Because itโs Autoimmune Awareness Month
"You donโt have to shout. But you do have to speak. Because your story can open doorsโto healing, understanding, and community. Your voice might be exactly what someone else needs to hear today."
Prioritizing Dental Health When You Have IBD
Living with IBD doesnโt just affect the gutโit can take a toll on dental health, too. From brittle teeth and gum disease to bone loss, the impact of chronic inflammation and medication side effects is significant. Thatโs why prioritizing oral care is essential. In this post, I share my experience navigating dental health with IBD, the importance of investing in comprehensive dental care, and tips to make treatments more affordable. If youโve been putting off a visit, consider this your reminderโyour health is worth it! ๐ฆท๐
From diagnosis to treatment: how much do you know about the process?
Seeing this chart helped me be aware of what questions I need to ask my healthcare provider as I go through my journey with this disease so that I can make the best possible decisions for myself.
My IBD Story
Girls with Guts and the Academy for Continued Healthcare Learning featured six different IBD stories from six different voices. I am honored to have been able to share mine.
Seven Years into Colitis (and what has worked for me so far!)
I haven't changed my medication for the past seven years (and neither have I skipped them). I haven't had any surgery. I haven't lost weight either (but I've lost a lot of hair which thankfully keep growing back!).
UC patients' have different stories, and not everyone has the same set of symptoms. How I maintained my mild-to-moderate UC is not simply luck, it also took a lot of experimentation, sacrifices, and "cleansing."
Here are the 7 things that have worked for me so far:
How can you treat your body better today?
What is your biggest challenge when it comes to taking care of your body?
Acknowledge what you need to change. Change what you can, while you still can, before it's too late.
๐๐ฏ๐ฐ ๐ข๐ฏ๐จ ๐ช๐บ๐ฐ๐ฏ๐จ ๐ฑ๐ช๐ฏ๐ข๐ฌ๐ข๐ฎ๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐ฌ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ ๐ฉ๐ข๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฏ ๐ฑ๐ข๐จ๐ฅ๐ข๐ต๐ช๐ฏ๐จ ๐ด๐ข ๐ฑ๐ข๐จ-๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ข ๐ฏ๐จ ๐ช๐บ๐ฐ๐ฏ๐จ ๐ฌ๐ข๐ต๐ข๐ธ๐ข๐ฏ?
๐๐ญ๐ข๐ฎ๐ช๐ฏ ๐ฌ๐ถ๐ฏ๐จ ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฐ ๐ข๐ฏ๐จ ๐ฌ๐ข๐ช๐ญ๐ข๐ฏ๐จ๐ข๐ฏ ๐ฏ๐ช๐บ๐ฐ๐ฏ๐จ ๐ฃ๐ข๐จ๐ถ๐ฉ๐ช๐ฏ - ๐ข๐ต ๐ฃ๐ข๐จ๐ถ๐ฉ๐ช๐ฏ ๐ฏ๐ช๐บ๐ฐ ๐ฏ๐ข ๐ฉ๐ข๐ฃ๐ข๐ฏ๐จ ๐ฌ๐ข๐บ๐ข ๐ฏ๐ช๐บ๐ฐ ๐ฑ๐ข, ๐ฃ๐ข๐จ๐ฐ ๐ฉ๐ถ๐ญ๐ช ๐ฏ๐ข ๐ข๐ฏ๐จ ๐ญ๐ข๐ฉ๐ข๐ต.
Disability Pride
This is me, literally trying to get my shit together amid a flare, at different points in my life.
Ableism
This word didnโt mean as much to me before as it does now that I have a disability.
๐๐ฃ๐ข ๐ต๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ข ๐ฑ๐ข๐จ ๐ช๐ฌ๐ข๐ธ ๐ฏ๐ข ๐ฎ๐ช๐ด๐ฎ๐ฐ ๐บ๐ถ๐ฏ๐จ ๐ฏ๐ข๐ฌ๐ข-๐ฆ๐น๐ฑ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ช๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ค๐ฆ. ๐๐ข๐จ๐ฐ๐ด ๐ด๐ข ๐ฃ๐ถ๐ต๐ฐ.
Today on my plate: Ground Turkey with Kale
This dish is Ground Turkey Curry with Kale which I made with coconut oil, onions, garlic, ginger, turmeric, curry powder, and kale. I also added a dash of cinnamon and a teaspoon of honey for a touch of surprise (sorry curry purists, just experimenting!).
AAPI Month Feature on Own Your Crohnโs
I sat on the toilet for the tenth time that day, clueless about what was going on inside of me. For the past seven months, I had been experiencing episodes of bloody diarrhea and had yet to be diagnosed. My ass was spewing blood and I was worried that I am losing a lot of it. I thought to myself: if I were back home in the Philippines, I would probably hear someone say โBaka kinulam kaโ (โSomeone probably hexed youโ). Filipinos, although predominantly Catholic, have their share of beliefs โ both superstitious and supernatural. Kulam, a form of folk magic, is one of them.
IBD Talk with Luna
Thanks to Late Nights by Luna Manila, a Filipina IBD patient like me had the opportunity to be seen and heard today. For this disease whose cure has yet to be discovered, every story counts.
My relationship with coffee
Coffee, how do I love thee? Well, I love you so much I couldn't break up with you completely, even with my IBD.
Rice and your gut
Rice (or kanin) is a staple in Philippine cuisine as well as most Asian countries. But did you know that if you have Inflammatory Bowel Disease, rice may be one of the things you have to give up to allow your gut to heal, especially during a flare-up?
Tabo Appreciation Post
Tabo (also known as dipper) is essential to a Filipino bathroom. It is used for bathing and, most importantly, for making sure you execute #2 successfully, leaving your derriere immaculately clean.
The Gluten-Free Pandesal Experiment
Since I was diagnosed with colitis, pandesal was one of the Filipino foods I had to remove from my diet because it contains gluten. I do not have celiac disease, but I do have gluten-intolerance. I noticed that my body just cannot process gluten the same way it used to. Either I'd get cramps or indigestion, and I'd always end up feeling bloated.
Well hello, Colitis.
I wish we never met, but here we are โ 7 years and counting. I didn't realize that you were never going away. Akala ko mawawala ka rin. It was July 2014 when I first "met" you โ you revealed yourself in the most glamorous way โ in the form of bloody diarrhea.