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  • Ableism,  acceptance,  advocacy,  Crohn's,  Dating & Relationships,  Disability Justice,  Minority Health,  stigma,  Ulcerative Colitis

    I am NOT a Burden: A South Asian Perspective

    July 1, 2020

    The recent advice column in the NY Times called “Is it OK to Dump Him Because of His Medical Condition?” has been percolating in our minds for the last few weeks. Tomorrow, July 2nd, 2020, marks 10 years since I’ve been married to the love of my life, Anand. Yes, you read that right: one whole decade of wedded bliss and 14 years of us being together. (See Love Knows No Disability.) I still vividly remember telling him 3 weeks into us dating that I had been diagnosed with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) a few short months earlier and that the disease had taken the lives of my father and…

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    Tina Aswani Omprakash

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    The Other Side of Crohn’s: Caregiving

    December 9, 2019

    Love Knows No Disability

    July 2, 2019

    Disability Awareness in the Midst of Coronavirus

    March 12, 2020
  • Ableism,  Colorectal Surgery,  Crohn's,  fistula,  Mental Health,  Minority Health,  Ostomy,  stigma,  Ulcerative Colitis,  Women's Health,  World IBD Day

    What IBD Awareness Means to a South Asian American Woman with Crohn’s

    June 17, 2020

    By Tina Aswani Omprakash Originally published in IBD Relief on May 18th, 2020: https://www.ibdrelief.com/ibd-stories/my-ibd-story-tina-aswani-omprakash I remember waking up from a surgery to repair a rectovaginal fistula in late 2011 and being yelled at by an elderly family member for ruining their lives. Even though I was still in a haze in the recovery room, the tears of pain and anguish washed over me. Whether it was my body violating me with perianal fistulizing Crohn’s disease or family and friends constantly reminding me of how much of a burden I was, the floodgates opened in that moment as I asked that family member to please excuse themselves from the recovery area. You see, it’s really…

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    Tina Aswani Omprakash

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    Inspire’s #KeepUsAllSafe COVID-19 Campaign

    April 12, 2020

    The Beauty of Ostomates Worldwide

    October 17, 2019

    My Feature in Suffering the Silence’s Photo Series Campaign

    October 6, 2019
  • awareness,  coping with flares,  Crohn's,  living with IBD,  Mental Health,  stigma,  Ulcerative Colitis,  World IBD Day

    ~OYC Trailblazers~ Harman’s Story from India

    July 10, 2019

    By Harman Singh Randhawa My battle with ulcerative colitis began in 2003. I was 20 years old and in my 2nd year of studying Engineering. By the time the diagnosis came through, I had already lived with pain and inordinate trips to bathroom for more than 6 months. Ignoring my painful symptoms and the discomfort that came with it, I kept delaying getting a thorough checkup. I started experiencing bloody diarrhea for many days. Finally, it was my sister who decided that the situation had gotten out of hand and drove me to PGI Hospital in Chandigarh in Punjab, India. I underwent a few tests and when the blood test…

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    Tina Aswani Omprakash

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    As a Chronically-Ill Brown Woman, Here’s Why I Share My Survival Story

    May 16, 2019

    Weekend Long IBD Retreat Helped Me to Own My Crohn’s

    August 24, 2019

    OstomyConnection SPOTLIGHT: Dr. Harikesh Buch works to shatter stigma and improve post-surgery care for ostomates in India.

    January 24, 2019
  • acceptance,  advocacy,  awareness,  Crohn's,  living with IBD,  Mental Health,  Minority Health,  stigma,  Ulcerative Colitis,  Women's Health

    As a Chronically-Ill Brown Woman, Here’s Why I Share My Survival Story

    May 16, 2019

    I had the honor of attending the 2019 HealtheVoices conference in Dallas, TX, as a patient advocate who was selected to attend from a group of 400+ applicants. Here are my impressions of the conference theme for this year, “A Little Heart Can Do Big Things” from the perspective of a chronically-ill brown patient advocate: https://www.oshihealth.com/my-survival-story/. Originally published by Oshi Health, Inc., on April 29th, 2019. Written by Tina Aswani Omprakash Please feel free to leave comments and feedback. I would love to hear your thoughts as always.

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    Tina Aswani Omprakash

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    Day on the Hill 2019: The Faces of IBD Legislation

    May 11, 2019

    My Health Became My Top Priority

    April 16, 2019

    Metamorphosis

    August 13, 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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    When Diagnoses Accumulate – My Endometriosis Journey

    August 28, 2023

    Clinical Trials: The Next Frontier for Diverse Populations of IBD Patients

    July 31, 2019

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

    April 18, 2020
  • acceptance,  advocacy,  awareness,  Colorectal Surgery,  Crohn's,  living with IBD,  Ostomy,  stigma,  Ulcerative Colitis

    OstomyConnection SPOTLIGHT: Dr. Harikesh Buch works to shatter stigma and improve post-surgery care for ostomates in India.

    January 24, 2019

    Dr. Harikesh G. Buch recognized the difficulties faced by homeless people in his home city of Mumbai early in his medical career. A skilled colorectal surgeon, he devoted himself to operating on those unable to pay for his services. Then something happened that changed the course of his life: At the age of 29, he was diagnosed with rectal cancer and underwent colostomy surgery, an operation that would serve as the focus of his volunteer work for many years to come. Dr. Buch recalls that he was “devastated” after the cancer diagnosis and, though it didn’t take him long to become accustomed to living with a stoma, he had initial…

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    Tina Aswani Omprakash

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    My Pelvic Pain Story

    October 26, 2018

    Owning My Crohn’s Mindfully This New Year

    January 5, 2019

    ~OYC Trailblazers~ Anisha Zumba-ing Her Way into 2021!

    January 28, 2021
  • advocacy,  awareness,  coping with flares,  Crohn's,  living with IBD,  Ostomy,  stigma,  Ulcerative Colitis

    6 Myths About IBD in Minority Patients, Busted

    December 20, 2018

    Here are the most common misconceptions surrounding Crohn’s and ulcerative colitis in minority populations. By Brianna Majsiak Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs) like Crohn’s and ulcerative colitis (UC) are not easy conditions to talk about. But an even rarer topic of conversation is how minority patients are affected by these chronic and debilitating diseases. Although IBD has predominantly affected whites in the past, a study published in August 2016 in the journal Inflammatory Bowel Disease found an increase in the rate of IBD in minority groups in the United States over the past two decades. “Patients may be reluctant to identify as having ulcerative colitis or Crohn’s disease, so our current numbers may really underrepresent these minority groups,”…

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    Tina Aswani Omprakash

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    Happy World IBD Day from Digestive Disease Week (DDW)!

    May 22, 2019

    My 9/11 Story: Paying Kindness Forward

    September 11, 2019

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

    February 25, 2019
  • acceptance,  advocacy,  awareness,  Crohn's,  living with IBD,  Ostomy,  stigma,  Ulcerative Colitis

    Crohn’s & Colitis Awareness Week: Minorities, Mental Health & IBD

    December 9, 2018

    This IBD Awareness Week, the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation shared a video of me discussing one aspect of being South Asian: maintaining privacy. Privacy is a major concern when it comes to South Asian Americans sharing their personal IBD journeys. There is a phrase in Hindi & Urdu called “Log Kya Kahenge?” It is a cultural phenomenon that expresses deep concern for how society will view patients and their families once their stories are public. But the reality is that suffering in silence can lead to deep-rooted shame while deterring self-care and self-advocacy, two very important aspects to our medical care. In this video, I talk about my experiences as a…

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    Tina Aswani Omprakash

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    Allowing Acceptance In

    November 21, 2018

    My Feature in Suffering the Silence’s Photo Series Campaign

    October 6, 2019

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

    November 4, 2018
  • acceptance,  advocacy,  awareness,  Crohn's,  living with IBD,  Ostomy,  patient rights,  stigma,  Ulcerative Colitis

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

    August 7, 2018

    ***Originally published in Brown Girl Magazine on August 2nd, 2018: https://www.browngirlmagazine.com/2018/08/being-brown-coming-out-ibd-closet/*** Just as soon as he landed from India, a good friend called me, half laughing: “Tina, I know exactly what it feels like to be you now! I’ve had diarrhea for the last three weeks after eating at Elco Market in Mumbai! What do I do?” Another time when I was deathly ill, languishing from anemia, malnutrition and weight loss due to 20-30 bloody bowel movements a day, I remember the aunties ridiculing me. They would cackle behind my back as they proclaimed that I did this to myself. “She must have eaten lots of junk food and drank…

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    Tina Aswani Omprakash

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    The Waiting Game

    June 30, 2018

    Step in Our Shoes: A Discussion on Being an Ally to the Black Community

    June 20, 2020

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

    November 4, 2018
  • coping with flare,  Crohn's,  living with IBD,  patient rights,  stigma,  Ulcerative Colitis

    Coming Out of My IBD Closet as a Desi Woman

    June 16, 2018

    Every single year the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation chooses a local Adult Honored Hero who shares his/her story and is honored at the Take Steps Walk in the spring. And every single year I attend the New York City walk, raise awareness and funds to help find treatments and someday a cure for these awful diseases. I bring my friends and my family together along with the Foundation’s Women’s Support Group so they can see that we patients don’t suffer alone, that many folks from all walks of life have been through hell and back at a young age. And every single year, one of my closest girlfriends has tears…

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    Tina Aswani Omprakash

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

    October 16, 2018

    The Value of Support Groups

    August 26, 2018

    Can a Low FODMAP Diet Help IBD? 7 Things to Know

    February 20, 2019

Recent Posts

  • 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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