That’s why they call me the ✨original ostomy model ✨

It was 15 years ago today that I came out, baring it all, showing the world that an ostomy isn’t a terrible thing. It was 15 years ago when the ostomy community thought I was “just a model wearing an ostomy bag for attention,” instead of a real ostomate – crazy, right?

In ‘09, it was extremely uncommon to see anyone, let alone a young woman like myself, with an ostomy, and even rarer to see someone being proud to show it off, talk about it, and embrace it. So when I hit the internet with Uncover Ostomy to teach the public about the life-saving surgery, it was my own community who didn’t want to hear or see it!

I still remember searching the term “ostomy” and finding only academic journals, medical devices, and horrid photos of the worst of what having an ostomy could mean. There was no one who looked like me, no one my age, and nowhere to go to find others facing the same body/life-altering situation. In ‘09 my community said “keep quiet,” because “no one wanted to hear our story.”

Man, how wrong they were.

15 years later and the ostomy has become a more widely accepted and understood medical intervention. When I tell people about my ileostomy now, they have some idea of what it is. I’m asked to model with my bag showing, because it’s not something to be ashamed of. When I’m published in magazines or on TV news, people react positively online instead of making snarky or rude remarks like would happen back then.

Most important, patients needing surgery are now opting instead of running away, remaining in pain from chronic illness or facing terrible outcomes from cancer. What used to be a doctor’s last ditch effort has become a much more accepted solution to living with disease.

The change in the public conversation has not only allowed those with ostomies feel more confident in themselves, but it has allowed others to accept surgery to save their lives. 

Sure, I’m getting older and less “relevant” now that I’m in my 30’s (GASP! A 30+ yo model?), but that doesn’t matter. Because, in  watching the world change over the last 15 years, I can confidently sit back and say “I did that.”