposable Diaper FAQ (was: All through the DAY
>diaper?)
>Date: Thu, 01 Mar 2007 19:30:15 -0000
>
>this is probably the est thread ive seen on here. great writting! I
>highly recommend this to e posted in the files section and read by
>everyone.
>
>ill definatly take this advise on various subjects!
>
>--- In Incont@yahoogroups.com, Michael <michael@...> wrote:
> >
> > As someone who has experimented probably more than most, I'll
>offer
> > what I have learned.
> >
> > ABSORBENT CONTENT
> > Diapers usually have a combination of two materials for absorbency.
>A
> > cellulose fiber made from wood pulp, a byproduct of paper
> > manufacturing, and a super absorbent polymer(SAP). The cellulose
> > fiber gives form to the diaper and doesn't expand when wet. SAP
>can
> > absorb many times its weight in liquid but has no structural
>support.
> >
> > High-cellulose diapers such as Molicare Super Plus are thick to
>begin
> > with, hold a lot through a combination of cellulose and SAP, and
>the
> > absorbent material stays put in the diaper pretty well.
> >
> > High-SAP diapers such as Molicare Super (aka T-shape) and Tena
> > Overnight are usually thinner to start, perhaps a bit stiff, and
>as
> > they get wet the gel expands and the diaper becomes thicker.
>Without
> > any structure to hold the gel in place, it can slide down and
>collect
> > at the bottom of the diaper.
> >
> > The trick, is finding a diaper with the right balance. SAP is
>great,
> > but like many things it has tradeoffs.
> >
> > STRUCTURAL ELEMENTS
> > The outer shell of a diaper is a plastic sheet. Even so-called
>cloth-
> > covered diapers are made of a spun plastic to make it seem like
> > cloth. Sometimes the plastic has micro-perforations which are
>small
> > enough to let humidity out and air in but not large enough to let
> > droplets of liquid out. In my experience however, when the diaper
> > becomes very wet the added pressure against this sheet can cause
> > liquid to seep through. I found this to be more common on cloth
> > covered diapers which is why I avoid them.
> >
> > The inner lining of a diaper is typically one or more layers. On
>many
> > diapers, the liner is designed to let liquid through one way but
>not
> > back. It's like they show in baby diaper commercials, it can go
> > through and feel dry again. As with the outer shell though, there
>are
> > limits.
> >
> > Stand up leak guards are designed to keep a stream of liquid in
>the
> > center of the diaper long enough for it to soak in. When sitting
> > however, these are compressed against the diaper and are therefore
> > less effective. Still, they do help.
> >
> > CAPACITY
> > Diaper capacity is based on the amount and combination of
>absorbent
> > materials it contains, however, many factors influence this. While
> > SAP will absorb and hang on to liquid as best it can, under
>pressure,
> > it can let some out. So a diaper may soak it all up while
>standing,
> > then when you sit down it can leak out. Or sitting while wetting
>will
> > prevent the material from soaking up its ideal capacity.
> >
> > Additionally, SAP's absorbent capabilities are diminished by the
> > presence of contaminants. It will soak up more plain water than
>salt
> > water for instance. It will similarly soak up more water than
>urine
> > as our urine contains salts and other chemicals. The more
> > concentrated our urine is, the less effective SAP will be.
>Therefore,
> > contrary to what you would think, drinking more water will
>actually
> > make your diaper more effective.
> >
> > RE-WET AND RATE OF ABSORPTION
> > A key thing with SAP is once it has absorbed its limit, it can't
> > absorb anymore. It soaks up what it can and hangs on to it,
>whereas
> > cellulose, cloth and other materials would distribute the wetness
> > out. Because of this, the first wetting works best, but then next
> > time, the SAP in that spot is full. The next wetting can't be
> > absorbed there, so it has to find another spot in the diaper. This
>is
> > where the leak guards come in. The wetter the diaper gets, the
> > farther it has to go to find SAP that is still available. This is
>why
> > you can leak despite having a half dry diaper.
> >
> > For this reason, the rate that you wet plays a factor. If you are
> > fully incontinent and drip all the time, your diaper will hold
>more
> > than someone who has urge or overflow incontinence where a lot is
> > released all at once. A slow stream will have an easier time
>finding
> > a place to be absorbed, then a fast one. Therefore, if you have
>any
> > say in the matter, releasing it early and often will be beneficial.
> >
> > INCREASING CAPACITY
> > I always recommend a high quality diaper because it results in
>fewer
> > changes. I wear only 2-3 diapers per day and don't control my
>intake
> > at all. But there are times I know I'll be drinking more or that I
> > have drank more prior to bed than usual.
> >
> > Night:
> > The best solution I have found is Abena sells a doubler pad
> > (available at Drugstore.com) in a few sizes that you simply lay in
> > the diaper before putting it on. It's mostly cellulose and it fits
> > inside the leak guards of the X-Plus. At night I position it as
>high
> > as possible in the front since I'm a stomach sleeper. If I slept
>on
> > my back I probably wouldn't need the doubler, but since SAP
>doesn't
> > wick, I will leak without extra capacity in the front if I drank a
> > lot prior to bed. I have also used cloth baby diapers, small
>towels
> > and adult cloth diapers as inserts inside a disposable with
>success.
> > In that case, the cloth does the job of wicking some of the
>wetness
> > to other areas of the diaper where it can be absorbed. In all
>cases
> > though, if I wet a lot all at once while laying on my stomach, I
>may
> > still leak. The only thing that works for sleeping on your side is
> > cloth with plastic pants.
> >
> > Day:
> > As others have mentioned, inserts work well during the day as
>well.
> > Here I would position them lower toward the middle of the diaper,
>but
> > keep in mind where the liquid will come from. Too low and it might
> > run under the insert to the main diaper. You can use all the
>things
> > discussed above, as well as baby diapers. While you can slit the
>back
> > of baby diapers and use them, they are made of almost 100% SAP so
> > they expand and act as a barrier to further re-wets. I find they
>can
> > cause leaks around the thigh because of this. So what I hear works
> > better is to use them inside the diaper without cutting them. When
> > they have seen 2 wettings or you feel it is pretty wet, just go to
> > the bathroom and pull just the baby diaper out from the front and
> > toss it. You're now left with a dry disposable on. I typically
>just
> > wear a good diaper during the day, but if I need more capacity I
>will
> > sometimes double. To do this I cut horizontal cuts maybe 1-2" long
> > down the length of the diaper in the center section only. Use
> > horizontal cuts because when you put the diaper on, the tapes pull
>on
> > the plastic you just cut and if the cuts were vertical it would
>make
> > the cuts longer and weaken the diaper. Put this diaper on first,
>then
> > put the second one over the top. Don't tape either one super
>tight,
> > remember, the SAP needs room to expand. If you tape the top one
>tight
> > then in addition to being uncomfortably tight when wet, the
>pressure
> > will press the SAP against your skin forming barriers to further
> > urine flow. Since it has to go so somewhere it will, and often
>it's
> > not in the direction you want. Note, when you take it off, try to
> > take both off together and get it into the trash quickly, as there
>is
> > the potential for the SAP to spill out and it's a pain to clean
>up.
> > If you have added tape, sometimes it's easier to cut the wings
>with
> > scissors than try to remove the tape.
> >
> > Another stuffer I have used, is to buy tapeless diapers, meant to
>be
> > worn inside underwear or mesh pants, slit the back of those and
> > include them in the diaper. Both Molicare and Abena sell some that
> > are basically the absorbent matt of the regular diapers without
>the
> > wings. These are great because they conform to the diaper
>perfectly
> > and double the performance. (Well, nearly so.) Plus, if I'm doing
>it
> > for night, I can turn them around and use the larger end in the
>front
> > where I need the most protection.
> >
> > DIAPER SUPPORT
> > Day-to-day I just wear the diaper and the plastic sticks up above
>my
> > waistline. Once I put on my pants and belt, the belt basically
> > supports the diaper weight in the same way it holds up my pants.
>At
> > night, a onesie works well for me, or sometimes just some added
> > packing tape to keep the tapes from coming undone while moving
>around
> > in bed. To prevent SAP from falling apart and collecting in the
> > middle of the diaper, Abena and others sell what are essentially
>mens
> > boxer-briefs that you wear over the diaper and that holds it in
> > place. I'm sure standard boxer briefs or just briefs of reasonable
> > elastic nature will do the same thing. Some people recommend
>spandex,
> > but it seems like you would encounter the problem with it being
>too
> > tight and causing the SAP barriers mentioned earlier. One thing
>with
> > doubling, is that the outer diaper will tend to slip down over the
> > inner one. You can help this by taking the two plastic waist bands
> > and folding them both together inward. This basically hangs the
>outer
> > diaper on the first one. You can also add some tape to the outer
> > diaper to make it tighter. And of course pants or briefs should
>help
> > keep it in place. I really only have the problem at night wearing
> > only the diapers.
> >
> > DIAPER TAPING
> > I typically apply a diaper by opening it and positioning it behind
>me
> > and leaning against it, against a wall. Then I pull the front up
> > between my legs and position it in the front. When properly
> > positioned in the front, I tweak the back as necessary. Then I
>apply
> > the bottom tapes first. I use one hand to pull the front panel
>tight
> > and use the other hand to pull the tape forward and place it. Then
>I
> > do the same tape on the other side. I then tug on the back to make
> > sure it's situated right, and apply the top tapes. One thing that
> > helps the fit, is rather than applying the tapes horizontally
>angle
> > them. The bottom ones angle up toward your opposite shoulder, and
>the
> > top ones angle down toward your opposite knee. It should look like
>this:
> >
> > \ /
> > / \
> >
> > Not quite that steep though, the angles would be more accurate if
>you
> > turned the diagram 90 degrees. I find that the tapes just touch at
> > their tips when I do this. This is handy if I want to apply
>packing
> > tape over them for extra security, but it also makes for a better
>fit
> > in my experience.
> >
> > After applying each tape, I use my finger or fingernail to rub it
> > firmly against the plastic to get a good seal. This, as well as
>not
> > applying them too tightly, prevents them from coming untaped most
>of
> > the time. After all the tapes are done, I find the bottom of the
> > front side panels and pull them down a little, making sure they
>are
> > fully under the bottom tape area. Otherwise, later in the day you
> > might end up with that tape stuck to your skin and let me tell
>you,
> > that's not comfortable.
> >
> > If you need to use the bathroom for number two, just untape one
>side
> > and slide the diaper down the other leg. When finished, you can
>slide
> > it back up and get it back in position, then retape the open side
> > back in the original location usually.
> >
> > SMELL
> > As someone mentioned, if you drink plenty of fluids your urine
>will
> > be highly diluted and won't smell. Some foods may cause your urine
>to
> > smell more than normal. Aside from Asparagus I don't usually pay
> > attention to that. I don't drink coffee or smoke, so I can't
>confirm
> > that. Really, the only time I've noticed a smell is when I wore
> > plastic pants over a disposable, then later in the day when I sat
> > down it squeezed out air that smelled. But wearing only a
>disposable,
> > I guess it dissipates slowly and isn't noticeable.
> >
> > RASHES
> > The best way to avoid rashes is to drink plenty of fluids so your
> > urine is diluted, and keep the hair down there trimmed short. I
>have
> > a beard trimmer I use for that and as long as it is trimmed, it's
> > easy to keep clean and I rarely have problems. On the rare
>occasion
> > that I do, I use real Desitin ointment if it's just irritated or
>if
> > it is approaching rash, I use athletes foot ointment which knocks
>it
> > out quickly. The bacteria in athletes foot, jock itch, diaper rash
> > and yeast infections are all treated by the same lotions. I use
>some
> > from Target, it comes in an orange box, target brand. It's the
>same
> > as Lotramin AF I think. Some days if I haven't drank enough or am
>in
> > the diaper too long it'll get uncomfortable, but once I change
>it's
> > fine. Everyone's skin is different though, and it might take some
> > time to get used to it if you're new to diapers.
> >
> > PLASTIC PANTS
> > Contrary to what you would think, plastic pants do nothing to
>prevent
> > leaks in a disposable. Plastic pants were designed to create an
>area
> > with raised sides that would contain liquid long enough for the
>cloth
> > diaper to soak it up. They additionally then prevented the wet
>diaper
> > from transferring that wetness to clothing. The elastics serve to
> > keep them in place and create that raised edge, not to form a
> > watertight seal. Plastic pants over a plastic diaper is the same as
>a
> > little water in a plastic sandwich bag... you can push it around a
> > bit, but it'll find a way out and take it. What can be done in
>this
> > case, is to put a thin cloth diaper or I've heard some people use
> > underwear in between the diaper and the plastic pants, which like
> > adding a paper towel to our sandwich bag, gives the liquid
>somewhere
> > to go and stay.
> >
> > CHANGING IN PUBLIC
> > I have found the best method to be simply storing diapers
> > individually in grocery store bags. Then perhaps bag several of
>those
> > together and keep some in the car and some in a cupboard in your
> > office at work. If you need to change, just grab one and walk to
>the
> > bathroom. It's just a plastic bag... maybe you're delivering it to
>a
> > coworker. Change in a stall, put the old diaper in the bag and
>drop
> > it in the trash on the way out. I've been without bags at a
> > restaurant or something and simply taken the diaper, folded it in
> > half and walked confidently through the restaurant to the
>bathroom.
> > In all cases (including leaks), the trick is confidence in
> > yourself... if you don't draw attention to it or yourself, most
> > people wouldn't know what it was if they did notice it. We
>recognize
> > what we know, and purple or not, an adult diaper is not something
> > people are usually familiar with unless they have reason to, and
>if
> > that's the case, it's still not an issue.
> >
>
>

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