It’s all about the mental health with guest Chium
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Intro (0:00)
This week’s guest is Chium and we met on Instagram.
She was out there with her Ostomy working out, doing all that fun stuff I love and I just needed to know her because she is such an inspiration out there!
Start Of Her Story (00:55)
Had her Ostomy due to an emergency situation in 2018.
In and out of the hospital dealing with her Crohn’s and flare-ups.
Not in a great place at all.
During a routine colonoscopy, they found a perforation in my colon which led to having the Ostomy put in.
Have had it since then, and now she is able to live a much better quality of life than she had before and what she thought she was capable of.
A blessing in disguise.
Ileostomy - not yet permanent. Still remains to be seen.
At the time of the surgery, it was the idea of being temporary because of the issues that popped up.
Still need to go through the procedure and have it assessed to see if it can be reversed.
Right now it will be there for a bit.
Was a complete surprise when coming out of the procedure.
Knew it could have been a possibility, but never expected it to become a reality.
She was doing very poorly and what was happening with her bowels, was a thought that was in the back of her mind that it could happen.
Not having time to research and understand what it was and how it could benefit held her back at first.
Experiences Post Surgery (4:34)
Was a lot of mental processing afterward because it was a shock.
Her body changing so drastically and something synthetic is now a part of you with this taboo topic and stigma of POOP!
The mental hurdle you have to get over is that this is not taking away from you and making you less of who you are.
A huge wall was put up. Attractiveness, sex appeal, her pride, all took a huge hit.
At first, I did not do much to get through that.
Sat in self-pity and feeling bad.
Got to a point where it became such an effortless process that somehow it clicked that it is not a big deal!
Not sure when or what happened, but somehow clicked.
The first part of getting over the hit her pride took.
Decided she has been dealt this card and she can either choose to sit and wallow or do something.
Didn’t want her children to constantly see her like that either.
Coming Out And Being Social After (9:12)
When did you start going on social media and saying WOAH there are a bunch of people out there going through what you did.
Before this was not active on social media at all.
Facebook was for family and the extent of social media.
Felt so isolated and did have that click, I knew that I wasn’t the only one going through this. There are more people out there.
Wanted someone else in this situation to maybe avoid a little bit of what I went through.
This is why I started on Instagram to post anything I could.
Discovered other individuals.
750,000 to 1 million people in the US with Ostomies
Though it was a smaller community and no one likes to talk about this.
Remember seeing something and being blown away by the number of people living with this.
Was a sad moment because so many people living with this and it's so hidden.
Part of the stigma is just older people who deal with this and this adds to the shame when you are younger.
Someone else’s journey helped you, now your journey is helping other people!
What Are You Doing On A Daily Basis To Work On Your Health, Your Messaging & Mental Health (15:00)
There are days when you don’t want to do anything and veg out, and I think that helps my mental health, you do need those days.
Should have to be on the go and in a constant state of rush.
If I feel tired, I do a better job of listening to myself and telling myself to take a break.
Tried to be more self-reflective and take a hard look at myself.
Started in the hospital when recovering from surgery.
Recognized I needed to change the way I was eating and approach food with a more open mindset.
Starting with food opened the door to educating myself on other things.
Exercise came next.
Realized I was not active which is probably playing a huge role in being over-stressed, inflamed, and other things.
Found out about the gym, different exercises.
Understand what I am going to do.
Worked with a personal trainer to feel more comfortable.
Didn’t want to do anything to hinder me because of the Ostomy.
Trainer pushed me to get out of my corner, but kept it within a reasonable pace and allowed me to feel comfortable.
Did end up with Peristomal Hernia in the long run because I went from being a sedentary person to trying to work out 5-6 times a week.
Recently I had surgery for that hernia.
So that concern was big for me in the beginning but I didn't realize how easy it can pop up.
When I started to really educate myself on nutrition and exercise and get into it, walking is better and really good for you.
Closing (24:50)
If there was one thing you would want to say to the listeners, what would that thing be?
Having an Ostomy is a way to get your life back under control.
It may not be what you thought or what you envisioned, but it definitely is a new door opening up to help you, not hinder you.
Find her on Instagram
@Chium816