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“What are infusions like?”
Read MoreIntravenous simply means ‘into a vein’. Medicines and other fluids can be given directly via a vein into your bloodstream. A fine tube, called a cannula, is inserted into a vein, usually in your arm or hand, using a needle. The cannula is then connected by an IV line (a long, thin tube) to an […]
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Never Give Up Hope
Read MoreEvery October and November, I feel nostalgic. I feel the swirl of memories flood my mind, of being taken back to days in the hospital for treatment, of being hooked up to an IV stand. The first time was October 2013, when I moved from Humira to Infliximab. Going from an at-home self-injection to a […]
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Being [Unexpectedly] Medication Free for a Year
Read MoreI remember vividly two days that began my journey with Vedolizumab; “she returned my call, the long and short of it being that “no, this isn’t working“; agreeing with my doubts since Monday. It’s not a decision to be taken lightly and it certainly wasn’t a happy and cheerful conversation but it was honest and […]
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New Beginnings & IBD Remission
Read MoreNew Decade, New Year, New Beginning. It seems to flow nicely, that sentence, doesn’t it? Of course, most beginnings don’t present themselves or occur so succinctly as a new calendar month, let alone year. Which makes a new beginning at new year, feels too neat for my sceptical mind. And even more so when this […]
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Vedolizumab – Two Years On
Read MoreThird Time Lucky Between October 2015 and September 2017, I started Vedolizumab three times. The first time – October 2015 until February 2016, I was the second patient – first female – at my hospital to receive Vedolizumab as it was only NICE approved that summer and available on the NHS from September. It was […]
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Life Lately | The Triple
Read MoreThe Triple Hi there, hello, welcome. They say things come in threes right? Well, that’s definitely true for me and my health. And this year has begun to already feel like the mother of all triples. These last ten days or so have been feeling like a triple, all of it’s own. Propranolol At the end […]
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Side Effects of Medication: When to Call it Quits
Read MoreDisclaimer: This information is based on my own personal experience with Crohn’s medications and should not be used as medical advice. My medication regimes and processes are part of the IBD protocols set out by NICE, the CCG overseeing the NHS Trust and my specific hospital/s. If you seek advice regarding the medications best suited […]
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Taking Steroids for an IBD flare up whilst living with an Ostomy
Read MoreDisclaimer: this is an expanded version of a previous post – IBD Basics: Corticosteriods which will now cover how to take steroids, how they work within the digestive tract and how this affected when having a stoma. Disclaimer: This information is based on my own personal experience with Crohn’s medications and should not be used as […]
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Life Lately | Vedolizumab Side Effects
Read MoreWhen I feel ill last summer, I was given the opportunity to start Vedolizumab again. For the third time. At the time, I was given a ‘that speech’ about the risks and benefits of this medication and what it could do to me. You get this every time you start something new, it is a […]
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Vedolizumab: A Rocky New Start
Read MoreHave you ever wanted to just get through something, so you can start to feel better? That’s how I’ve felt about this pending infusion. I’m not one to rush through something, to just reach the end and say it’s over and done with, I appreciate my struggle and woes as much as I appreciate and […]
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Life Lately | All This Familiar ‘Newness’
Read MoreThis feels oddly familiar. I’m not sure I like it. I’ve found that this phrase gets said alot in regards to my Crohn’s Disease. Things come and go in waves, in cycles some years and they almost always feel like deju vu. But for the most part, the fact that they are familiar gives me a certain ability […]
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Vedolizumab: Here We Go Again – Third Times a Charm
Read MoreToday 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 […]
Latest Posts
My lovely surgeon has got my EUA booked in for next Thursday! Had a call for booking the plethora of pre op stuff that’s comes into it too - pre op consult and covid test (+ isolation)
😲🥴🤭
Spent the last 90 minutes coordinating, updating and checking my diaries. Yes, DIARIES.
Study. Health. Appointments. Reminders. Household planning.
For the next couple weeks I know what I’m doing! A good thing too, with upcoming surgery 😉