In my last post I wrote about the parallels I have noticed between life with Crohn’s and life these last few months with the Coronavirus pandemic, the first one being isolation.
The more I think about the experiences and emotions I’ve felt due to my Crohn’s, the more similarities I find to the current Covid-19 world. Here are a few more:
So here we are, five months into a new decade, and almost three months into our new (temporary) normal. Who would have thought when we saw in the New Year, watching the fireworks shoot up over the London Eye and hearing Big Ben chime midnight, that this is where we would be just a few months later? We all had plans for the year ahead. We took for granted being able to ride the tube, go to work, send our children to school, have a beer at the pub with our friends, hug our family.
Fast forward a few months and most of the world is in lockdown thanks to a pandemic called coronavirus or COVID 19. Our new normal is working from home (if we’re lucky enough to still have a job), only going out for essentials or daily exercise, being unable to travel to the next suburb let alone another country, socially distancing ourselves from friends, family, even strangers, and staying locked in our homes as much as possible.
Yet in some ways I feel like I have been through something similar before…
Over the last few months, I’ve contemplated how life with COVID 19 has many parallels to life with an inflammatory bowel disease like Crohn’s. Perhaps living with IBD (or another chronic illness) has even prepared me and made me better equipped to manage the current situation?
Hello Stoma-licious people! I hope everyone is doing well. I’ve finally decided to try and use this time to be a bit more dedicated than I have been of late on this page! I’m hoping to provide some interesting, insightful and fun content for you during the current lockdown! Read More »
This year celebrates two pretty important and awesome anniversaries. Crohn’s & Colitis UK (CCUK) turning 40, and yours truly turning 40 (eeeeeeek)!!!
So when I saw CCUK promoting a Falling for Forty tandem sky dive event taking place in October (the same month as my birthday), I thought what better way to celebrate these momentous occasions! It seemed the perfect opportunity to raise some money for a cause close to my heart plus do something really memorable for my big 40!!
Not all disabilities are visible. I know this! As the mother of a daughter with Crohn’s, I remember all too well the years of “Can’t Wait”, rushing to get to the nearest toilet, researching where the toilets were wherever we might be going, anxious train trips, anxious car trips, uncertainty about whether to push Laura to do things or encourage her to rest . . . yet her disability was largely invisible to the regular on looker – sure she was pale and thin, anxious and exhausted, but aside from that . . .
Have you heard of the Lofoten islands? Thanks to a friend at work, I found out about this incredible place in Norway, and it sounded like the perfect place to celebrate my husband Michael’s big ’40’ birthday! It’s as far north as we’ve ever been, at 68 degrees north of the Arctic circle. We were a little late for the midnight sun, and a little early for the northern lights, but it was still magnificent and some of the most beautiful natural scenery I’ve seen in my life!
Read More »
3 months ago today we landed at Heathrow airport. Bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, we were incredibly excited and eager to start our new life in London (which very nearly didn’t happen!).
So much has happened in that time, but one thing that hasn’t is my blogging! I’ve only written 2 posts in the last 3 months (my aim is 1 a week), so I do apologise for slacking off. I have been a little preoccupied!
I have so many things to write about I don’t know where to start! So on advice from my mum, I am just going to WRITE (otherwise it will be 2018 before I post again)!!
Yesterday was Mother’s Day in Australia. I am not a mother, but I am blessed to have lots of mothers in my life, including my beautiful, amazing mum Vivienne. I might be biased, but she is THE best mum in the whole entire world! I spent the day yesterday with my beautiful mum, and my equally beautiful sister Emma, and mother in law June. We all had a lovely day together doing mum’s day type stuff!!
The definition of “mother” is someone who creates, nurtures and protects. You don’t have to have given birth or be a biological mother to fit this definition. There are so many amazing women and mother figures out there including aunties, step-mums, godmothers, foster mums, mums of fur babies, teachers and friends. Happy mother’s day to all of you too!
I wanted to use this opportunity to finally write a blog post for my mum. I’ve been wanting to do this for a while, but to be honest was a bit overwhelmed as there are so many things I want to say about her and to her, and I want to make sure I do this justice!
So this one is for you mum! Read More »
Can we switch our emotions on and off? Can having a chronic illness lead you to turning off your emotions or at least dulling them down? Or you might experience the opposite and have your emotions run into overdrive?
Being chronically ill can be like riding a roller coaster of emotions – pain, grief, guilt, hope, anger, loneliness, anxiety, frustration. Some liken it to the stages of grief cycle. I am not sure it is necessarily a cycle or follows the same path, but I am sure most of us have been through some of these in relation to our illness. 
There are many reasons living with a chronic illness like Crohn’s disease is difficult. One of many things I’ve struggled with is having no real explanation for what caused this. No reason why. Why and how did I get Crohn’s disease? When I was first diagnosed I was forever looking for meaning and answers.
The need to have someone or something to blame can be strong and overwhelming. Something has to be responsible, right? Someone has to be held accountable for this crap that I am going through. There must be a reason.
Yes, it might be genetics, environment, lifestyle, or a combination of these things along with something else. It is still unknown and much of the evidence remains anecdotal.
With a chronic illness with no definitive cause, there often are no answers. There are no reasons. Nothing and no one to point fingers at. It just is.
So I, for one, often blamed myself. And the blame spiralled. Read More »
I never thought I would ever walk out of an appointment with my gastroenterologist feeling as happy as I did last week! All went well and as anticipated, and all things going smoothly, I don’t need to go back for another 12 months.
I was actually on quite a high walking home after the appointment. It was like one of those WOW moments I’ve written about before. Was this really happening? It was like a dream. Like I was looking in from the outside. Was that really me he was talking to, telling everything was going well and that I was still in remission? Yes! Yes, it was!!
Sometimes I wish I’d started this blog 6 years ago when I was first diagnosed with Crohn’s. If I had, it would be a very different blog to the current Stoma-licious. I find it easier writing about the present than in retrospect. What I’m going through and how I’m feeling now. And right now, things are great!
When I was initially told I had Crohn’s disease, the years that followed were filled with a whirlwind of doctors, medications and emotions. I really wish I’d blogged, or at least written a journal on a more regular basis. At the time though, I wasn’t in the right headspace.Read More »
I’m not normally one to get into the fuss of rehashing the past year or making resolutions for the new year, but when I was contemplating topics for my first blog post of 2016, it only made sense to jump on board and get into the new year spirit (sorry I am a little slow on the uptake)!
I also thought it would be fun to do a bit of a year in review, especially seeing as 2015 was a much healthier and happier year for me than many years past, and the year Stoma-licious was born 🙂 So here is a bit of a recap of some of the more noteworthy and defining moments from my 2015!
Christmas is well and truly in the air! Shop displays of tinsel and wrapping were out weeks ago, Christmas trees are up and decorated, supermarkets are playing carols and selling mince pies. Is it just me, or does it start earlier every year!?
This will be my 3rd Christmas as an Ostomate. I was hoping to offer some helpful and mind-blowing tips on what it’s like having an ostomy during the festive season, and potential disruptions or things to look out for. Apart from the obvious, I’ve come up a bit blank! The most important thing is to ENJOY Christmas and the festive season whilst taking care of yourself and knowing your limits. Read More »
I have just spent the last half an hour on the phone arguing with someone at a big insurance company over our car registration and green slip renewal. Infuriated much?! I won’t bore you with details, suffice to say I was getting nowhere by arguing. I could slowly feel my frustration and stress levels rising to boiling point. My whole body was tense, ready to scream ARGHHHHHHHHHHHHHH down the phone. This kind of stress can’t be good for me, right?!
It made me think … how easily we fall back into bad habits. How quickly we forget.
Having a chronic illness has taught me many things. I have reassessed and taken a really good look at myself and the way I live my life. I’ve become very conscious of some of my often unhealthy ways and behaviours, and was adamant I would not let myself revert back to these patterns. Evidently, I have … Read More »
What a big weekend this has been! I had the pleasure and honour of watching one of my dearest friends get married to a wonderful guy, in a gorgeous ceremony, followed by a spectacularly fun wedding reception. It was made even more special for me being able to stand by as her bridesmaid 🙂 Despite the rain almost forcing Plan B into action, it was a perfect day and evening, and we even got driven to the ceremony in a firetruck! 
I am absolutely buggered now, yet can’t help but still be on a high with a heart filled with joy after such a special weekend. This post is likely to be a bit soppy (from me, a girl who most certainly never dreamt about my own wedding, nor actually thought I would ever even get married)! Read More »
So tomorrow is my birthday. I’m turning 36. Eeeek! That means I am officially closer to 40 than 30. Now that’s a scary thought!
I remember being completely freaked out at the thought of turning 30! Contemplating what I had accomplished to that point. Was I where I should be in life? Where I wanted to be? I didn’t have traditional things like a house or children, but I was happy, and we had big plans!
It doesn’t feel that long ago, my fabulous 30th birthday weekend celebrating with close friends with a winery tour and staying in a beautiful house in the Hunter Valley. Yet so much has happened since then.
So far my 30s have seen some of the best, but also worst, times in my life. Read More »
WARNING! This post will not place in the Top 5 most uplifting posts on Stomalicious. I am usually a pretty positive person, and prefer writing about happy and inspiring things. However, it’s important to be honest and talk about all aspects of IBD, particularly the roller coaster of emotions and different feelings we go through. That is why this post is about fear. Read More »
Up until my Crohn’s diagnosis just after my 30th birthday I was a relatively confident, independent, worldly woman. I was respected at work and was always busy socially. Whilst I never enjoyed being the centre of attention, I could hold my own in a conversation, I was active and adventurous, had a decent career, and a small close knit circle of friends.
Having IBD impacted all of that. As my symptoms worsened, many of the things that had been a breeze for me before, became a struggle. Going to work, socialising, even doing the grocery shopping. With the increasing urgent and frequent need to go to the toilet (and often not making it), came increasing insecurities and uncertainties. Read More »
Whilst having a stoma might have its challenges and take a bit of getting used to, for me it truly is a blessing and has given me my life back. So here are my TOP 10 REASONS LIFE IS GREAT WITH A STOMA!
You may have noticed I’ve been a bit quiet on the blogging front lately. This is partly because I’ve been pretty busy. Not with anything in particular – just life in general. When I have had a bit of spare time to spend on my Facebook page or blogging however, I have come to a realisation. I procrastinate, and I waste A LOT of time. 
Once I get on a roll, things are great. It’s not that I have writer’s block. Far from it. I have so many ideas on different blog topics, sometimes it becomes overwhelming. I don’t know where to start. And so, I procrastinate. Most of us are guilty of procrastinating, or whatever you choose to call it: diddle dallying, stalling, or as Michael would call what I do “piss farting around”. Read More »
I’m back at hospital for the third time this week. Back in those familiar surroundings of a hospital with that calm, busy buzz of goings on around me. Only this time, for once, I’m NOT the patient. This time, I am the carer … I am here for support. Read More »
Yesterday I had one of those WOW, on top of the world, life is beautiful moments that I want to share with you all.
I am not sharing this to gloat or make anyone feel bad. I know everyone, especially anyone with a chronic illness, can have a lot of bad days. I have had a lot of bad days.
I am sharing this because of those bad days. I am sharing this with the desire that it gives hope to others. Whether you have a chronic illness or not… whether that chronic illness is active or not… we all have bad days … BUT we can also all have good days. (Side note: And even on a bad day, you can usually find something good to appreciate!) Read More »
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