‘Different is beautiful’: Montreal content creator inspires by posing with ostomy bag
Posted April 22, 2024 12:39 pm.
Last Updated April 22, 2024 6:37 pm.
She’s been modelling and creating content around the world, but that journey began less than a year ago.
Meet Montrealer, Sara Levitt who says her biggest challenge has become her biggest blessing — the Crohn’s disease and Ileostomy advocate now sharing her inspiring story.
“I really discovered who I was as a person,” said Levitt. “It felt liberating.”
A photo of herself posing confidently in a bikini, with her ostomy bag showing, was a gift to herself on her 29th birthday back in September — This marked the first time she shared her story in a social media media post.
Since the age of three, Levitt has been living with colitis which then progressed to Crohn’s disease — an inflammatory bowel disease.
“I’ve had five surgeries in my life,” she said. “My first surgery was May 2, 2008, which is a big reason of why we’re here today and what this photoshoot symbolizes to me.”
The photoshoot, to celebrate her Stomaversary –- the anniversary of when one received their ostomy surgery.
“In my case, it’s an ileostomy now,” she explained. “It’s a permanent ileostomy, meaning I don’t have a booty hole.”
“We refer to an Ostomate as myself as a Barbie butt for obvious reasons, the booty don’t function.”
“The ileostomy,” added Levitt. “Is there with me my whole life, her name is Liv.”
It’ll be 16 years since Levitt underwent a seven-hour surgery where parts of her large intestine were removed — this year’s Stomaversary, the first one she is celebrating publicly.
“This is the first year that having built the community that I have and being open about it and fully embracing myself for every part of me including Liv, I’m able to celebrate it openly,” said the content creator with over 11,000 Instagram followers. “I’ve created a wicked outfit.”
“This outfit symbolizes all of my advocacy work,” explained Levitt at the photoshoot in Montreal over the weekend. “Since I posted this first picture on my feed, September 26, for my birthday last year.”
From that first Instagram post, to a photo of when she was at her sickest — the outfit also includes other printouts that give a glimpse into her recent advocacy work, raising awareness and representation within the fashion industry.
“It took a lot of years to work on my self-confidence and work on my self-love,” said Levitt. “And make ostomy life a blessing and not a curse in which how it felt when I first woke up with my bag.”
From brands like Ardene, La Vie en Rose to being the first ostomate to be featured in Maxim Australia Magazine –- Levitt is now proud to show that: “Different is beautiful.”
