I want to support people mentally who suffer with any type of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD).
I have Crohn’s disease so I know how tough things can get. From planning trips loo-by-loo, hospital tests, drugs and surgery. It’s not pretty and it can get people down very easily.
My first flare hospitalised me in 2006, which is when they diagnosed me. They can’t tell which disease I have so my diagnosis has changed from Crohn’s to Ulcerative Colitis and back again depending on what kind of treatment they wanted to try out on me!
My colon has been removed and I had an ileostomy for two years, which was reversed and now I have a jpouch. In general, my health is good and I feel very lucky considering some of the traumatic experiences I’ve gone through!
Which brings me back to why I want to help people with this disease. It’s mighty embarrassing at times and I hope that talking to me about things might be easier as you know I’ve been there too.
You can find out more about IBD at Crohn’s & Colitis UK who have a great website full of information and support for people diagnosed with the disease.