Belize, July 2026

Despite having traveled to Central America previously, I still felt anxiety leading up to my trip to Belize. I’d visited Costa Rica last year (I’ll share that experience at another time – one of my favorite places I’ve been), but the tap water in Costa Rica is drinkable. In Belize, like most of Central America, consuming tap water was not advisable, especially for tourists. As someone with Crohn’s and an ostomy, this terrified me. I’m definitely no stranger to intestinal problems, but the idea of being sick in the jungle or on a boat in the Caribbean far from a bathroom was the main driver for my anxiety.

But my desire to explore outweighed this fear, fortunately, and I did what I could to prepare myself and hoped for the best. I would only be gone for seven days so I figured worst case scenario, only a short vacation would be ruined (I wouldn’t be stuck for weeks waiting for the trip to end and worried about running out of ostomy supplies). I made sure I had over the counter medications like Imodium, and antibiotics in case over the counter items didn’t help. I’m an over-packer when it comes to everything – especially ostomy supplies.

I know that packing can be stressful for everyone, even without the addition of packing ostomy and medical supplies. For this trip, I only brought a carry-on which meant that I couldn’t toss my liquid supplies into a checked bag and not worry. A few weeks before my trip I reached out to my ostomy nurse and she was able to provide a very detailed letter  stating that my liquid supplies (ostomy deodorant/lubricant) were medically required. This helped me bring supplies that I needed through TSA. Unfortunately, this doesn’t prevent TSA from pulling your bag aside to inspect – which did happen and I had to awkwardly stand there while they open and smelled the deodorant bottle. But just asking for a letter from my nurse relieved so much of my stress for this trip. Once I got to Belize, getting safe drinking water wasn’t an issue at all – again relieving this irrational anxiety I had, as if thousands of people don’t visit every year.

During the drive from the airport to the hotel, I felt the usual awe I experience when I visit a new country. Not just from the newness and beauty of the surroundings, but because I still struggle to fully comprehend that I made it to this place. Less than ten years ago, I was so sick I couldn’t go for a walk in my neighborhood because that was still too far away from my bathroom. My decision to get an ostomy to manage my Crohn’s disease allows me to travel to places like Belize. Suddenly I’m able to visit archeological sites in the jungle, go cave tubing, snorkeling in the Belize Barrier Reef, and enjoy so much food and culture. I try to focus on what my ostomy allows me to do. I know everyone is on their own ostomy journey and has their own relationship with and views toward their bag. But I want to show fellow ostomates that you can still enjoy life with an ostomy.