A life catch-up with Natalie-Amber and how she’s raising awareness for IBD

A life catch-up with Natalie-Amber

Hey my beautiful friends,

I have missed you all, can you believe it is 2024 and March already! Three months in and it has flown by. I have so much to catch you up on.

Before I begin, I just want to say that make sure you know 2024 is the year where you put yourself first and push yourself. Goodbye to putting things off and hello to just doing it. TRUST me, I know all about the fear holding me back and putting things off.  I vow to make a change on this because put it this way our goals are not going to be just given to us.

So, an update to my health, I know when we last spoke, I had been in hospital yet again for a relapse. Well, I have seen my surgeon at the start of the month and another dreaded colonoscopy has been scheduled in to see if there are any further adhesions. I am hoping not but, considering the last few relapses I have had who knows.  I have defiantly been so much more mindful when it comes to food. I meal prep everything which I find is so much better for me because I get so tired, this means I do not have to worry about cooking anything and can just pop a meal I have prepped for the week in the microwave.  I also had an appointment with my dietician who has told me to cut out sweeteners for a while and see how my bloating goes with this. I am not going to lie, yes it has made a slight change but not much, so I guess when it comes to my bloated belly it is what it is.

Back in December I filmed an educational video with Channel 4 for the UK government. This was to help raise more awareness for IBD. I participated in this alongside two fellow IBD friends, both males, one had both Crohn Colitis and a stoma, the other Colitis with no surgery and myself, Crohn’s disease, and a stoma reversal. The video was a success and I honestly think we gelled well together and helped raise a lot of awareness. Of course, as with everything you do you will always get negative comments but reaching a wider audience to potentially help others outweighs that massively. Some commented about IBD is so much more than just a ‘poop’ problem. I agree it 10000% is but the point of this video was to help raise awareness on accessibility to toilets and for people not to judge a book by its cover, on top of all the other side effects that come with IBD which can leave us bed bound for days or at worst cases fighting for our lives, having to deal with judgement from others when we need to use a disabled toilet just contributes to our stress, I have to admit, I get so nervous using one or even showing my disabled rail card. I find myself explaining to a stranger who I show my card to that I have Crohn’s disease. This is not even any of their business and I should not have to explain myself, but I do because I feel they will judge me because by eye I do not ‘look’ disabled.    So, I do think the point of this video was very valid because the more people aware of this can help us be less nervous to ask to use a toilet facility when out and about. This will also help make our journeys and lives less stressful.

I have attached the link to the video here and I do hope you enjoy it.

To finish off a little update on my life so far as a dance showgirl instructor and PT. I love it dearly however, I have found sometimes it very hard to teach and have struggled and not been able to dance my class. Luckily my regular ladies know the routines  so can lead the way. My PT clients are amazing, and it feels so lovely when they let me know I have helped them get stronger and fitter. Therefore, I do what I do to help boost confidence and show you can still get strong with IBD and the importance of this.

I hope you enjoyed our catch up as much as I did. I will speak to you again in the best part of the year June, the halfway mark of 2024 and the month of sunshine which means I am happy every single day.

Lots of love and look after yourself

Natalie-Amber. X x x

Natalie-Amber | @natalie_amber1 x