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As a teen with Crohn’s disease, I have had to face the difficulties of the disease and its flare ups. I started Someone Like Me: V’IBD Teens and V’IBD Events hoping to help other kids with Crohn’s and colitis deal with the challenges of IBD and to let them know that they are not alone. I wanted to help build a positive community where kids with Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis could support and inspire each other.
When I had my first flare up, I didn’t know anyone my age that had similar experiences to me. I felt really alone and scared, and I don’t want other kids to feel like I did. With Someone Like Me: V’IBD Teens and V’IBD Events, I hope to bring young people like me together and show them that they are not alone, and that their disease does not define them.
Through Someone Like Me: V’IBD Teens and V’IBD Events, we as a community of young people with IBD can connect with each other and help each other to feel hopeful and confident about our futures. We can support each other through the lows, and celebrate together through the highs. I want all kids with IBD to get back to living their best lives.
This page acts as an introduction to the protected Someone Like Me: V’IBD Teens page and community that I founded for kids and teens with IBD. This is a quick rundown of what you’ll find on that page and how to use our site:
First, I hope you’ll request access to the V’IBD Teens protected page (form below) to learn more about some of our amazing peers, be inspired by their life stories and journey with IBD and to join our awesome community.
Second, if you’re feeling alone or struggling with your diagnosis and want to connect to a friend for support, I hope you’ll contact us to be connected with one of our V’IBD Teens Ambassadors who understands what you’re going through. We got your back!
Last but not least, if you just want to meet someone like you, learn about how to become a V’IBD Teens Ambassador and help other out, or join our fun upcoming events and cool experiences where you can hang out and just be who you are, this is the place! Hope to meet you there soon!
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Complete the form to request access to the page. If you already have access, you can use the button below to enter your password.
Our V’IBD Teens Page is a password protected site for teens once they have been vetted to ensure the safety and integrity of our programming.
On that site, teens share, give encouragement to each other and find comfort in a uniquely safe environment. This area is periodically monitored for safety purposes only.
Yo, what’s up, this is Elie!
Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis affect a bunch of people, and a lot of teens too. It can be hard to cope with being diagnosed and having a chronic illness. But my mission with our Someone Like Me: V’IBD Teens and V’IBD Teens Events is to provide support to teens that are having a hard time coping with a recent diagnosis, flare up, or just a hard time accepting that they have the disease. I want to let them know they are not alone.
And most importantly, this disease does not define you. Don’t put your life on hold because you have sub-par intestines.
Don’t let this disease hold you back.
Through Someone Like Me: V’IBD Teens and V’IBD Teen Events, I want to create a positive space where we can support each other through the lows of disease and celebrate the highs. I’m helping to build this community so that teens with IBD have a space to feel supported and understood when they need it. I also want to share in celebrating each other’s successes and have a positive place to go to – a place where we are always reminded to not let the disease hold us back.
Sometimes an IBD diagnosis can leave you feeling lonely, scared and confused. There’s no greater support than connecting with someone who is experiencing a similar journey or diagnosis who has succeeded in getting back to living their best life.
Our V’IBD Teen Ambassadors are here for you and we hope to meet you here soon!
IBD Strong, Inc. (“IBD Strong”) is a California nonprofit public benefit corporation recognized as a tax-exempt public charity under Section 501(c)(3) (EIN: 87-3942355), which operates through a fiscal sponsorship with The Oscar Litwak Foundation (EIN: 20-0334816), a California nonprofit public benefit corporation recognized as a tax-exempt public charity under Section 501(c)(3). Contributions to IBD Strong are tax-deductible to the fullest extent of the law.
Hi my name is Elie. I was diagnosed with Crohn’s when I was twelve, which marked an influential time in my life. It can be hard to cope with the fact of being diagnosed and having a chronic illness. Even though my dad has Crohns too, I didn’t know everything about it. But I did see that regardless of his diagnosis, my dad followed his passions and was doing what he was meant to do. My doctor was very supportive and also encouraged me to not let the disease define me. I had to learn how to manage my new reality and get back to living my life. And that’s what I did. It wasn’t always easy, but it was possible. In time, I have learned many things about myself, and I have learned many positive lessons of self resilience and finding hope in tough situations that I look forward to sharing with kids similar to me. With my V’IBD Teens page and community, I hope to bring light into kids and teens’ lives and inspire them to live to the fullest.
My name is Serena. I was diagnosed at age 10 after quickly becoming severely ill during a family vacation. I didn’t think it was that big of a deal at first. I thought I would just get some medicine and be done with it. My doctor and family really made sure that I had people to look up to and that I wasn’t alone. That I still had a normal life and kept up with friends, sports and everything else that I loved to do. Right now I have an ileostomy and at first it was hard just to love myself and my body. It took time to get used to it. A life lesson I learned was that It takes patience. It’s tough right now but everything is temporary. I say I’m normal and I’m happy now. Even though I have an ileostomy, I’m probably not as normal as other people but it makes me happy and I play basketball, I’m driving, I have friends and I don’t let Crohn’s run my life.
Hi, my name is Ibrahim. Receiving a diagnosis for a lifelong condition was initially very overwhelming, however, this diagnosis provided me with a vocabulary to process my IBD and find others who could support me through this experience. Young adulthood allows us the chance to discover who we are and what we want to do with our lives but I initially felt that my choices were limited due to my disease. Seeing how much I was able to overcome as well as receiving support from peers in the IBD community encouraged me to not give up on my dream of becoming a clinician. I want to show other patients that we bring the resilience that we have developed as a result of this diagnosis to the rest of our lives and can surmount any challenge that comes our way.
Asher is a teenager from Westchester, New York. He was diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease when he was eight years old. Following a family trip to Mexico, Asher came down with what seemed like a stomach bug. As a young kid, he didn’t think to tell his parents until several months later that the upset stomach never really went away. Meanwhile, he had not gained weight in over in a year. His doctor told him to try to eat more fats like butter and avocado. After watching Asher continue to get skinnier and skinnier, his parents grew increasingly concerned and started taking him to additional doctors. Finally, he was diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease. It was scary to hear he had a “disease,” but it was also a relief to know why he hadn’t been feeling well. It took some time to find the right medicine for him, but slowly, he started to feel better. Still, gaining weight was extremely hard.
Finally, at age 13, Asher decided to take control. He began to study nutrition and exercise, learning from trial and error. Over the past couple of years, he has gained nearly fifty pounds, including a lot of muscle. He loves to spend time in the gym, finding that it helps clear his head and is as important for his mental health as it is for his physical health. He wants to share what he has learned with other teens and provide encouragement and support for others just getting started or looking to improve their fitness in any way.
Hello, my name is Ani. When I was first diagnosed I felt very defeated. I was a girl going into High School and I felt alone and unsure of what the future would entail. My symptoms were really bad. It felt like they were holding me back from doing what I love; dancing and going to school. I was bed ridden for three months straight unable to do those things. I wasn’t sure if I would ever be able to dance again because I was so sick, I wasn’t eating and it was really hard on my body. But, I realized through time that I could do anything that I wanted to keep doing whether that’s dance or school or pursuing any goals of mine. I realized that Crohn’s is only a part of me and it wouldn’t define my goals and my life. So, I decided to look it in the face, take back those months that I missed, and get back to my life. I went from being in my bed for three months to dancing on the field at Rose Bowl. I hope I can touch other people like me who are struggling with IBD and help show them that having this disease should not limit you from achieving your goals.
My name’s Coco and I have ulcerative colitis. I was diagnosed in December of 2020 after spending nearly 3 weeks bed-ridden in the hospital. I had lost 30 pounds and spent Christmas in the hospital that year. It was probably one of the worst experiences of my life. But now, looking back on it, living with a chronic illness has not only given me maturity and courage, but it’s also gifted me with more strength than I ever thought I could have. Two years ago, I couldn’t even fathom getting better. It just seemed so out of reach. But now, thanks to the help of medical treatment, my friends and family, and most importantly, the amazing Dr. Rabizadeh, I’m here, back to living my normal life.
Last year, I attended IBD Strong’s V’IBD Benefit Concert to Fight Crohn’s & Colitis. For the first time since my diagnosis, I felt that I found a community with other teens fighting this debilitating disease to call my home. IBD Strong is so important to me and it has made a huge impact on my life. Ever since I was diagnosed with IBD, I had always felt lonely, like I was the only one in the world who struggled with this disease. Then, I became part of IBD Strong and that feeling of loneliness went away. Meeting other teens who also suffer with IBD and are living their lives felt like a breath of fresh air.
I joined IBD strong’s V’IBD Teens as an Ambassador and most recently Director of Youth Outreach because I want to be the person that scared, weak girl in the hospital needed. The person who the girl fighting to get in remission needed. The person the girl standing on stage at the VIBD benefit concert needs. I want to show people like me that there is a light at the end of the tunnel, and that they will get better. I want to be there for them when they feel as if they’re fighting this battle alone.
If anyone out there out there is struggling with Crohn’s or colitis, feeling alone with this disease or just want someone to talk to that understands what they’re going through, please visit and ask to join our V’IBD Teens private FB page to connect, build community and for updates on the LiveStream to our upcoming V’IBD Benefit Concert to Fight Crohn’s & Colitis.
Can’t wait to meet you there!!
