How an Ulcerative Colitis Flare Changed My Career
Health ConditionsDigestive HealthUlcerative Colitis

My Story: How Ulcerative Colitis Changed My Path

After a particularly bad ulcerative colitis flare landed Abigail Marie VanHoose in the hospital, she knew she had to focus exclusively on her health — and found purpose again in the kitchen.

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Published on March 4, 2026
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This is part 2 of   My Story: Ulcerative Colitis, a series exploring what it’s really like to live with a chronic illness. Read part 1 and part 3.

I was very lucky to still have my colon.
— Abigail Marie VanHoose

A ll her life, Abigail Marie VanHoose, 31, dreamed of becoming a chef. But just as she was starting to climb the culinary ladder, working on a sauté line at a busy restaurant in North Carolina, she was diagnosed with moderate-to-severe left-sided ulcerative colitis (UC).

Abigail tried to push through the pain. During flares, she worked grueling, 12-hour shifts while making up to 40 trips to the bathroom a day. But the long hours in a hot kitchen were taking a toll. So, on the advice of her doctor, she sought another job, this time at a local wine shop, where the steady hours and climate-controlled environment were easier on her body. But the pay was significantly less.

“I kind of just took a step back,” she says. “I had to take that financial hit to do something I could do.”

In and Out of the Hospital

In summer 2022, Abigail had a severe flare. She was put on high doses of prednisone, and while her flare seemed to be under control, the medication side effects took another toll, both physically and emotionally. Her face swelled up (giving her “moon face”); she developed acne; and she experienced constant sweating, intense hunger, and pronounced mood swings.

“It was a roller coaster,” says Abigail. “I was angry and had panicky sensations.”

Abigail was released from the hospital after a week, but she spent the next three months making repeated trips to the emergency room, with brief gaps in between stays. Only 24 hours passed before the second admission, and 12 hours separated the second and third.

Doctors continued IV steroids and monitored her closely, yet she began losing dangerous amounts of blood and became severely anemic. Her hemoglobin dropped far below the normal level, and she had to have three blood transfusions.

“I was very, very sick,” she says.

A Colon-Saving Attempt

After being discharged from the hospital, Abigail tried to make her way to the bathroom and collapsed. At this point, she was weak and using a walker. She had lost more than 30 pounds and a significant amount of muscle. When paramedics arrived, her blood pressure was so low, it wouldn’t register. “I remember thinking the blood pressure cuff must be broken,” she says.

Abigail was rushed back to the hospital, where she received another blood transfusion and was admitted to intensive care. At this point, her colon was dangerously inflamed, putting her at risk of perforation. Her care team decided to try one last approach: a seven-day course of a Janus kinase inhibitor.

 If the medication failed, she would need a total colectomy, a procedure that would remove her colon.
Luckily, the medication worked, and her symptoms eased. “I was very lucky to still have my colon,” says Abigail.

Back in the Kitchen — This Time at Home

Although the medication was life saving, it also suppressed Abigail’s immune system, increasing her risk of infection. Her doctors advised against returning to the wine shop. “Because I was immunocompromised, working in a busy retail setting wasn’t safe,” she says.
@chef.with.ibd POV: you have a chronic illness and are having a rough healthy day and someone calls to cancel plans with you first ✨ me pretending I’m not secretly relieved 😅 #chronicillnesshumor #chronicillnessawareness #spoonielife #healthtok #foryoupage ♬ original sound - Chef with IBD

She took a leave of absence and passed the time the only way she knew how: cooking. This time, though, it was just for herself. Now, with a new focus on her health, she turned to what she could control — her diet — eliminating trigger foods and using her culinary skills to make UC-friendly meals more flavorful.

“I have a culinary arts degree,” she says. ”I love cooking. I love being in the kitchen. So I started doing recipes for me.”

This new venture was the first step toward her next chapter: becoming active on Instagram (@chefwithibd) and creating accessible, anti-inflammatory recipes for others in the community who want to support gut health and enjoy food, too.

EDITORIAL SOURCES
Everyday Health follows strict sourcing guidelines to ensure the accuracy of its content, outlined in our editorial policy. We use only trustworthy sources, including peer-reviewed studies, board-certified medical experts, patients with lived experience, and information from top institutions.
Resources
  1. Low Hemoglobin. Cleveland Clinic. May 4, 2022.
  2. In Brief: How Is Blood Pressure Measured? InformedHealth.org. July 3, 2024.
  3. Steenholdt C et al. Tofacitinib for Acute Severe Ulcerative Colitis: A Systematic Review. Journal of Crohn’s and Colitis. August 2023.
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Yuying Luo, MD

Medical Reviewer

Yuying Luo, MD, is an assistant professor of medicine at Mount Sinai West and Morningside in New York City. She aims to deliver evidence-based, patient-centered, and holistic care for her patients.

Her clinical and research focus includes patients with disorders of gut-brain interaction such as irritable bowel syndrome and functional dyspepsia; patients with lower gastrointestinal motility (constipation) disorders and defecatory and anorectal disorders (such as dyssynergic defecation); and women’s gastrointestinal health.

She graduated from Harvard with a bachelor's degree in molecular and cellular biology and received her MD from the NYU Grossman School of Medicine. She completed her residency in internal medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, where she was also chief resident. She completed her gastroenterology fellowship at Mount Sinai Hospital and was also chief fellow.

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Susan Jara

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Susan Jara is a health communications strategist and writer with more than 15 years of experience transforming complex medical information into clear, accurate, and engaging content for diverse audiences of patients and caregivers. She specializes in patient education, health literacy, and SEO-driven content strategy, with expertise across chronic disease, mental health, addiction, arthritis, autoimmune conditions, and wellness.

Susan holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism and media studies from New York University’s Gallatin School of Individualized Study. Her career includes leadership roles at the Global Healthy Living Foundation and Health Monitor Network, where she developed multichannel health content across web, email, podcasts, video, social media, and print. Susan's work reaches millions of readers each year, and she collaborates with leading healthcare providers, researchers, advocacy groups, and industry partners to create resources that reach millions of readers each year.

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