Why Your Symptoms Get Dismissed (and How to Be Heard) — With Morgan Check, NP
About IBD
Pediatric GI Nurse Practitioner Morgan Check shares her journey living with Crohn’s disease, navigating a diagnosis change, emergency surgery, and motherhood. She uncovers the challenges facing women with IBD, from bone density and fertility to dismissal in clinical settings, and gives actionable tips for effective self-advocacy. Transcript, video, and more at: This episode is sponsored by . What you’ll learn: The challenges faced during the path to motherhood, including fertility issues and pregnancy complications. The impact of IBD on women's health, including fertility, bone density,...
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The Truth About How IBD Affects Families With Adam and Brandon Sikes
About IBD
Adam Sikes was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis at 18 and later with stage 1 colon cancer. Along with his son Brandon, Adam shares how his family supported him through decades of illness, surgery, and recovery with a J-pouch. Adam and Brandon highlight how IBD affects families, the importance of screening, and the power of community support through groups such as Connecting to Cure. Transcript and more information available at: Chapters: [00:02:12] — Adam discusses his diagnosis of ulcerative colitis at age 18. [00:04:05] — Adam describes his colon resection surgery after a...
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Powerful Lessons: How Women Experience Life With IBD Featuring Alicia Aiello of Girls With Guts
About IBD
Episode transcript and more information at: https://bit.ly/AIBD207 Alicia Aiello, president of Girls With Guts, shares her journey with IBD, which began in childhood. She discusses major surgeries, including a proctectomy that resulted in an unexpected loss of her fallopian tubes and an ovary, and the early onset of perimenopause. Alicia opens up about navigating rectovaginal fistulas, feeling dismissed, and the importance of knowing when to switch providers. What you’ll learn: The impact of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) on women’s health. Why proctectomy surgery might be used, how it...
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Hidden Ways IBD Affects You Over a Lifetime With Puja Khanna, MD
About IBD
The truth about inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is that it goes beyond the gut. In this first ever live recording of About IBD, Amber talks with Dr. Puja Khanna from Cedars-Sinai to explore the extra-intestinal impacts of IBD, from skin conditions and eye inflammation to debilitating fatigue. Learn how sex-specific factors affect women and why building a multi-disciplinary care team is the best strategy for long-term health. Episode transcript and more information at: Chapters: (00:01): Amber introduces the first-ever live recording of the "About IBD" podcast, recorded at an event in Los...
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How to Navigate ER Visits and Avoid Fragmented Care With Dr Stephen Lupe
About IBD
Emergency room visits are a source of stress and can lead to fragmented care. Amber speaks with psychologist Dr Stephen Lupe to learn why inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients avoid the ER, the reality of medical trauma, and how a multi-disciplinary approach like the IBD Medical Home can revolutionize patient care. Transcript and more information at: Sponsored by: Johnson & Johnson: Find Stephen Lupe, PsyD at: Cleveland Clinic: Twitter: LinkedIn: Resources mentioned: Cleveland Clinic's Digestive Disease & Surgery Institute: Explore the...
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Brown Note: Helping People with IBD Find Hope and Support With Andrew Giffin
About IBD
Amber Tresca talks with Andrew Giffin, a product manager in Toronto who was diagnosed with Crohn's disease at 19 after years of symptoms in high school. Andrew shares his experience navigating three major surgeries, adjusting his career path away from law enforcement, and learning to manage stress as part of living with a chronic illness. He also discusses developing apps, including Brown Note, a free, anonymous peer-support app for people with digestive diseases. Brown Note was inspired by his own feelings of isolation while preparing for his third surgery and is available on Apple, Android,...
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Insider Secrets to Fearless Travel with IBD
About IBD
Certified travel advisor, business owner, and ulcerative colitis patient Sarah McGovern joins Amber to give tips and tricks on traveling with IBD. Sarah relates her IBD journey, including a rare medication side effect that landed her in the hospital. Now in remission, Sarah breaks down her blueprint for traveling with an invisible illness. On this episode, you'll learn concrete, practical strategies for traveling with IBD and how a travel advisor can help you relax on your next trip. Transcript and more information at: https://bit.ly/AIBD203 Chapters: 00:04 — Introduction to...
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The Powerful Impact of the IBD Community Featuring Katie Neu
About IBD
Episode transcript and more information at: Katie Neu and Amber Tresca talk over the results of the IBD Social Circle white paper, "The Power of Community in Inflammatory Bowel Disease." A survey of more than 500 patients puts a spotlight on the ways IBD affects body image, relationships, intimacy, and mental health. Amber and Katie discuss masking symptoms, the difficulties of working a corporate job, and why having community is critical. Chapters 00:05 — Host Amber Tresca introduces the podcast and her guest, Katie Neu, who lives with Crohn's disease. 01:25 — Amber and Katie...
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Yoga Therapy for IBD: Why Acceptance is the Best Teacher With Bari Gratton
About IBD
After a devastating Crohn’s disease flare, marketing executive Bari Gratton traded a high-stress career for the healing path of yoga therapy in California. Bari joins Amber Tresca to discuss the "Five Layers of Being," the toxicity of "pushing through," and how she is building community for the next generation of IBD patients. Episode transcript and more information at: Key Chapters & Timestamps: [00:00:00] – Welcome to About IBD with Amber Tresca [00:04:40] – Diagnosis in the late 90s: Life as a teen with Crohn’s [00:12:35] – The 2017 Crisis: Three surgeries and a temporary...
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Is Your Eye Pain Actually an IBD Flare?
About IBD
Did you know that inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) isn't only a digestive condition? It can also attack your vision. Your host, Amber J Tresca, breaks down some of the most common eye-related extra-intestinal manifestations (EIMs) of Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis. Learn how to identify the warning signs of episcleritis, uveitis, and scleritis, and find out when you need to see an ophthalmologist right away to protect your eyesight. Episode transcript and more information at: Key Chapters & Timestamps 00:00 - Introduction: Protecting your vision with IBD 02:07 - What are...
info_outlineKatryna Loewen, a registered nurse diagnosed with ulcerative colitis in 2020, shares her journey through severe flare-ups, incontinence, and her decision to have a colectomy and ileostomy in 2024. She discusses the emotional and physical challenges of living with IBD, the stigma of ostomies, and how these experiences shaped her life, relationships, and career. Katryna also describes managing her mental health, planning her wedding, and preparing for motherhood, offering hope and practical advice to others with IBD.
Episode transcript and more information at: https://bit.ly/AIBD190
Chapters:
- 00:04 Introduction and Guest Background
- 02:09 Katrina’s Nursing Career
- 03:08 Ulcerative Colitis Diagnosis
- 04:48 Remission and Flare-Ups
- 05:09 Severe Flare in 2023
- 07:08 Decision for Surgery
- 10:36 Facing Ostomy Surgery
- 14:08 Acceptance and Life with an Ostomy
- 16:08 Impact of IBD on Mental Health
- 17:18 Incontinence Experiences
- 23:31 Tracking Symptoms and Advocacy
- 26:23 Wedding with IBD
- 28:45 Therapy and Emotional Recovery
- 32:06 Pregnancy After Ostomy Surgery
- 37:50 Preparing Pets for Baby
- 41:54 Support Networks and Advice
- 43:32 Where to Find Katrina
- 43:38 Closing Remarks
Find Katryna Loewen at:
- Instagram: @goingpains88
Find Amber J Tresca at:
- AboutIBD.com: About IBD
- Verywell Health: Verywell Health
- Facebook: @aboutIBD
- Twitter: @aboutIBD
- Pinterest: @aboutibd
- Instagram: @about_IBD
- YouTube: @AboutIBD
- https://www.threads.net/@about_ibd
Find Mac Cooney (mix, sound design, and theme music) at:
- Facebook: @maccooneycomposer
- Instagram: @maccooneycomposer
- YouTube: @MacCooneyComposer
- Web: Cooney Studio
- Theme music, IBD Dance Party, is from ©Cooney Studio.
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