Tips and advice please

hey all,

so I have a condition called aFAP and am having to have surgery at some point soon to remove the entire colon, i have been given three options but am leaning towards the outside stoma as my family have had issues with J pouches. i am terrified about smells, leaks in public and am a little nervous about pain after the operation.

i was wondering if any of you with a stoma have any tips or hints and could shed a little light on what i am to realistically expect with a stoma.

thank you all for your time