Written by Tanya Manohar My name is Tanya, and I live in Chennai, India. I was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease in 1999, a time when little was known about IBD in India. This means that I have segments of intestinal narrowing and scarring throughout my small intestine known as strictures caued by Crohn’s. I had one small bowel resection in 2009. A treatment regimen, comprising Azathioprine and Mesalamine, was the cocktail my Gastroenterologist Dr. Ashok Chacko prescribed to treat my Crohn’s. In combination with a restricted and closely monitored low-fiber diet, this regimen has kept me fairly stable. It has allowed me to live alone in a foreign country, pursue…
- Caregiving, Crohn's, Cultural Stigma, Family Planning, IBD Parenthood Project, invisible illness, living with IBD, Motherhood, Nutrition, Patient Voice, Pregnancy in IBD, Ulcerative Colitis, Women's Health
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Gaurav’s Covid-19 Journey as a Crohn’s Patient in India
Greetings! I’m Gaurav Sengupta, a 32-year-old IBD patient advocate from India. I currently live in Kolkata and run a plastic manufacturing business of my own. I was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease back in 2015 when I was working as a Corporate Banker in the UAE. I nearly ended up in surgery back then and once again in 2019 due to stricture formation and bowel obstructions. I have been fortunate that my GI has helped to successfully control my disease during both of those flares with the help of oral steroids and immunosuppressants. I recently fell prey to the global pandemic of Covid-19 during its second wave in India. Here, I…
- autoimmune disease, Black Lives Matter, Caregiving, Coronavirus, Crohn's, Dating & Relationships, J-Pouch, living with IBD, Minority Health, Ulcerative Colitis, Women's Health
Taryn’s Journey: Navigating Relationships and IBD During the Pandemic
“I think I might be at the start of a partial obstruction. What do I do?” The words I shared with my husband in late March 2020 weren’t rhetorical. It was more like I dropped a mini bomb into an already stressful situation. Even though I’ve had a series of partial bowel obstructions over the years, this time felt different. We were at the beginning of the pandemic. At a time when merely stepping outside seemed dangerous, a trip to the ER felt terrifying. In that moment, I was asking for much more than just advice. I wanted – no, needed – reassurance that regardless of what was happening with…
- acceptance, advocacy, Black Lives Matter, Caregiving, coping with flares, Crohn's, health equity, Healthcare Disparities, living with IBD, Minority Health, Ulcerative Colitis
~ OYC Trailblazers ~ Amy & Terrell: Crohn-ically Ever After
My name is Amy Btiebet Washington, I’m 34 years old and live in Ohio. I was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease when I was 26 (in 2012). Initially, I thought I had a terrible flu, but after a few days of symptoms, I was rushed to the hospital with a 106-degree fever. I was immediately treated for sepsis, which led to 5 days in the ICU. After multiple tests, I was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease. The sepsis was a result of a severe infection caused by Crohn’s disease. At the time of my diagnosis, I knew very little about the disease and didn’t know anyone who lived with Crohn’s or ulcerative…
- acceptance, advocacy, awareness, Caregiving, Crohn's, Dating & Relationships, Minority Health, stigma, Ulcerative Colitis, World IBD Day
World IBD Day Panel Discussion: Experiences of Minority IBD Patients & Caregivers
By Anand Omprakash For World IBD Day, I was invited to be a part of a virtual panel discussion with the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation, Dr. Meena Bewtra (IBD patient & gastroenterologist) and Stephanie Stinson (IBD patient) highlighting the unique struggles that minority patients and caregivers face. I did this because I wanted to shed light upon the stigmas surrounding chronic illness in my community, especially so when it comes to a bowel disease and to marriage. In many communities around the world, a chronic illness is often viewed as a liability because marriage is considered as a familial “contract” to provide and reproduce and not just a means to provide…
- Ableism, acceptance, Caregiving, coping with flares, Crohn's, Dating & Relationships, living with IBD, Mental Health, Ostomy, Ulcerative Colitis
The Other Side of Crohn’s: Caregiving
By Anand Omprakash Originally published by the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation on December 3rd, 2019: https://www.crohnscolitisfoundation.org/anands-story “Love is that condition in which the happiness of another person is essential to your own.” – Robert A Heinlein For anyone who has been in a loving relationship – romantic, familial, or other – I hope this quote resonates. Love truly is the condition in which another’s happiness is crucial to your own. In fact, that is the whole point of a loving relationship, is it not? This aspect of love very much applies to relationships in which we are not just partners, but also caregivers. A caregiver is one who takes on…