Men face particular challenges when it comes to their health. Looking at health statistics in the United States, men are less likely to have health insurance than women. They’re also more likely to have high blood pressure, smoke, and drink alcohol. Men also see a doctor less often than women. There are a variety of reasons for these disparities but the end result is that men might face more health problems.
In the inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) advocacy community, we see more women sharing their story than we do men. In some cases, it’s women who are advocating on behalf of a man in their life. There are many reasons for this too, which of course are individual and personal. What happens, though, is that men might have a more difficult time in finding others in the IBD community that share their concerns.
About IBD Podcast is also a pretty fair representation of the IBD community in that most guests who are patients have been women. However, there have been several men who have also shared their voices and their stories. Below you’ll find episodes featuring men who come from different backgrounds and with a variety of experiences with their Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis.
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About IBD Podcast Episode 149 – Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month With Dan “Dry Dock” Shockley
Navy veteran Dan “Dry Dock” Shockley had no digestive symptoms at all. He got his colorectal cancer screening when it was recommended for his age. They found that his colon was full of polyps.
About IBD Podcast Episode 148 – Making Crohn’s Disease Funny With Matt Nagin
Is IBD funny? My guest is Matt Nagin, who has many talents, but what we hone in on is his work as a comedian. Matt gives us ideas on keeping a sense of humor while dealing with the ups and downs of chronic illness.
About IBD Podcast Episode 143 – Positivity Beats IBD With Josef Miller
What is it like to be a teen living with Crohn’s disease? If you’re like Josef Miller, you channel the challenges of the diagnosis and management of IBD into action. Josef has written a book about his experiences, entitled “The Purple Rose,” and created an initiative called “Positivity Beats IBD,” which creates inspirational cards for people living with IBD and other conditions. Learn about Josef’s journey with Crohn’s his multicultural background, and how and why he decided to write a book.
About IBD Podcast Episode 134 – An Ostomy Is a Beginning With Brad Watson-Davelaar
Brad Watson-Davelaar, founder of Gaming for Guts, shares his experiences in living with Crohn’s disease and how he found support and community through his IBD journey. He talks about his ostomy surgery and how for him, it is a beginning rather than an end.
About IBD Podcast Episode 130 – Up and Adam: A Patient’s Experience on Winning with IBD Featuring Adam Finkelstein
Adam Finkelstein, a medical student and author, shares his experiences of living with IBD from a young age, and how he coped with surgeries and doctor’s appointments as a child. Adam provides tips for helping kids develop positive associations with going to the doctor, which include building trust with healthcare professionals, being honest about what to expect during appointments, and creating a comfortable environment for kids. Adam’s book, “Up and Adam,” is a resource for children with IBD and their families.
About IBD Episode 122 – Serving in the Navy With Crohn’s Disease, With Daniel Rausa, DO
Dr Rausa was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease while serving in the Navy, and he has advice for people who live with an IBD and want to serve or who want to pursue a medical career. He also describes why it’s so important to follow up and stay on top of transition of care when leaving military service.
About IBD Podcast Episode 120 – Don’t Google Your Symptoms With CJ Papuro
Carlos “CJ” Cabrera, who also goes by CJ Papuro, entered the IBD community after his diagnosis of Crohn’s. He gives an overview of how difficult it was to be diagnosed as a US veteran using the Veterans Health Administration, his struggles with finding his way with nutrition, the ways in which IBD has affected him as a man, and his advice for other men.
About IBD Podcast Episode 107 – Colitis Conversations: Getting a Timely, Accurate Diagnosis
On this episode, Rasheed Clarke, ulcerative colitis and j-pouch patient and author of Three Tablets Twice Daily and Dr Christina Ha, an IBDologist at the IBD Center at Cedars Sinai, provide support and guidance to patients with IBD symptoms, newly diagnosed patients, and anyone who is looking for a new way to speak with their health care providers about IBD treatments.
About IBD Podcast Episode 104 – Living With Ulcerative Colitis as an Air Force Pilot Featuring Lt Col Joshua Nelson
Did you know that being diagnosed with ulcerative colitis or Crohn’s disease is a disqualifying condition to serve in the United States military? However, it seems that it’s not always an automatic reason for discharge. Lt Colonel Joshua Nelson was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis and needed to have ileostomy surgery. It cast into question his future as a pilot in the Air Force. Learn his story of how he worked with his medical team in order to keep doing the job he loves, his advice for others like him, and tips on flying that any ostomate can use.
About IBD Podcast Episode 96 – Fatherhood and IBD With Jordan McConnell of Crohn’s Veteran
Jordan McConnell, the founder of Crohn’s Veteran, is looking to change the dynamics of the online IBD space. His disease journey showed him that he needed to be the change and he developed his podcast and his brand to support men and the larger IBD community.
About IBD Podcast Episode 91 – Derek Mari of Crohnie: It’s Not Impossible
Actor, writer, and filmmaker Derek Mari lives with Crohn’s disease and his IBD journey inspired him to create a story that explores the way people cope with living with a chronic illness.
About IBD Episode 89 – Living With IBD and a Rare Disease
As a young man, Aaron Blocker was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease after years of coping with strange and seemingly disconnected signs and symptoms. However, after one of those hip replacements became dislocated, Aaron went looking for more answers and wound up suspecting that he also had an ultra-rare condition called hypophosphatasia.
About IBD Podcast Episode 86 – Double Baggin’ It With Joe and Danielle
For Danielle Gulden and Joe Teeters, being diagnosed as a young adult had a profound influence on their lives. The plans they had for their lives were derailed, but they only met, formed a strong friendship, and founded Double Baggin’ It because of their IBD.
About IBD Podcast Episode 84 – Find the Pony With Justin Baker
Working as an actor and having IBD don’t sound like they’d be compatible. But there are good reasons why people who have serious health conditions make great performers, as Justin explains.
About IBD Podcast Episode 83 – The Streamers From Gaming4Guts
Gaming4Guts is a gaming marathon to raise funds for the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation. Participants stream over Twitch during the 72-hour event but they have also formed a community, keeping in contact year-round on the Gaming4Guts Discord server.
About IBD Podcast Episode 66 – I Just Needed Something to Change
For Austin Powers, who goes by The Ostomy Guy, he exhausted all his possibilities to treat complications from Crohn’s disease before having surgery to place an ostomy. Today, Austin runs a podcast and has written a book about his experiences, The Ostomy Guy Story: Memoirs of a Bagman, which is available on Amazon.
About IBD Podcast Episode 57 – I Really Don’t Think About My Ostomy Anymore
How is it possible to not think about your ostomy while participating in endurance races? Find out how Ryan Stevens worked his way back from crushing IBD flare-ups and multiple surgeries, including one to have a permanent ileostomy, in order to train for the ultimate triathlon: the IRONMAN.
About IBD Podcast Episode 56 – This Is Still Better Than Surgery
A diagnosis of Crohn’s disease and an ileostomy hasn’t stopped Ryan Stevens from competing in triathlon races. Come with us as we relive the IRONMAN Triathlon in Madison, Wisconsin and discuss how Ryan prepared and competed while living with IBD and a permanent ostomy.
About IBD Podcast Episode 38 – Your Body Is Depending on You to Be Assertive
Hear Rasheed Clarke discuss how j-pouch surgery affected running, male voices in IBD community, and what he did with a toilet for World IBD Day.
About IBD Podcast Episode 37 – I Felt a Lot of Guilt
Rasheed tells his experience of the positives, the negatives, and the responsibilities that come with being an influencer in the IBD space.
About IBD Podcast 22 – You Have To Do Your Research With Vegan Ostomy
Eric Polsinelli of Vegan Ostomy describes how he tried dozens of complementary therapies for his Crohn’s disease but never found anything that worked. He did, however, come away with vital insight about how people living with IBD can assess alternative therapies and talk to their physicians about working them into a comprehensive treatment plan.
About IBD Podcast 14 – We Are All Capable of More Than We Think With Brian Greenberg
Brian Greenberg, endurance athlete and president of Chronically Better You, tells us how he moved from goals after surgery—getting out of bed and making his own lunch—to training for an Ironman in 2018.
About IBD Podcast 13 – Growing Up IBD with Brian Greenberg
Being diagnosed with IBD as a child presents special challenges for kids and for parents. Learn how Brian Greenberg of Intense Intestines Foundation dealt with a Crohn’s disease diagnosis at a young age and transitioned from being a child reliant on parents to help manage his IBD to learning how to manage it all himself.
About IBD Podcast Episode 4 – Ryan Stevens: Crohn’s Guy
What’s it like to be a competitive swimmer and one day develop Crohn’s disease? Well, you don’t stop swimming! Hear Ryan Stevens, Crohn’s Guy, talk about the work he’s doing to raise awareness of IBD.
Sources:
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Men’s Health. April 4, 2021. Available at: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/mens-health.htm
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Women’s Health. April 4, 2021. Available at: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/womens-health.htm
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Table 30. Health care visits to doctor offices, emergency departments, and home visits within the past 12 months, by selected characteristics: United States, selected years 1997–2018. Available at: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hus/2019/030-508.pdf