Adapting to a life with Crohn's disease

Abstract

At the age of 23, my life felt like a write-off. I'd been kicked out of my family home, my job as a guitar tutor was coming to an abrupt end, and so was my 4-year relationship. The combination of these factors led to me consuming large amounts of alcohol and other substances. Every few days I was having to find a roof over my head and I was struggling to cope. During this turbulent time I started having horrendous stomach pains and passing blood. My skin began to look sunburnt, making it painful to get changed into or sometimes even wear clothes. Despite the discomfort, I ignored the symptoms for 3 months, putting them down to my excessive alcohol consumption, fast food diet, and late nights. I had heard about irritable bowel syndrome before, so I just assumed it was something similar. I wasn't too concerned by anything at the time, least of all my health. It wasn't until I couldn't eat without severe pain and my stomach becoming swollen that I started to take the problem a bit more seriously. Eventually the pain that wheat-based lagers and beers caused me in the morning and the junk food that would often accompany my hangovers started to affect my mood terribly. My skin would become inflamed and blotchy after a late night out, so I started hiding away and cancelling on friends because I didn't want to be seen in public. Before the symptoms appeared, I was 16 stone; within 6 weeks I was down to 14 stone. When I realised how much weight I had lost I made an appointment with my doctor.