Patient Stories

Each year Ostomy Awareness Day offers an opportunity to raise awareness and educate people of the impact of living with a stoma - this year's event took place on 7th October. Everyone has their own stoma story, whether your stoma saved your…

Helen Brook, 36  from West Yorkshire had struggled with bowel symptoms since her teens with experiencing bloating and pain that got worse when she reached her 20s. After seeing various GP’s, and bowel specialists, they were unable to find…

When Rocco Mann, 20 from Banbury in Oxfordshire was first diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease, his biggest fear was ending up with a stoma bag. What he thought was his worst fears coming true, Rocco learned to embrace having an ileostomy and…

Jordan Bew, 36 from Cornwall spent nearly 2 years suffering from crippling, painful bladder symptoms before being diagnosed with a little known condition called Interstitial Cystitis in October 2022. Jordan shares his story about getting…

Natalie, 39 from London was diagnosed with Stage 4 bowel cancer at the age of 36. The cancer had grown extensively and even after intense chemotherapy and radiotherapy treatments, she ended up undergoing Pelvic Exenteration surgery, which…

Coeliac Disease is a little known condition where the body’s immune system attacks the tissues when gluten is consumed. For Stella, diagnosis was positively life-changing - it meant she no longer had to live each day with stomach problems.

Dionne, 23 from Scotland talks to Bladder and Bowel Community about how the perception of endometriosis needs to change and more awareness is needed around just how damaging this gynaecological condition can be.

Saffronne Epaminondas has lived with IBS for over 32 years and was diagnosed at the age of 18. There is currently no cure, but Saffron kindly shares her experiences of living with this chronic illness.

There’s still so much awareness needed around Interstitial Cystitis. Three years ago, Niki Wells shared her story with the Bladder and Bowel Community on how she copes living with the debilitating bladder condition interstitial cystitis…

As part of #stomaweek, Keith Thomas, 59 from Llanelli shares his story on how his stoma ‘Homer’ gave him a new lease of life and how he’s never been happier since his diagnosis of Ulcerative Colitis. We'd like to thank Keith for sharing his…

Jan Ross underwent stoma surgery in February this year just before lockdown, after being diagnosed with rectal cancer. Here, Jan talks to Bladder and Bowel about how she coped learning how to manage her new stoma friend during these…

Introducing Hannah, who will be contributing as a regular guest blogger for the Bladder and Bowel Community. Hannah has a painful bladder condition called Interstitial Cystitis (IC) and will be telling her story over a series of posts as…

This article contains links. Sore skin. Bag leakages. These four words are a common source of anxiety for people with a stoma. They’re also something that Charlie Bremmell became all too familiar with after her stoma surgery. …