“I was a curvy girl, but I turned into skin and bones before the truth came out”

A young woman was shocked to discover her weight had dropped dramatically by the age of around five stone due to a health condition.

Morgan Underwood, 22, initially noticed she needed the toilet more often, but didn’t think it was out of the ordinary. This continued until she noticed blood and mucus in her stool, prompting her to seek medical advice.

The former paramedic, who “has always been a curvy girl,” was initially diagnosed with irritable bowel syndrome, or IBS, a common disorder that leads to stomach cramps, bloating, diarrhea and constipation. But as her health worsened, the former teenager felt she was “petrified” to leave home for fear of being too far from the toilet.

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Morgan, from Wigan, explained: “I would avoid going to meals as it would go right through me. Then it started to affect my professional life as I was working in ambulances as an ambulance assistant.

“I would be too scared to eat during my 12 to 13 hour shifts because I knew if I did I wouldn’t be able to get to the toilet in time, which left me feeling physically exhausted and extremely exhausted. “

Later in 2022, concerns were raised when Morgan returned to her doctor for a stool sample. Later, he underwent a colonoscopy but it could not be completed due to severe pain, MEN reports

Morgan, originally from the Springfield area of ​​Wigan, was diagnosed with proctitis in early 2023, which is an inflammation of the lining of the rectum. Despite this diagnosis, her symptoms worsened, including mouth ulcers, weight loss, painful joints and she had an increasingly weak immune system which saw her contract Covid four times.

She added: “I was becoming more and more depressed as I felt socially isolated because I wasn’t enjoying my social life to the fullest. I felt like I missed a lot of it because of my health. Physically, the weight was just coming off. off me and I had no idea why.”

At her lightest, Morgan tipped the scales by just 5kg, leaving her unable to get out of bed unaided.

Morgan said: “I’ve always been a curvy girl. To then go to skin and bones without me even noticing that I’m ruining myself. I couldn’t even look in the mirror without crying.

“My legs weren’t strong enough to hold me upright or even walk a few steps and I lost all my muscle mass. My mother had to feed me, cut my food, open and close doors for me, dress me. and I went

“From being so active, physically capable and independent to my mum being my full-time carer, it really affected me. Although mom and dad didn’t mind because they would do absolutely anything for me, I felt like a burden to them.”

It all came to a head when Morgan was rushed to the hospital in August 2023 with gastrointestinal bleeding. She underwent surgery a few days later.

She spent three weeks in hospital before she was finally diagnosed with Crohn’s disease – a lifelong condition where parts of the digestive system become inflamed. Symptoms include diarrhea, stomach pain and cramps, blood in the stool, fatigue and weight loss.

Although there is no cure for Crohn’s disease, treatment can help reduce or control symptoms, according to the NHS. Morgan said: “I had to fight for a diagnosis and it took a long time.

“I had to be instrumental in getting an official diagnosis of Crohn’s disease.”

Morgan began receiving biotherapy, a drug used to treat the condition, and her health began to improve. But just hours after being discharged, she collapsed and was rushed back to hospital after suffering another gastrointestinal bleed.

There, she underwent major abdominal surgery and an ileostomy, an opening in the abdomen that is made during the procedure. She also had a double stoma, where the surgeon removes problem areas from the bowel before bringing the two ends of the bowel into openings made in the abdominal wall.

After a third bleed, she underwent more surgery for a segmental resection with total colectomy, meaning she will need to use a stoma bag for the foreseeable future.

A colostomy is an operation to divert one end of the colon, which is part of the intestine, through an opening in the stomach. The opening is called a stoma.

A bag may be placed over the stoma to collect stool. A colostomy can be permanent or temporary.

Morgan said: “For a younger girl, I generally thought my life was over. I felt like I could never go out and enjoy my life again.

“I couldn’t wear what I wanted, I could never date again, I couldn’t go on holidays with friends or go to festivals – but I honestly couldn’t have been anymore. wrong.”

The nurses told Morgan about a Facebook support group for people with her condition. After reaching out to a woman who had gone through a similar experience, Morgan finally felt like she could start rebuilding her life.

Morgan said: “Once you get over the fear of not knowing how to live life with an ileostomy, you realize how it has actually changed for the better. I feel like it’s all a mind game – if you let it ruin your life and get in the way, then it will.”

“It has given me back my quality of life, the confidence to go out and not worry about where the toilet is and so much more.”