Ostomy – Page 4 – Own Your Crohn's

advocacy, awareness, Coronavirus, COVID-19, Crohn's, immunocompromised, living with IBD, Ostomy, Ulcerative Colitis

Managing IBD in the Era of COVID-19

April 19, 2020

Last Friday, Gastroenterologist Dr. Supriya Rao and I had a conversation on Instagram Live about how to manage inflammatory bowel disease given the difficult circumstances around COVID-19. To watch and learn more, please check out the video below: For additional information, please feel free to reach out to @gutsygirlmd on Instagram or me here on my blog. For your reference, I have also put together a summary of tips on how to optimize our use of telehealth during the pandemic to manage our IBD optimally from a distance: https://ownyourcrohns.com/telehealth-ibdcare-covid19/. This post also references guidance from the IOIBD and AGA that we IBD patients should be aware of when discussing our…

Read More

Tina Aswani Omprakash

Related Posts

A Gutsy Feeling: Advocating for the Best Care Possible as IBD Patients
September 18, 2021

OYC Trailblazers: Celebrating Melissa’s J-Pouch-versary
February 25, 2019

South Asian IBD & COVID-19
January 26, 2021
advocacy, Coronavirus, COVID-19, Crohn's, immunocompromised, J-Pouch, living with IBD, Ostomy, Ulcerative Colitis

Tips for Telehealth and Managing Your IBD Care During the COVID-19 Pandemic

April 18, 2020

One of the things I do a lot as a patient with many chronic illnesses is visit all sorts of healthcare providers for the maintenance of my care. However, during this time, when many non-essential visits to the doctor’s office or to medical facilities are not recommended, what do we do? In the last 6 weeks, many providers have ramped up a service we are now calling telehealth. That is, many doctors are offering virtual visits to us from the convenience of our home. While it isn’t the ideal way to examine a patient, it certainly gets the job sufficiently done for many of us who are struggling to manage…

Read More

Tina Aswani Omprakash

Related Posts

Edgar Flores opens up about surviving near-death and the challenges of living with an ostomy in Mexico
November 4, 2018

What Will People Think? ~A Short Documentary by Chealynn Feaster
December 27, 2019

My Perianal Disease Feature at Crohn’s & Colitis Congress 2019
March 2, 2019
Ableism, advocacy, awareness, Colorectal Surgery, Coronavirus, COVID-19, Crohn's, Disability Justice, immunocompromised, invisible illness, living with IBD, Ostomy, Ulcerative Colitis

Inspire’s #KeepUsAllSafe COVID-19 Campaign

April 12, 2020

Last week, Inspire released a short video we made virtually on why living with Crohn’s Disease and being immunocompromised during COVID-19 is downright terrifying for patients like myself who are chronically and invisibly ill. Please take a moment to watch this video and share to help raise awareness. And don’t forget – every life is valuable! So please #KeepUsAll safe by practicing social distancing and staying home as much as possible! Be well & best wishes always!

Read More

Tina Aswani Omprakash

Related Posts

What IBD Awareness Means to a South Asian American Woman with Crohn’s
June 17, 2020

The Other Side of Crohn’s: Caregiving
December 9, 2019

The Beauty of Ostomates Worldwide
October 17, 2019
acceptance, advocacy, awareness, Coronavirus, COVID-19, Crohn's, J-Pouch, living with IBD, Mental Health, Ostomy, Ulcerative Colitis

Coping with IBD & Stress & Anxiety Around COVID-19

April 1, 2020

Last night I had the honor of doing a Facebook Live with Dr. Tiffany Taft (Psychogastroenterology, Northwestern University) and Amber Tresca (About IBD, IBD Moms) in conjunction with the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation. We discussed all the emotions around COVID-19 from fear and anxiety to grief and loss and how we can cope best with stay-at-home and social distancing order in light of the challenges being presented to us in recent times. Hope you all found this discussion informative in learning some coping skills around the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) and living with IBD. For additional resources and updates on COVID-19 and IBD, please visit the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation Coronavirus…

Read More

Tina Aswani Omprakash

Related Posts

~OYC Trailblazers~ Mollie’s Story: Living la Vida Latina with Ulcerative Colitis & an Ostomy
September 27, 2019

“I Had an Ostomy—and It Changed My Life”
December 11, 2019

12 News to Your Health IBD Segment
June 23, 2018
advocacy, awareness, colorectal cancer, Colorectal Surgery, Crohn's, living with IBD, Ostomy, stigma, Ulcerative Colitis

Colon Cancer & Its Devastating Impact on My Family

March 19, 2020

I was 8 years old when I walked into my father’s room in the hospital as he laid there coma-stricken in his final days. I told him I had gotten an A on my Science test, hoping in all my innocence that an A would make him so proud that he would wake up from his coma. He passed a few days later and I was heartbroken. My father, Dr. Moti Aswani, had long-standing Crohn’s Disease which turned into stage IV colorectal cancer 13 years into his diagnosis at the age of 37 (see An Ode to My Father & Fellow IBD Warrior). You see, Daddy had been told to…

Read More

Tina Aswani Omprakash

Related Posts

Real Talk about Ostomies
October 5, 2018

The Impact of IBD on Racial & Ethnic Minorities
April 24, 2019

TINA ASWANI OMPRAKASH | 2018 NYC ADULT HONORED HERO
April 20, 2018
acceptance, advocacy, awareness, Crohn's, Dating & Relationships, living with IBD, Ostomy, Self-image, stigma

A Valentine’s Day Special: Dating & Relationships with an Ostomy

February 25, 2020

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 stories of happiness and heartbreak and how we found lasting love and continue to thrive in our relationships while we live with permanent ostomies. Feel free to check out the video below. Enjoy! So, own your Crohn’s, own your ostomy, and take charge of your relationships and remember that our ostomies are not a flaw. They make us whole again and help us survive what we may…

Read More

Tina Aswani Omprakash

Related Posts

The Value of Support Groups
August 26, 2018

The Waiting Game
June 30, 2018

Day on the Hill 2019: The Faces of IBD Legislation
May 11, 2019
Ableism, acceptance, advocacy, awareness, Crohn's, living with IBD, Minority Health, Ostomy, stigma, Ulcerative Colitis

What Will People Think? ~A Short Documentary by Chealynn Feaster

December 27, 2019

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 advocacy work and the inspirations behind it from my father and aunt’s illnesses and subsequent deaths to my own constant battle with Crohn’s Disease and multiple colorectal surgeries. One of the aspects of living with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) that I advocate for most is the nuances that racial and ethnic minorities face. Having a bowel disease and living with an ostomy, no matter how life-saving, often…

Read More

Tina Aswani Omprakash

Related Posts

University Accommodations in the COVID-19 Era
September 7, 2020

Inspire’s #KeepUsAllSafe COVID-19 Campaign
April 12, 2020

The Other Side of Crohn’s: Caregiving
December 9, 2019
acceptance, advocacy, Body Positivity, Colorectal Surgery, Crohn's, living with IBD, Mental Health, Ostomy, Self-image, stigma

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

December 11, 2019

For these people living with Crohn’s disease, ostomy surgery made everything from the ordinary to the extraordinary possible. By Jennifer Rainey Marquez Excerpt taken from HealthCentral. Article originally published in HealthCentral on November 27th, 2019: https://www.healthcentral.com/article/ostomy-crohns-patient-stories “I feel more ‘myself’ than I have in years.” ~Tina Aswani Omprakash, 36, New York City “As an Indian American, getting an ostomy was so culturally taboo that I waited until I was near death’s door to finally have the surgery. I was told nobody would marry me, and I was very afraid that I’d be discriminated against. To my surprise, my ostomy didn’t just save my life—it made me feel alive again! Not only…

Read More

Tina Aswani Omprakash

Related Posts

How a clinical trial helped this Crohn’s advocate finally reach remission
November 24, 2019

Lilly Singh’s ‘Choli Ke Peeche Kya Hai?’: My Anthem for Body Positivity
April 1, 2019

~OYC TRAILBLAZERS~ Spotlight on Malaysian Crohnie & Ostomate Saravanan
April 22, 2020
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

December 9, 2019

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…

Read More

Tina Aswani Omprakash

Related Posts

I am NOT a Burden: A South Asian Perspective
July 1, 2020

What Will People Think? ~A Short Documentary by Chealynn Feaster
December 27, 2019

The Beauty of Ostomates Worldwide
October 17, 2019
acceptance, advocacy, awareness, Clinical Trials, Crohn's, living with IBD, Ostomy, Ulcerative Colitis

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

November 24, 2019

Originally published on November 22, 2019 on Antidote’s website Like many people living with Crohn’s disease, Tina Aswani Omprakash had trouble finding a treatment that would send her symptoms into remission. After trying many of the common Crohn’s treatments on the market, she still wasn’t getting a response. She also had developed fistulas: abnormal connections between organs in the digestive tract, typically between one part of the intestines and another. That’s when her doctor suggested she join a clinical trial… To read more of this story, please visit Antidote’s website: https://www.antidote.me/blog/how-a-clinical-trial-helped-this-crohns-advocate-finally-reach-remission As always, I welcome all your thoughts, comments and feedback! Love hearing from you all! ~~LOVE,…

Read More

Tina Aswani Omprakash

Related Posts

Metamorphosis
August 13, 2018

When Diagnoses Accumulate: My Gastroparesis Story
August 29, 2019

Indian Ostomate Podcast Show: Episode 1 with Tina Aswani Omprakash
July 23, 2020