After so many false starts, ideas I never followed through on, and general frustration with never sticking it out with a blog, I am finally doing this.
As someone with ‘invisible’ illnesses, undiagnosed symptoms and ‘embarrassing problems’, I have spent 8 years of my life back and forth to various GPs, specialists and hospitals.
If I knew then what I know now, if I were more assertive then as I am now, I think things may have gone differently. I’d like to share some of that with you, and perhaps raise some awareness of the issues many of us will experience at some time.
Having recently undergone a loop ileostomy, I now have a stoma. I’m coming to terms with this and the prospect of starting a new chapter in my life, for better or worse, whatever happens with my health next.
This is our health, our lives, that are affected. It is not right to be pushed to one side, ignored, fobbed off or misdiagnosed unnecessarily. It is not right for us to deal with illness, physical or mental problems, on our own, struggling and unable to turn to someone for support.
It’s time we start to change things.
