Category Archives: IBD Moms

About IBD Podcast Episode 105 - What Remission Means to a Teen With Ulcerative Colitis

About IBD Podcast Episode 105 – What Remission Means to a Teen With Ulcerative Colitis

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD, Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, and indeterminate colitis) is being diagnosed in young people with greater frequency. Research on how to treat pediatric patients, and indeed how to prevent IBD in the first place, is still lacking. What’s not in short supply is the strength and resilience shown by pediatric IBD patients and their families. Meet Brooke, a pediatric patient at Connecticut Children’s Hospital who credits her dedicated IBD team with her ability to live a life filled with summer camp, dance, and tennis lessons, without the symptoms of ulcerative colitis. 

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About IBD Podcast Episode Cover 99

About IBD Podcast Episode 99 – Making a Plan for Back to School With Dr Brad Jerson

The back to school period is already a time of so much change but once again in this pandemic, parents and school systems are also facing difficult choices. The experiences of families during the pandemic has been diverse, which means that individual needs need to be addressed. But how do we manage that? Dr Brad Jerson Pediatric Psychologist in the Division of Digestive Diseases, Hepatology, and Nutrition at Connecticut Children’s, puts some framing around these issues and how we might approach them. Topics discussed include making the decision to go back to school in the building, 504 plans for kids with digestive conditions, and helping kids to transition to school in a difficult atmosphere.

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About IBD Podcast Episode 94 - Single Motherhood and IBD With Brooke Abbott

About IBD Podcast Episode 94 – Single Motherhood and IBD With Brooke Abbott

Motherhood comes in all shapes and sizes. The intersection of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and motherhood is often left out of the discussion and single motherhood and IBD is pretty much ignored altogether. That’s why I asked my close friend and co-founder of IBDMoms, Brooke Abbott of The Crazy Creole Mommy Chronicles, to tell me about her challenges and her successes living with IBD, a j-pouch, and being a single mom of a young son.

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About IBD Podcast Episode Cover - Episode 93 - Motherhood Unplugged With Natalie Hayden

About IBD Podcast Episode 93 – Motherhood Unplugged With Natalie Hayden

It’s one thing to talk to your physicians about becoming pregnant when you live with ulcerative colitis or Crohn’s disease. But what about  getting the benefit of experiences from the mothers who have been through a pregnancy, birth, and breastfeeding journey? Former news anchor and current blogger and Crohn’s patient Natalie Hayden gives her experiences with pregnancy and receiving biologics, as well as how she has participated in research during her pregnancies and the benefits it offers her family.

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About IBD Podcast Episode 92 – IBD and Pregnancy With Jill Gaidos, MD

We used to be told that women with IBD couldn’t have children. We were also told people with IBD shouldn’t have children.

The truth is this: women with IBD get pregnant and have healthy pregnancies and babies. We have more evidence and guidance than ever before. Gastroenterologist Dr Jill Gaidos, Associate Professor of Medicine in the section of Digestive Diseases and the Director of Clinical Research for the Yale Inflammatory Bowel Diseases Program discusses the finer points of pregnancy and IBD. When to seek help for fertility, what medications should be continued in pregnancy, and the risk of passing on IBD to children. 

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About IBD Podcast Episode 78 - Sending Chronically Ill Kids to School, Featuring Dr Brad Jerson

About IBD Podcast Episode 78 – Sending Chronically Ill Kids to School, Featuring Dr Brad Jerson

Kids with chronic illness face special issues when going back to school because they’re at risk of their accommodations becoming eroded. In particular, children who live with Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis might be in danger of not being granted appropriate bathroom access. I speak with Dr Brad Jerson, a Pediatric Psychologist in the Division of Digestive Diseases, Hepatology, and Nutrition at Connecticut Children’s and an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine. We discuss the worrying behaviors that parents should watch out for in their kids and how we can help kids who feel scared to go back to school.

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About IBD Podcast Episode 77 - Back to School In the Pandemic With Dr Brad Jerson

About IBD Podcast Episode 77 – Back to School in a Pandemic With Dr Brad Jerson

Back to school will be quite different for families across the United States and the world this year. There aren’t many answers to be had to our questions, yet we must make decisions with the best information that we have at this time. I speak with Dr Brad Jerson, a Pediatric Psychologist in the Division of Digestive Diseases, Hepatology, and Nutrition at Connecticut Children’s and an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine about how we can prepare our kids, and ourselves, for the school year. We discuss the behaviors we can model for our children, how we can talk to young kids about mask wearing, and how to engage kids of all ages in conversation about their fears and anxieties during this time. 


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About IBD - Why You Should Keep That Dentist Appointment

Why You Should Keep That Dentist Appointment

Taking care of one’s teeth is important to anyone, but it is especially vital for people who live with an inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). We often say that Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, and indeterminate colitis affect the whole person. The mouth is included in this, but we often short change ourselves where oral care is concerned. Mouth ulcers can be common in people with IBD. Cavities and infections of the gum and teeth may be more common in people with IBD. True Crohn’s disease of the mouth is less common, though it does occur. This all means that while most of us have lots of doctor’s appointments already, seeing a dentist is one that we need to keep on our list as well.

All of this is why, when my dentist office opened up, even while cases of COVID-19 were high in my area, I kept my appointment to get my teeth cleaned. A few weeks later, when the pediatric dentist opened up, I took my kids for their appointments. Here’s why I went and what to expect when visiting the dentist in the era of corona.

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Reporting from Advances in IBD 2019: Parenthood Project Consensus Statement

Reporting from Advances in IBD 2019: Parenthood Project Consensus Statement

One of the presentations I attended at Advances in Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (AIBD) in Orlando, Florida in December 2019 was regarding the IBD Parenthood Project. The American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) has put together a clinical care pathway for pregnant women who live with IBD. The pathway was created with input from representatives from different specialties that may care for pregnant women with IBD, including gastroenterologists, maternal-fetal medicine specialists, teratologists, lactation specialists, and patients.

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Providing the Best Start for Baby With MotherToBaby

About IBD Podcast Episode 59 – Providing the Best Start for Baby With MotherToBaby

Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis are diseases of young people. Women are often diagnosed during their childbearing years, which means that inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) enters into the equation when considering becoming pregnant. I talk with Beth Kiernan, a Teratogen Information Specialist at MotherToBaby about how women can learn more about how to manage IBD medications before conception, during pregnancy, and while breastfeeding.

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