Welcome To The Site!

Hi everyone, I’m Sasha, a 21 year old and I am an IBD ‘newbie’. I have been lucky enough to meet the lovely Frimley IBD Group and become part of the action team.

I have only been suffering from the disease for 2 years, and I think the best way of introducing myself, is by introducing my story. (Which I encourage everyone to do on this site, as many people can find comfort in it).

In the spring of 2017, I was coming to the end of my 2nd year of a BA Graphic Design course. Just a normal 19 year old at uni. I lived in Camberley, and commuted every day to London to study, to stay with family, and save money.

One day, after experiencing extremely bad period pains, I was taken to A&E to which they couldn’t find the cause, and sent me home with a large dose of codeine to take to ease the pain. This helped and the pain stopped, and so did my bowel movements.. for 3 weeks. I was taking all the constipation relief under the sun to no prevail. After a GP appointment I was given something stronger that got everything moving again.. Then it never stopped moving..

One month went by of 10+ movements a day, GP’s assured me that it must’ve been food poisoning. 2 months, nobody could understand still. 3, 4, 5.. As I began travelling to London again it started to become worrying. Getting on a busy train where you can’t sit for 45 minutes. Then a crammed Tube, with no toilets. It was scary, especially when I didn’t know what was wrong with me.

It wasn’t until December 2018, where I had at this point lost 3 stone, couldn’t keep food or water down, looked like a skeleton, and has such a bad flu it hurt to breath, I was back in A&E. A doctor looked over my notes and asked, “has anyone ever mentioned IBD to you?”

I was diagnosed the next day, after a painful colonoscopy, I was also diagnosed with Visceral Hypersensitivity, (too many nerve endings in my gut causing me to feel everything).

I was so thankful that someone had finally figured it out.

After this it took about 7 hospital stays, 15 different drug combos, 6 rounds of steroids, and the magical Infliximab to finally get me into remission, over a year after diagnosis.

I think everyone has a crazy story to tell about their diagnosis, their struggles, personal “NO-No’s”, and things that help.

I hope I have inspired you all to get onto the forum and share your story with everyone, and find comfort in others.