Your dreams and goals that you have before an Ostomy are still attainable and within reach even after an Ostomy.

This is something today's guest Keyla taught me through getting to know her and in this podcast.

Charlotte has only had her ostomy for a few years, but in that short time, she has truly inspired people. 

She is empowering and vulnerable at the same time and it really is such an amazing quality to have and is so rare to find. 

Talking with Kimberly gave me goosebumps… Her inspiration is so profound and it is such a beautiful thing how she is reclaiming her life after beating cancer and receiving her Ostomy.

"This device doesn’t mean it is the end. It's actually a beautiful beginning. My ostomy has given me 5 extra birthdays with my family." - Kimberly Coleman

“Don’t let having an Ostomy stop you from living your life and THRIVING!” -Ryan Van Voorhis

In today’s podcast, I got to sit down with @rvanvoorhis who is a Chron’s survivor and has had his Ostomy for just over 20 years!

He is also the owner of @nudedudefood and he is doing what he loves and what inspires him! (you have to check him out, the food on his page…. I get hungry every time he posts something new!)

Then there was World Ostomy Day! It is very rare that World Ostomy Day and Ostomy Awareness Day fall on the exact same day/date. I have been planning for this for a few months. I launched the World Ostomy Day episode on the podcast, I participated in the UOAA virtual 5K, the Hollister video with the kids, my girl Jearlean made a video featuring some of us and what was really great was to see the amount of people on social media sharing their stories and speaking out! I am so proud of everyone and so happy to be a part of this community! We are working really hard to break the stigma around being in an ostomy and it is working. Ostomies give people a second chance in life and we should make sure to honor that!

I cannot wait for you all to hear this week’s special episode for WORLD OSTOMY DAY 2021! I have had the opportunity to get to know each one of this special ladies and their stories are incredible! Today we talk about, what World Ostomy Day means to each of us and as a whole, confidence in front of people, the top 3 tips for taking care of your skin, dressing for success, and our go-to outfits.

Guys I could cry! I had the honor of participating in Hollister Incorporated’s video with some other ostomates and children. I flew to Milwaukee on a Wednesday afternoon, btw I have never been to Milwaukee before. I didn’t get to my hotel until 10pm so didn’t get to see much. I woke up the next morning and headed to the studio at 9:30 am.

When I got there I got to meet Elina and some of the rest of the team from Hollister along with the film crew. I also got to meet in person one of my ostomate sisters, Stephanie. Stephanie has been on my podcast previously and is also going to be on this weeks World Ostomy Day’s podcast episode, which I will be writing about next! A little bit later I also met Collin another ostomate who will be on the podcast in a few weeks. He has a great story so be sure to stay tuned for that!

I had the privilege this week to interview Nina Hayes, she is a nutritionist and yoga teacher who travels between LA, Tulum, Mexico and also does retreats in Bali. Tulum and Bali are definitely on my bucket list, are they on yours?

Kya’s story started as a teenager and was definitely a wild ride for a few years!⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

She went from having an Ostomy to a j-pouch, then while she was pregnant with her first child, had surgery for an Ostomy.

She is such an inspiration and has so much courage speaking on this and helping others so that they are not afraid to ask questions and talk about their ostomy.

Angie Davenport is a special guest because she is actually our first guest that was pregnant when she had her early stages of Ulcer Colitis!

And shortly after giving birth to her son, she had to have a life-saving surgery which resulted in having an Ostomy and she has had one for 39 years!

I sat down with Meghan this week to answer some questions many of you may have or have been wondering.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

Can I really work out!? The answer my friends is YESS!!⠀⠀⠀⠀

The number one reason I think why you need to work out with or without an Ostomy is so that YOU CAN FEEL GOOD!!!

From super healthy, to waking up with intense pain from a kidney stone, to finding cancer within such a short period of time at the beginning of 2020.
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Tom’s life changed dramatically with 1 visit to the ER.

My mission is to bring awareness to an Ostomy as well as normalizing it! Even with a bag, we can still wear bathing suits and feel confident in what we put on.
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We don’t have to hide our bodies.
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Instead, I want you to embrace your body.

Guess what today is?????

It's "Ivan's 4th Birthday!!!!!

Four years ago today my amazing Drs, Dr Leslie Demars and Dr Joga Ivatury removed a huge tumor out of my pelvis and I woke up ALIVE and in a colostomy which I named (Ivan) after Dr Ivatury, for life.

Well I did a thing! I know, I know I am always doing a thing lol. I have been posting about Ivan a lot more and the United Ostomy Associations of America asked if they could feature me and Ivan on their website to help grow ostomy awareness! I feel so honored and blessed to help as many people as I can.  Read the Article Here.

If we haven’t met let me introduce myself. My name is LeeAnne Hayden.
I am 49 years old.
I am a wife, mother and Gigi to the most amazing beings on this earth.
I am surrounded by the best friends on the planet.
I was diagnosed with a sarcoma tumor that grew from the size of a racket ball into a nerf football in less than 4 months in the fall of 2015. My amazing doctors removed it after 2 surgeries and 9 hours in the second one. It left me in a colostomy bag for life.