Today has been bittersweet. I feel like I’ve said that a lot, but the excitement of actually getting back into this whole ‘back on biological medication’ routine has taken over the fact that this was my last outpatient appointment at my hospital. If you’ve been following me for a while, you’ll know that I relocated at the start of the summer for a new job – read more here and…
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“It is okay to be angry at your situation sometimes”
I feel some normality returning to my bones, some of my personality coming back. Some of my fight, a strong part of my need to write, seeping out of my fingers. The realisation here is that: IBD is unpredictable. And that particular mental battle is a topic for another day, some time soon. Sometimes you just have to laugh. No seriously, you do. Through wet eyes, I sat on my…
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The Return of… Everything
You always want to believe your consultant when they say “maybe we’ll be able to go a couple of years without any medications or big issues“. You believe because that is the sort of IBD dream isn’t it; managing without medical intervention? It was for me, back in June at my last appointment; full of confused optimism. Fast forward not even six weeks and I was bed bound, in constant…
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Six Years On – Diagnosis
It was a desperately horrible August, 2011. I’d never suffered with health problems, but this current run of feeling unwell just wasn’t going away. If anything, every day, it got worse. So much that weeks had passed and I just could not remember the last time I had eaten a meal, the last time I’d had a solid BM and the last time I hadn’t been sick. I was a…
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Happy Stomaversary!
What I’ve Achieved in Twelve Months with my Ostomy Well, me and Priscilla have been belly buddies for a whole year today. It feels like such a long time but it also feels like nothing, like I’ve clicked my fingers and here we are. But what have I done in these twelve months since that fateful day of ostomy surgery? I survived another surgery! That would make two…
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The Highs and Lows of Hospital Stays
I’ve just spent a week in hospital, unexpectedly. Now I am no stranger to prolonged spells in a hospital bed. But this time, this was different. New city, new hospital, new problems. I am still processing all the new information so bear with me, this isn’t going to be all about what has gone on but more about what its like to spend time in hospital when youre chronically and…
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Life Lately | Being Organised
I am in my element, when I am planning and organising. I like the lists. The to-do’s to make. The notes to make. The feeling of accomplishment when things are in their place. The relief I have when things have been done my way, to my particular schedule. But it runs deeper than just that. Why do I like to be organised? Some of it comes from having a plan and…
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The What and Why: Vitamin B12
Disclaimer: This information is based on my own research into this particular aspect of IBD as well as some personal experience and should not be used as medical advice or a diagnostic tool. The suggestions given within are taken from sources laid out in the references header. If you seek advice regarding the things you experience within your own disease, please contact your IBD team for medical advice. If you are looking for the…
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Life Lately | The Guilt, Oh The Guilt
Disclaimer: This post is not happy and positive. Sorry, not sorry. Anyone who follows me, or reads this blog will realise there has been a little bit of a lull in my posting. And somehow feel like there is an explanation due as to why. There are good and bad reasons to why I’ve been unusually quiet in my sharing of my experiences of living with chronic illness. And they may…