When I had my ileostomy surgery, my kids were eleven and eight years old. I was quite open with them about my surgery and what was involved, but I know that it can be a challenge for some parents.
In this article, I hope to share some ideas on how to approach this topic with young kids so you are both comfortable talking about the surgery and the life that follows it.
This is a topic that I really wish I could have written sooner, as I know many ostomates have trouble building confidence after their surgery.
This post has been on my mind for a while, but as I’ve just sold a phone that’s been with me through some of the most difficult times in my life, I’m reminded about just how fortunate we are to have access to these portable devices when we are sick.
I dedicate this post to my friends who haven’t been able to catch a break because of IBD.
Through my blog, I’ve tried to share ways that can help improve the quality of life for someone with an ostomy. While I also have Crohn’s Disease, I handled my flares poorly, and so I can’t offer much help to those who are suffering with IBD at this very moment.
Not many people know what IBD is at the time of their diagnosis, and I had a lot of questions about Crohn’s Disease when I was first diagnosed, but there are some things that I wish I had known sooner.
When I was interviewed for the IBD Round Table, I made the comparison between having Crohn’s Disease and living as a ghost. It didn’t dawn on me just how accurate that description was until I began to think more about it.
Food. I enjoy it now, but I was tormented for years by the pain that eating or even smelling foods caused me. These fears meant that I’d often skip meals or stopped eating partway through a meal, and ultimately lead to a very weak, underweight and anemic me.
I watched a powerful video by Whitney from the YouTube channel “What a Vegan Eats”, and it struck a chord with me. You see, I’ve watched videos on her other channel “Eco-Vegan Gal” for years, but I’ve never known her story.
One lesson I’ve learned about IBD is that our symptoms can often be very misleading, and they sometimes don’t correlate with what’s actually going on in our gut. This can pose several problems as a patient and for the GI treating us.
We’ve all heard about PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder), but have you heard of Posttraumatic Growth?