Meet our Face of Connect, Chris
Hi, my name is Chris (@sydneystoma), I am 47 and I am married to an amazing woman called Rachel who has dealt with so much with my illness. I have two kids, well I say two, one is now 18 and much taller than me, so hardly a kid anymore! His name is Nathan, and I have a 12 and half year old daughter called Leah. Leah is certainly a daddy’s girl and gets everything she wants! But I love it. We also have four cats and one dog. So, I live in a busy household, and I absolutely love it. I am a Sergeant in the Police, and my wife Rachel is a midwife, so we really do have very busy lives.
My story
I have suffered with Crohn’s Disease for many years, in fact I think I can date back my first symptoms to childhood, although I was only diagnosed in 2012. Getting diagnosed took a long time and many stays in hospital. I suffered horrendously with perianal fistulas and abscesses.
I suffered with these for years and eventually lost all bowel control which is just awful. I had so many surgeries to drain and cut out abscesses that it just weakened everything to the point it would not work. The pain of perianal abscesses is absolutely like no other pain, it is barbaric. So, in the end I just had enough and told my surgeon to give me a permanent colostomy and remove my rectum, two weeks after saying this to my surgeon I was on the operating table!
My surgeon told me after surgery that it was the best decision I could have made, she said there was no way they could repair or stop the fistulas. I know it was the best decision I have ever made as I have my life back.
Get in touch with us today to receive a copy of Connect, or click here to read a digital version!