▲深受潰瘍性結腸炎所苦的威廉絲，希望用自己的例子鼓勵其他病患。（圖／翻攝自wheresmyostomy Instagram，下同）
國際中心／綜合報導
網路上穿比基尼曬好身材的辣妹比比皆是，不過英國倫敦的威廉絲（Harriet Williams）卻特別引人注意，患有潰瘍性結腸炎（Ulcerative Colitis）的她必須無時無刻裝著迴腸造口袋（Ileostomy Bag），即便如此，她還是會勇敢展露給大家看，希望能鼓勵跟她一樣深受疾病痛苦的人。
綜合外媒報導，今年25歲的威廉絲在14歲時，有長達6個月的時間不斷腹瀉和胃痙攣，即使住院精心治療，病情也毫無起色，因為她無法順利進食，讓護理人員誤以為她患有飲食失調症，「我在醫院的期間，每天要上25次的廁所，有時候還會尿出血來。當醫生意識到事情的嚴重性時，我已經快要死了」，最後她被診斷出患有炎症性腸病（Inflammatory Bowel Condition）。
威廉絲花了一個月的時間，在醫院接受類固醇治療，這也導致她的體重增加。經歷8年的治療後，狀況依舊沒有改善，因此她在22歲時決定要安裝一個迴腸造口袋，「大家都說這個看起來很糟糕，但事實上，有這個袋子並不是一件壞事。只不過一開始，必須學會適應如何清洗它，而且很多食物都不能吃了。」
▲威廉絲一開始裝上口袋時，也害怕自己不能穿正常的衣服。
威廉絲表示，「當我第一次裝上這個口袋時，我以為我再也不能穿正常的衣服，只能穿孕婦裝了。但當我適應後，現在我完全不會注意到這個包，它大大改善了我的生活，也不會有人用異樣的眼神看我，我的生活完全正常。」
在威廉絲開始把照片分享在網路上後，有一些人批評她這樣露出來很噁心，不過她表示，「我想告訴大家要對自己有信心，不用感到羞愧，而自從裝了這個口袋後，我對自己更有自信了。我貼了很多照片，讓人了解手術後要做什麼準備，也收到很多人的評論，告訴我他們現在沒那麼害怕這種疾病了。這也讓我了解到，我可以激勵更多人，他們看到後都會明白，我們都能繼續過好生活，而且會變得更好」。
So this is a really difficult picture for me to post. On the left I was a very ill 14 year old who was in the middle of a battle with severe colitis and as you might have guessed, was dealing with some very significant side effects of large doses of prednisolone (a steroid and one of the best medications we currently have to treat colitis.) On the right is me a few weeks ago at a party. ——————————————————————-—— I couldn’t look at this picture of me until very recently because it reminded me too much of the horrible things I went through at a pretty young age. Dealing with a bowel condition isn’t easy at any point in your life, but being 14 and in the middle of secondary school was pretty awful to be honest. I looked so different my friends didn’t recognise me, some of my family didn’t even recognise me! I had to talk to doctors about the embarrassing subject of poo. I had so many and such bad stretch marks from my steroid weight gain and steroid induced thin skin, a surgeon actually said to me “what is that on your hips?!” I was stood in my underwear in front of a group of student doctors. It was mortifying. I was anaemic, exhausted, depressed and in constant pain. ——————————————————————-—— I’m not glad I had to go through this, but it did teach me to be strong and keep going. We’re very lucky today we can taper off steroids much quicker than 11 years ago (I was tapering off for over a year) and generally IBD is diagnosed quicker. I am extremely glad that I had my surgery because now I’m medication and pain free, having a bag is a happy sacrifice to make. ——————————————————————-—— The physical effects of steroids fade and I may look ‘normal’ now. But the mental and physical impact of being ill doesn’t, I don’t remember what it feels like to be ‘normal’ and I probably never will. Don’t judge a book by its cover, illness and disabilities aren’t always visible. Seek to lead the best life you can——————————————————————-——#ulcerativecolitis #colitis #uc #crohns #ileostomy #ostomy #stoma #chronicillness #invisibledisability #getyourbellyout #health #wellness #illness #transformation #spoonie #ostomyawareness #bodyconfidence #ibd
Harriet
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