When Laura Zapulla first received a diagnosis of Crohn's disease, an autoimmune condition that causes debilitating inflammation in the intestinal tract, she didn’t know what to think.
“I knew something wasn’t right,” she says. “But I had never heard of Crohn’s disease before.”
Four years after her diagnosis, in 2013, surgeons removed Zapulla’s rectum and colon. Now, with a colostomy bag in tow, she’s living her best life. It includes frequent vacations throughout Europe and outdoor adventures, which she documents on her blog, Stomalicious. But it wasn’t always so easy along the way.
“I tried all these different medications to try to bring the inflammation down. Some of them worked for a short time, but, inevitably, my symptoms would come back again,” she says. “I was in and out of the hospital, and I got to the end of what was left to try from a medication point.”
