Companion Magazine for IBD Volume 1 | Page 8

at home were pretty good as well. However, after about a week I started to suffer what I thought was serious butt burn. I had already stocked up on all of the recommended creams: Calmoseptine, Ilex, Sudocream and various others. However, none seemed to work. I felt like I was passing burning hot razor blades. I had not cried from pain since I was a child and there I was sobbing and on the verge of screaming. It turned out that I had a large anterior anal fissure. I was given two different creams, neither of which worked, so I was readmitted to the hospital as a day patient for Botox injections in my anus. I have occasionally wondered whether I’d get Botox to reduce the impending wrinkles. I had never anticipated having Botox in my bum! That was two weeks ago and things seem to be going well (touch wood). I’m probably going to the toilet about seven to eight times a day and once to twice overnight (although I have had a couple of nights without any toilet trips). I don’t have urgency or pain (although at the moment I do have some unusual uncomfortable feelings but I expect that they will eventually get better as time goes on). This week is my first week back at work. Everything seems to be going in the right direction. And I’m hopeful! I have to say a huge thank you to my husband, parents, brother, his wife, and three of my husband’s friends (one is a doctor, one gave a lot of advice because he had been through exactly what I was going through, and the other had extensive knowledge of the hospital system). They were incredibly supportive. My mum sat at my bedside every day that I was in hospital and stayed with me for a large amount of the time that I was recovering out of hospital. My husband and dad spent a lot of time doing research and questioning the doctors to ensure that I was getting the best care. My husband also reassured me numerous times that he didn’t care that I had an ileostomy bag. I didn’t take any photos of my time in the hospital or my ileostomy bag, but in the spirit of sharing as much as possible, here are two photos: one to show that high-waisted ileostomy bag disguising bikini and the other to show the state of my stomach scars. to date (the dressing is covering my old stoma site which is still healing). I’m looking forward to showing off those scars in a non-high waisted bikini soon! KATE M. @KATEMIDD123 crohnsgirlblog.wordpress.com Hi, my name is Kate; I am 17 years old from Liverpool. I was diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease in November 2012. When I was first diagnosed, I felt relieved to find out what the awful abdominal pains were that I had been experiencing for 9 months. It’s one of those things where you don’t know anything about the disease until you have it yourself or know someone who has it; you think it’s just like most things where just some medication will make you feel better in time. However, when your start to learn more about IBD, you realise it’s not as simple. 7