Rachel

My son was diagnosed just before his 14th birthday.

Then we were introduced to CICRA – a source of information and support. The CANT WAIT card alone was a life saver.

After diagnosis my son was only in hospital for a few days and the biometric diet for 6 weeks worked wonders and I think gave me a false sense of security.

I remember our first family day out after the 6 weeks – I was scanning for toilets, places he could sit down etc etc and didn’t relax and part way through the event I came home with him whilst my husband stayed with our daughter.

The impact of this disease on my daughter is often overlooked. We booked a family trip to Disneyland Paris to mark the end of junior school for her and high school for my son – and wham, he had a flare up – a bad one in the middle of his GCSEs and was hospitalised for 8 days. Not only did she have to accept that mum and dad were tag teaming to be at the hospital and she was being farmed out left, right and centre, she had to deal with seeing her brother very poorly and she was so scared. Then there was the issue that we may not all be able to go on holiday – who would stay with Brad and who would go with her? We did go, with Brad in a wheelchair and the holiday adapted for his needs and me on pins all the time wondering if he was ok and did we need to go to a hospital?

I have learnt a lot in three years – I am getting more comfortable about potential signs of a flare up and what is just ‘illness’. I know more of the terms, we are all very familiar with the Bristol stool scale and vocabulary that some would wince at.

We know that VIPoo is an amazing product, having two toilets in a house where someone suffers from an IBD should be a right, holidays are no longer care free – good planning, research and holiday insurance from the moment you book is essential and that’s only the beginning of the list.

I worry about the future for my son and not from a health perspective. He has had two summer jobs and both caused him to health problems, so when he’s ready to enter the world of work how will he find an employer that understands his needs – he’s a hard worker but may only be able to do a certain number of hours each day and may need to use the toilet. He is getting to an age where alcohol will become a consideration and night clubbing with friends, how is this going to affect him. He wants to travel when he finishes his A levels, I want him to do this but it fills me with concern.