Team Dippy's Gaming Charity Bonanza!

Team Dippy Gaming is raising money for Crohn’s & Colitis UK
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Dippy's Gaming Charity Bonanza! · 17 December 2022

We’re the UK’s leading charity for Crohn’s and Colitis. Right now, over 500,000 people in the UK are living with a lifelong disease that many people have never heard of. We’re working to improve diagnosis and treatment; to fund research and to raise awareness.

Story

Thank you for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page. On 17th December 2022, I will be doing a 6 hour stream and here is why...

Ulcerative Colitis has unfortunately been a part of my family since I was 12 years old.

My mum was dreadfully ill, in and out the bathroom, in bed, and couldn't keep any food or liquids down. Doctors tried providing several medications to her, and none of it helped. She was a few days away from dying, before they managed to diagnose she had Ulcerative Colitis. It took her nearly a year to recover.

For her every day was torture. But for Dad and I, watching someone you love go through that every day broke our hearts. And that feeling is something a family should never have to go through.

When I was 18, I was diagnosed having IBS. Personally, we all didn't feel it was a correct diagnosis, and for years I was on IBS tablets, but never felt it was fully working. I changed my diet, my lifestyle, everything I could.

However, when I was 22/23 I was diagnosed with Ovarian Cysts, that were 7cm! I kept passing out, hitting my head when they burst, had blood infections, or just standard infections, constantly feeling ill. Worst part was I wasn't provided with the required operation until I was 26!

Now you are probably sitting there, reading this, thinking, how on earth does this relate to the charity and the fundraising?!

Well, in 2020, during the unbelievable time of shutting our doors, and not seeing the world, I took this opportunity to physically become fit and better. I was taking the daily walks we was allowed here in the UK, as well as using my Nintendo Switch to do rhythm boxing, and YouTube videos. Anywhere I could do fitness, I did it. I wanted to be my old self. And I was, fitter than I could have hoped.

But in 2021, life was about to become harder for me, just like many people during that time. I was experiencing depression and anxiety through Covid-19, but worse this was mainly caused through my previous workplace. I was originally diagnosed with mental health in 2016, and had CBT therapy for a year. So luckily I had the tools to help me through it. The day before my birthday, I had to leave my job, due to the stress and pressure I was under. I was crying every day, I visited the bathroom several times, and didn't feel like eating.

However, I did not sit and wait for another opportunity. I wanted to carve my own, and applied to University to start a long dream of being in veterinary. Animals were my passion for a long time but I wasn't brave enough to take the plunge.

I was excited to finally start something new, but disaster was just around the corner, to greet me again. In June 2021, I went out with my parents, and whilst travelling needed the bathroom urgently. My stomach was in knots, I felt hot, and had a sharp, intense pain in my left side. I somehow managed to hold it until we reached our destination. I ran to the bathroom, feeling sick whilst relieving the pain I was under in the car. My mum stayed in the bathroom with me, asking on the other side of the door "if I was okay, I had been in there a long time". My response was strained, as I opened the door, feeling weak and still nauseated. She took one look at me and realised I was not well, asking what happened. I will spare the gory details, but told her it wasn't right when I went to the bathroom and had a sinking feeling, this was it, this was Ulcerative Colitis, and I could tell, she thought the same.

When I felt I was fit enough to travel, we came home and I called the doctors immediately. Sadly, my doctor that knew me when I was 11, and helped mum through her colitis, quit during covid. However, another doctor I spoke to, was an expert in gastroenterology, and suspected that with my mums IBD, that it can be passed on, and that my suspicion was correct.

To be sure however, she wanted me to have a blood test.

A week later, I had the results and they were abnormal, pointing that I was correct, that it is strongly looking like Colitis. However, I hadn't had the strong diagnosis I needed. Therefore, she wanted me to do a Calprotein test, to see if the bowel itself was inflamed, or if there was any blood. (Don't want to gross you out, but we all bleed when we go, only a small portion however). So I did that test too.

I got my results back almost immediately. For reference a normal person doing this test would be less than 50...

...mine was 550. 5 times the normal amount.

The doctor insisted I go see a hospital specialist for treatment, and urgently placed me in their care and be specific on what I had.

I didn't go to the hospital until September...three days before going to university. Luckily, the university was local so I didn't have to travel. The hospital specialist examined me, and felt confident there was no doubt I had a form of colitis. But was surprised to see that I dealt with it so well. I was told I had to have a colonoscopy in October.

When I had the colonoscopy they took biopsies and in November confirmed I had Ulcerative Proctitis. But treatment wasn't easy.

I was first put on Octasa 800mg, but I had to argue for that. The hospital specialist told me, that he felt I should use an enima style druge, but for me, I wasn't comfortable with it. So we agreed with the Octasa tablets, in the hope the inflammation would go down naturally. On top I also had to look at diet, figure out what would set it off. For me fatty foods, spices and peppers are the worst. Even black pepper. Yes, I mean salt and pepper...pepper.

Between November and February/March time, my calprotein test had increased from 550, to 1550. 1000 more than I was when I originally started.

This meant that I had to be placed on a high dose of steroids, along with reducing how much Octasa I took at once, and was prescribed 400mg, four times a day with food instead.

By June, the next calprotein test, went from 1550, to 15. I was no longer inflamed. But this is where the real work has begun for me, learning to take one small step at a time, trying not to get stressed, and perform the ultimate self care every day, with diet, sleep, and rest.

I had to cope with all this, whilst doing my first year in my veterinary degree. Sometimes I would be in bed, working on assignments, my projects, examining results, and attempting to fulfil a high criteria.

I obtained a Merit for my first year, and I am currently studying my second year. And despite what I went through, I couldn't be prouder of myself, because I honestly didn't think I would obtain that. I believed I was going to fail.

To live as normal as possible, I have to take these Octasa tablets for the rest of my life. However, this does not mean that these will work forever. This treatment will not last, and soon I will need to have alternative treatment, if the inflammation is out of control again.

I am only 29 years old with this condition.

This charity is so important to finding the cause of this condition. Both Colitis and Chrons, is considered a mystery to scientists. But with your donation, you could help find the cause, and a permanent solution.

This charity has also helped me so much, providing me a radar key and card, so if I do go out, I these tools to help me in case I need the bathroom, in any building.

But I am not going to say you should do that, if you can't. What I am going to say is, you can do something else just as simple to help, if you can't donate.

Talk about it. Talk to everyone about it. With someone suffering, I am so lucky to have my mum to talk to. And she me. But when we want to connect with people our own age, they don't want to hear the gory details. "Don't tell me that you're putting me off food", "why are you telling me this, does it matter?" or "why can't you eat this?". Just talking about it, making it normal, or just being there means a lot. This is not something that is fixed with a pill. Yes I take this medication to live every day, but I have days where I have pains in my side, I don't feel I am confident enough to go out my home in case it kicks off, or sometimes I just don't feel like me. Even with the tools from the charity. And worse, when you can't eat foods others like you feel like a pain, or even worse than that, people hide the food you can't eat in other food. For example, you are given a vegetable lasagne, and someone may mash the peppers. I would end up being locked in the bathroom over night in agony.

Be brave. Help those suffering in silence be heard, and feel normal. Because just being there, means a lot.

Thank you <3

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