Owning My Crohn’s Vegas Style
This blog post is a throwback to 5 years ago when I traveled to Vegas to celebrate Prashanthi's 30th birthday! Happy birthday, Prash! This trip was important to me because it was one of the first times since my diagnosis that I let my guard down disease-wise to travel with good friends. In 2012, after my first RV fistula was found, I had my j-pouch diverted and my 2nd ostomy put in place. After recovery, I decided that my illness had been consuming me whole. It was now do or die--either I restore my sense of self by challenging myself or I languish in misery from not trying. I hit a turning...
A Day on the Hill: Putting a Face on IBD Legislation
As I walked up the steps toward Capitol Hill, the realization finally struck: I was really doing this. I was really lobbying for better healthcare legislation for patients like myself. More than 100 volunteers and I had traveled from all over the country to Washington, D.C., as part of the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation’s Day on the Hill program (DOH). And we all shared one mission: to bring our stories forward to advocate for improvements in legislation for all of us suffering from inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). (Courtesy of Tina Aswani Omprakash) This was the first time I had lobbied...
Tina’s Take Steps Honored Hero Speech
Tina Aswani Omprakash is named an Honored Hero by the Greater NYC Chapter of the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation
Take Steps Honored Heroes represent warriors in the Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis community who share their story to inspire others. OC EDITORS MAY 3, 2018 Tina Aswani Omprakash was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis at 22-years-old. After many years of suffering from the disease, her colon was removed and she now lives with a permanent ileostomy. Tina shared with us how Inflammatory Bowel Disease has changed her life. “I felt like I was at the top of my game after graduating from college with a career lined up on Wall Street—that’s when the colitis hit. At age 22 – just when my life...
Indian-American Crohn’s Patient and Ostomate Named Honored Hero
Indian-American Crohn's Patient and Ostomate Named Honored Hero of the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation By Brown Girl Magazine May 1, 2018 [All photos courtesy of Tina Aswani Omprakash] I was at the top of my game having just graduated college with a Wall Street career and BAM, just like that, the colitis hit. At the tender age of 22, when my life was just beginning, my existence became a perpetual case of bolting to the nearest bathroom. Between wearing diapers and trying to date while popping pills and using enemas, I began to realize how tenuous life is. It was a scary proposition...
Tear Up Your Flare-Up
Whether it feels like a bus just squashed us flat or we have that sudden urge to defecate with no end in sight, we all know that feeling when a flare is imminent. And while it is no fun, it is a part of living and breathing with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). So how do we manage flares? And more importantly, how do we to cope with them to live the fullest life possible? We all know flare-ups are unapologetically anxiety-producing. But staying in those thoughts may cause us to flounder. Overanalyzing and blaming ourselves for a flare, or even for our diseases, is unfair, unreasonable, and...
TINA ASWANI OMPRAKASH | 2018 NYC ADULT HONORED HERO
I was at the top of my game having just graduated college with a Wall Street career all lined up and BAM, just like that, the colitis hit. At the tender age of 22, when my life was just supposed to be beginning, my life became a perpetual case of where's the nearest bathroom and having to bolt to avoid accidents. Between wearing diapers and trying to date while popping pills and using enemas, I began to realize how tenuous life is. It was a scary proposition because my dad passed away at 39 years old from a wicked case of Crohn's that turned into colorectal cancer, and his sister quickly...
How I Combat Election-Related Anxiety as a Crohn’s Patient and Ostomate
This election has been a cause of distress for many, Crohnies and ostomates included. No matter what your individual views are on each candidate, there is a degree of uncertainty involved with any transition of leadership, let alone a change as drastic as the one we are now facing with our newly elected president. Knowing full well that change can be stressful and anxiety-producing for us as Crohnies and ostomates, how do we face and battle that anxiety? How do we accept outcomes we may not support? And most importantly, how do we combat any fear-mongering attitude that may be directed...
The Song That Makes Me Proud of My Scars
As a Crohn’s disease patient with a permanent ostomy and severe fistulizing disease, I often look to music for solace. Listening to soulful music isn’t just soothing; it helps me cope, process and move past the never-ending laundry list of health issues I face. One song that hit home the second I heard it was “No Scars to Your Beautiful” by Alessia Cara, and it has been on repeat ever since. It goes: You should know you’re beautiful just the way you are, And you don’t have to change a thing, the world could change its heart, No scars to your beautiful, we’re stars and we’re beautiful… What...
Welcome to “Own Your Crohn’s”
Dear reader, My name is Tina, and my struggle with Crohn’s disease began over 12 years ago when I was 22. I am from the New York City area, and my background is in legal and compliance for investment banking. My battle with this beast of a disease rendered me unable to work. I have been nonetheless actively involved with the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation as one of the leaders of the NYC Women’s IBD Support Group, through which I help to educate and advocate for women like myself who are struggling with the most debilitating aspects of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). (Courtesy of Tina...
A Valentine’s Day Special: Dating & Relationships with an Ostomy
A couple weeks ago, Amber Wallace Ogle of Ostomy Diaries and I did a Facebook Live in conjunction with Hollister Incorporated regarding dating, relationships and intimacy with an ostomy. Yes, folks, it is possible and that's what Amber and I aimed to share--our...
Extraintestinal Manifestations of IBD: An “Eye” on Episcleritis
As many of you know, I was recently in Austin, TX, traveling to speak at Crohn's & Colitis Congress. So, when I landed in Austin, I noticed a tinge of red in my right eye and I was a bit concerned but thought it would go away. You see, the dryness of the flight...
IBD Insider: IBD 101 Live Discussion on Facebook
Last Wednesday night I was honored to moderate a panel discussing IBD at the 101 level with two physicians who specialize in the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease: Dr. Jami Kinnucan of Michigan Medicine and Dr. Rajeev Jain of Texas Digestive Disease Consultants....
What Will People Think? ~A Short Documentary by Chealynn Feaster
This past fall I had the opportunity to meet and film with filmmaker Chealynn Feaster, a fellow ostomate and Crohn's Disease warrior. Together we pieced together a short documentary called What Will People Think? (Hindi/Urdu: Log Kya Kahenge?) which shines light on my...
Sophia’s Chronic Illness Journey: Forced Switching to Biosimilars in Canada
By Sophia Ali Khan From Diagnosis to Remission I was diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease at the tender age of seven in Calgary, Alberta in Canada. This was after I was born with congenital neutropenia, a condition that involves the deficiency of neutrophils, a type of...
