IBD, ostomy, life and me!

This was my #ccuk story that I shared in 2014 for World IBD day. I shared it with my immediate colleagues at work as part of a cake sale that I held in our work room. This year, with whole buildings going purple and, alongside a colleague we upped the awareness raising stakes. We organised a college wide bake sale and invited staff and students to #gopurple! As part of the promotion of our bake sale I sent an email out to all staff in the building with a link to some earlier blog posts. I hoped staff would read these and understand why World IBD Day is so important and why we need to raise awareness of both Crohn's and Colitis! I know people followed the links and read the posts....I can monitor the traffic on my blog and it was great, if not slightly terrifying to know that potentially everyone I work in the same building as knew that I have a Stoma and an ostomy bag! But that is how we are going to raise awareness , not by hiding but by putting ourselves and our stories o...

I find it hard to believe that I have had my stoma for nearly 3 years. Life is so different now than it was in early 2012. I am a completely different person. I am healthy, fit, strong and able to share a fulfilling life with my family. For that I am eternally grateful. I have blogged before about the final operation that I need to remove my rectal stump. I have put it off until now as I haven't been ready to face another operation. But now I am  - in my head it is time. It is time for closure on this. I had my annual EUA in December - while I was talking to the surgeon about the procedure he asked what was next. I said that I wanted the op done. He then said that he was retiring on March 31 but he thought he could fit it in before then!!!! That's slightly earlier than I anticipated but at least it will be done. Although this is a major operation and I am not underestimating it at all I also know that I am in a very different place from when I had the last op. I am fit an...