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  • acceptance,  advocacy,  awareness,  coping with flares,  Crohn's,  Diet,  living with IBD,  Minority Health,  Nutrition,  Women's Health

    Brown Girl with Guts: Tina’s Journey with Crohn’s Disease

    April 30, 2019

    Originally Published by Girls with Guts on April 30th, 2019: https://www.girlswithguts.org/blog/2019/4/30/brown-girl-with-guts-tinas-journey-with-crohns-disease As a woman of color, I’ve struggled from the very beginning with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The diagnosis was hard enough to wrap my head around but add the elements of loss of career, loss of personality and ultimately, loss of cultural identity played into a lot of my struggles with managing my brand of IBD. To backtrack, I was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis in 2006. Now, this was by no means a surprising diagnosis for me. My father had died of a virulent form of Crohn’s that became colorectal cancer when I was 8 years old here in…

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    Tina Aswani Omprakash

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    Lilly Singh’s ‘Choli Ke Peeche Kya Hai?’: My Anthem for Body Positivity

    April 1, 2019

    My Pelvic Pain Story

    October 26, 2018

    Basmah’s Journey: The Cultural Impacts of Being an Egyptian Crohnie

    April 18, 2021
  • acceptance,  advocacy,  awareness,  Crohn's,  Irritable Bowel Syndrome,  stigma

    An IBS Journey: Tina

    April 21, 2019

    Originally published in The Gut Gazette by Megan Marsiglio on April 15, 2019: https://thegutgazette.com/an-ibs-journey-tina/ If you have irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), you are NOT alone. To do our part in helping spread further awareness about IBS during April’s IBS Awareness Month, we are sharing different stories of various individuals who have IBS. Name: Tina Aswani-Omprakash, Patient AdvocateLocation: New York, NYWebsite: ownyourcrohns.comFB/Twitter/Instagram: @ownyourcrohns What symptoms do you experience with IBS? I have something called post-surgical IBS that I developed after many surgeries to bring my Crohn’s Disease under control. Symptoms include: bloating, nausea, abdominal cramping, chronic constipation (but if I take laxatives, then intense diarrhea). What has been the hardest challenge with IBS? Dealing with…

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    Tina Aswani Omprakash

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    Day on the Hill 2019: The Faces of IBD Legislation

    May 11, 2019

    Ostomy Awareness Day: Empowering Ostomates to Live Fuller Lives

    November 22, 2019

    Allowing Acceptance In

    November 21, 2018
  • acceptance,  advocacy,  awareness,  Colorectal Surgery,  coping with flares,  Crohn's,  Fistulizing Disease,  living with IBD,  Mental Health,  Ostomy,  Pelvic pain,  Self-image,  stigma,  Ulcerative Colitis,  Women's Health

    My Health Became My Top Priority

    April 16, 2019

    **Originally published in Health Central on April 10th, 2019** CHAPTER 1 Crashing Down When I first began having inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) symptoms in 2005, I had just graduated college, started my first job, and I gotten out of a difficult relationship. And then, to top it off, I was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis (UC). I was at the top of my game, and everything just came crashing down in the blink of an eye. I had also just started my master’s in financial management, but, after the diagnosis, I couldn’t complete it. With a new career on Wall Street, I took a break from my graduate education to focus on…

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    Tina Aswani Omprakash

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    Lilly Singh’s ‘Choli Ke Peeche Kya Hai?’: My Anthem for Body Positivity

    April 1, 2019

    No More Secrets: An enlightening film that reveals the stigma of having an ostomy in India

    September 24, 2018

    Being Brown and Coming Out of the IBD Closet: The Chronic Illness Experience

    August 7, 2018
  • advocacy,  awareness,  Colorectal Surgery,  Crohn's,  Fistulizing Disease,  living with IBD,  Minority Health,  Ostomy,  stigma,  Ulcerative Colitis,  Women's Health

    About IBD Podcast #40 – Tina Aswani Omprakash’s Story: What Are People Going to Think?

    April 10, 2019

    Listen to About IBD’s Podcast #40: What Are People Going to Think? Shared via Amber Tresca’s podcast and blog, About IBD   People who live with Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis experience stigma because of their inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The taboo topic of bowel disease can permeate all aspects of a person’s life, especially when there are cultural influences also at play. Tina Aswani Omprakash, who lives with Crohn’s disease and a permanent ileostomy, shares her story of personal empowerment and how she is working to help other people with IBD live their lives with confidence. Tina describes how IBD has profoundly affected her family as well as why…

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    Tina Aswani Omprakash

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    Indian Ostomate Podcast Show: Episode 1 with Tina Aswani Omprakash

    July 23, 2020

    7 Tips for Traveling With IBD, From Someone Who Gets It

    July 1, 2022

    Edgar Flores opens up about surviving near-death and the challenges of living with an ostomy in Mexico

    November 4, 2018
  • acceptance,  advocacy,  awareness,  Body Positivity,  Crohn's,  Fistulizing Disease,  living with IBD,  Mental Health,  Ostomy,  Self-image,  stigma,  Ulcerative Colitis

    Lilly Singh’s ‘Choli Ke Peeche Kya Hai?’: My Anthem for Body Positivity

    April 1, 2019

    I still remember when the racy Bollywood song, “Choli Ke Peeche Kya Hai?” (Hindi: What’s Behind the Saree Blouse?), teased South Asian household television sets and AM/FM radios (yes, those used to be a thing). I was barely 10 years old and even though I couldn’t get enough of the song’s hypnotic beat, I felt tingling shame every time I heard its lyrics. So when Lilly Singh (a/k/a iiSuperwomanii), Punjabi-Canadian LGBTQ YouTube star and soon-to-be late-night TV show host, released her rap remake of “Choli Ke Peeche Kya Hai?” last week, I nearly fell off my chair. She didn’t just remake a Bollywood classic; she recreated a spectacle made for…

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    Tina Aswani Omprakash

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    How a clinical trial helped this Crohn’s advocate finally reach remission

    November 24, 2019

    All of these exceptional women have won awards this year for their public advocacy efforts

    October 16, 2018

    Ostomy Awareness Day: Empowering Ostomates to Live Fuller Lives

    November 22, 2019
  • acceptance,  advocacy,  awareness,  Colorectal Surgery,  coping with flares,  Crohn's,  living with IBD,  Mental Health,  Ostomy,  Ulcerative Colitis

    OYC Trailblazers: What Healing Means to Natasha

    March 26, 2019

    By Natasha Weinstein My name is Natasha and I have Crohn’s Disease. I was diagnosed at the age of 11 after years of mild disease activity and extraintestinal manifestations (joint pains, random fevers and stunted growth). It was only when my disease became severe with rectal bleeding and vomiting that I was given a proper diagnosis. Following diagnosis, I went through years of failed medications, endless hospitalizations, 2 pediatric gastroenterologists and multiple surgeons. Last month I underwent my 10th surgery. You read that right: TENTH. I have hit double digits, two full hands, big kid status. My abdomen is growing up. To get technical about this most recent surgery, I…

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    Tina Aswani Omprakash

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    ~OYC Trailblazers~ Mollie’s Story: Living la Vida Latina with Ulcerative Colitis & an Ostomy

    September 27, 2019

    The Beauty of Ostomates Worldwide

    October 17, 2019

    OYC Trailblazers: An Ode to My Father & Fellow IBD Warrior

    January 30, 2019
  • advocacy,  awareness,  colorectal cancer,  Colorectal Surgery,  Crohn's,  Fistulizing Disease,  living with IBD,  Mental Health,  Ostomy,  stigma,  Ulcerative Colitis

    The Top 10 IBD Blogs to Follow in 2019

    March 15, 2019

    Discussing bowel movements is undoubtedly a taboo subject for many people, which has helped a stigma form around Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD). For people living with IBD, most commonly in the form of Crohn’s Disease or Ulcerative Colitis, ‘embarrassment’, ‘shame’, and ‘isolation’ are regularly used words to describe the emotional strain that accompanies the physical symptoms of their condition. These bloggers, each excelling in particular areas, write openly and honestly about the realities of life with IBD. In doing so, they are helping create a community that offers support, raise awareness that helps tackle the stigma, and provide practical tips for various walks of life. Top IBD Blogs for Real…

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    Tina Aswani Omprakash

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    My 9/11 Story: Paying Kindness Forward

    September 11, 2019

    The Value of Awareness & Advocacy During the Holidays

    December 21, 2018

    Owning My Crohn’s Mindfully This New Year

    January 5, 2019
  • advocacy,  awareness,  Crohn's,  Diet,  Emerging Therapies,  Fistulizing Disease,  living with IBD,  Mental Health,  Nutrition,  Ostomy,  Ulcerative Colitis

    5 Hot Topics Presented at Crohn’s & Colitis Congress 2019

    February 27, 2019

    I had the honor of attending the 2019 Crohn’s & Colitis Congress in Las Vegas, NV as a patient advocate and speaker on the Perianal Fistulizing Crohn’s Disease panel. From diet and nutrition to mental health and pregnancy in IBD, here are the most salient topics presented at the conference this year for us patients: https://www.oshihealth.com/crohns-congress-2019/ Originally published by Oshi Health, Inc., on February 26th, 2019. Written by Tina Aswani Omprakash Medically reviewed by Matthew Hamilton, MD  Please feel free to leave comments and feedback. I would love to hear your thoughts as always.

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    Being Brown and Coming Out of the IBD Closet: The Chronic Illness Experience

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    My Nomination for the WEGO Health Patient Advocacy Awards

    July 21, 2019

    The Value of Support Groups

    August 26, 2018
  • acceptance,  advocacy,  awareness,  caregivers,  coping with flares,  hydration,  living with IBD,  Ulcerative Colitis

    OYC Trailblazers: Celebrating Melissa’s J-Pouch-versary

    February 25, 2019

    And February’s OYC Trailblazer is…wait for it…Melissa “Mush” Willner! This month marks one year since Melissa had her ostomy reversed and her j-pouch became fully functional. So what better time than now to have Melissa share her story? Here goes nothing…  Ulcerative Colitis has been a part of my life for over 20 years now.  I first learned of my diagnosis at the age of 7 in the 2nd grade. While my young mind was preoccupied with stickers and Rugrats, I was also learning about colonoscopies and mesalamines. My sleepovers were interrupted by enemas and I took my first doses of mesalamine crushed up in my bowls of Cocoa Pebbles.…

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    “I Had an Ostomy—and It Changed My Life”

    December 11, 2019

    My Feature During Crohn’s & Colitis Awareness Week

    November 8, 2018

    Indian Ostomate Podcast Show: Episode 1 with Tina Aswani Omprakash

    July 23, 2020
  • advocacy,  awareness,  colorectal cancer,  Colorectal Surgery,  coping with flares,  Crohn's,  Fistulizing Disease,  living with IBD,  Mindfulness,  Ostomy,  Pelvic pain

    My Feature in Everyday Health as #EverydayWoman

    February 22, 2019

    From Everyday Health’s Instagram: “Meet Tina Aswani Omprakash — the #IBD warrior and chronic illness advocate behind @ownyourcrohns. Tina was diagnosed with #Crohns disease 13 years ago and has since undergone over 20 surgeries, including a permanent #ostomy, four near-death experiences, and countless IBD-related manifestations and diagnoses. Tina is our #EverydayWoman today and everyday because despite her hardships with Crohn’s disease, she is passionate about leading a full and happy life and inspires others to do the same. Tina is an active leader in the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation and often writes on her blog about living with an ostomy and other IBD-related issues. Her mantra is to celebrate life,…

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    ~OYC Trailblazers~ Michelle’s Story on the Intersection of Crohn’s & an LGBTQIA+ Identity

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    Lilly Singh’s ‘Choli Ke Peeche Kya Hai?’: My Anthem for Body Positivity

    April 1, 2019

    Day on the Hill 2019: The Faces of IBD Legislation

    May 11, 2019
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  • Feb 18, 2025 How to Own Your Crohn’s & Ostomy While Traveling to India
  • Jan 05, 2025 Key Takeaways from Advances in IBD (AIBD) 2024
  • Dec 05, 2024 Navigating Mental Health in Crohn’s Disease 
  • Dec 04, 2024 Highlights from ACG 2024: SAIA’s IBDesis’ Patient Experience
  • Nov 18, 2024 SAIA is proud to announce Tina Aswani-Omprakash, MPH as our full-time CEO!

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