Tag Archives: colitis

This is Not a Gift Guide

This Is Not A Gift Guide: An IBD Community Poll

Leave a reply

At the end of the year, we see the gift guides come out. There’s one for every type of person, usually focused on age and gender, but also based on hobbies or interests. Or, even, based on chronic illness such as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

There’s no doubt, gift guides are helpful. For someone like me, who doesn’t go out shopping a lot, it’s useful to know what’s out there. Learning about the latest in cookware or video games can be helpful. To me, the funniest ones are the gift guides for teens or college students. Even I know they just want cash.

Continue reading →
About IBD Podcast Episode 119 - The Restroom Access Act

About IBD Podcast Episode 119 – The Restroom Access Act

Leave a reply

Have you ever been out in public and needed a toilet — but there wasn’t one available?

This has happened to everyone who lives with an inflammatory bowel disease (IBD, Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis), which is why so many of us have “bathroom accident” stories. Needing to use the bathroom is a basic human need, but it’s treated like an afterthought. That’s where the Restroom Access Act comes into play: a law passed in several states that allows people to request access to a toilet when they live with certain conditions.

There is no such law currently in California. That’s hopefully going to change thanks to the efforts of Ashlyn Saltzburg and Kelly Silk. Ashlyn is a teenager living with IBD and Kelly is her mom. Their effort to get a law passed in California is nothing short of heroic. Learn about how they got started on this journey to have the Restroom Access Act passed in California, and how you can help.

Send your letters of support for AB 1632 to Assemblymember Weber’s Legislative Assistant, Raymond G. Contreras: raymond.contreras@asm.ca.gov

Continue reading →
About IBD Podcast Episode 109 Cover

About IBD Episode 109 – Colitis Conversations: Treating to Target

2 Replies

Setting goals is an important part of managing IBD. But after controlling symptoms: what other goals do patients have? They can be anything from being able to go up and down the stairs, to cooking a meal, to going back to an exercise program.

Treating to target is a concept that helps in goal-setting. But patients might not be using this method with their clinicians. Dr Neilanjan Nandi, Associate Professor of Clinical Medicine and IBD specialist at the University of Pennsylvania, Perelman School of Medicine and Jacklyn Green, ulcerative colitis patient, writer, and IBDMom, dig deeper into the idea of treat to target from both sides of the equation.

Continue reading →
About IBD Podcast Episode 108 Cover

About IBD Episode 108 – Colitis Conversations: The Impact of Ulcerative Colitis

Leave a reply

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) affects our quality of life. What that means, however, is going to be different for each person. It may depend on many factors including disease severity, access to care, and support structure.

The symptoms of ulcerative colitis such as diarrhea can prevent people from taking part in activities that aren’t near a bathroom. Bleeding can cause anemia, leaving people feeling tired and unable to go about regular activities. Not to mention the effects on mental health, relationships, and finances.

Danielle Gulden, ulcerative patient, ileostomate, and co-founder of Double Baggin’ It and Dr Nana Bernasko, IBD Nurse Practitioner and Assistant Professor of Medicine in the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology at Penn State Health, discuss how to manage the effects of IBD on everyday life.

Continue reading →
About IBD - Do You Have a Roadmap for Your Ulcerative Colitis

Do You Have a Roadmap for Your Ulcerative Colitis?

Leave a reply

One of the biggest hurdles in getting a diagnosis of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is first in understanding that the symptoms aren’t normal. They’re not from a virus or a parasitic infection — they go on for too long for it to be from those causes. 

Continue reading →
About IBD Podcast Episode 107 Cover

About IBD Podcast Episode 107 – Colitis Conversations: Getting an Accurate Diagnosis

Leave a reply

Once people understand that symptoms like ongoing diarrhea and bloody stools are not normal, they need a way to overcome embarrassment and talk their symptoms over with a health care provider. Having an open and honest conversation will help ensure a quicker diagnosis of ulcerative colitis and getting the right treatment.

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.

Continue reading →
About IBD - Who Is the Base of Your Pillar?

Who Is the Base of Your Pillar?

Leave a reply

In the spring of my junior year in high school, I met with my senior year Advanced Placement English teacher. I don’t remember much of that meeting, such as what we talked about, or even its purpose.

What I do remember is the store room she took me into.

Continue reading →
About IBD Podcast Episode 85 - Dr David Rubin Answers COVID-19 Vaccine Questions

About IBD Podcast Episode 85 – Dr David Rubin Answers COVID-19 Vaccine Questions

Leave a reply

From the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, people with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) have had many questions. Now that vaccines against the virus are becoming available, people living with Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis need even more information in order to make decisions. I asked Dr David Rubin, Chief of the Section of Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition and the Co-Director of the Digestive Diseases Center at The University of Chicago Medicine to answer some of these initial questions about the first COVID-19 vaccines (manufactured by Pfizer and Moderna). Topics discussed on this episode include:

  • How vaccines work
  • How mRNA works
  • How IBD medications affect the immune system
  • IBD medications and their potential effect on COVID-19 vaccination
  • When we’ll have more information about COVID-19 vaccines and IBD
  • Why side effects with vaccines are expected and what they mean
Continue reading →
About IBD - Why You Should Keep That Dentist Appointment

Why You Should Keep That Dentist Appointment

2 Replies

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.

Continue reading →
About IBD Podcast Episode 70 - I'm Not Doing This By Myself

About IBD Episode 70 – I’m Not Doing This By Myself

Leave a reply

How would you answer these questions about your inflammatory bowel disease (IBD)?  

  • What is the best part of having IBD?
  • What is the hardest part of your day?
  • What is your least favorite treatment?
  • If you could choose one dance for your doctor, what would it be and why?
  • What is one thing you wish people knew about your condition?

Amber answers these questions, posed by Shawntel Bethea of Crohn’s and Stuff, for fun and also to get the conversation started about how Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis affect our lives.

Continue reading →