I am addicted to YouTube; I was just thinking of shutting it down for awhile: your post is inspiring. (I joined Facebook briefly to participate in a different medical forum, but when they wanted a Photograph of my Face to continue, I said heck with this. Hooray for Vegan Ostomy for setting up forums that are not on Facebook! To Me, they're More accessible. Hooray!

Anything that's taking too much of your attention without any real-world benefit is worth shutting off, even if temporary or on certain days.

It's a shame that so many companies are overstepping their boundaries with privacy these days, even for trivial things like a forum.

I once had a company asked me to provide my DRIVER'S LICENSE to close an account (video game related) and I told them straight up that if I did not provide one to set up my account, I sure as hell won't be providing one to close it. They did end up closing it soon after, but it goes to show that many will just push their luck to collect any and all data they can from you.

I have a minimal `footprint' on FB and I ditched insta last year because their content is so polluted with ads now and you can't get rid of them. So, I totally applaud your decision! I also agree that these platforms are often toxic with little to stop bad things happening to good people in my opinion.

where can I watch your newer videos?

Hi Margaret,

I haven't posted any new videos in some time, but you can access all of my videos through https://www.veganostomy.ca/videos/

I agree. The majority of the "medical" posts are misleading, false, quackery, superstition or religion or politics, or something else that needs to be blocked.

Facebook was ruined for me (the last straw) when they required people to upload a government ID to continue using their account. I used Instagram for a few years until the first months of the pandemic helped me to realize how frustrating and harmful it was to my mental health. My new IBD support group has a private FB page and I'm really bummed (no pun intended!) that I am not able to view the information they share, while knowing it's not right for me to create an account again. I am so grateful to have found your site. I know I'm late to the party, but hooray for you, and thank you again for working to make this information accessible to those who want and need it.

The private groups really are a disservice to any community. The accessibility barrier alone should give those group owners some pause to look elsewhere.

I still view FB pages without logging in, but it's a huge hassle since it's very limited. I could never continue to support such a closed system like that.