For years, I lived in pain, exhausted and scared, with doctors telling me my symptoms were just stress or food intolerances. It all started after the birth of my second daughter in 2016—I was bloated, constantly running to the bathroom, and experiencing unbearable waves of pain. I tried everything they told me: cutting out gluten, following a strict low-FODMAP diet, meticulously tracking every bite I ate. Still, my symptoms worsened. I dropped below 50kg, people told me I looked sick, and deep down, I knew something was terribly wrong. But every time I sought medical help, I was dismissed. I started believing it was my fault. That if I just tried harder, I’d get better.
Over the years, I had three emergency room visits, each time in agonising pain, unable to eat or drink, only to be sent home with IV fluids, painkillers, and the same advice: “Avoid gluten and manage your stress.” My life shrank. I planned my days around bathroom access, avoided travel, and even wore nappies just to drop my kids at school. The anxiety was crippling, but worse was the hopelessness—at my lowest point, I truly believed I couldn’t go on like this. The only thing that kept me going was my children. They were my reason to keep fighting.
Everything changed in 2023 after the birth of my third child. I had extensive bleeding for three days and was vomiting blood. I collapsed at home, was rushed to the hospital, and was again dismissed—this time with antibiotics for a supposed UTI. That night, I nearly died. When I didn’t wake to my baby’s screams to be fed, my partner found me unconscious and called an ambulance. Back in hospital, they finally performed a sigmoid scope and discovered what had been there all along: severe Ulcerative Colitis. My inflammation markers were off the charts, and my body was septic from the ulcers eating through the intestinal wall.
The relief of finally having a diagnosis was overshadowed by frustration—I later found out my 2018 colonoscopy had already shown signs of UC, but it had been overlooked. Years of unnecessary suffering, lost moments with my family, and a near-death experience could have been avoided if someone had just listened.
That’s why I became an IBD advocate, speaker, and now, author. I don’t want anyone else to go through what I did—feeling lost, dismissed, and completely alone. The Ultimate IBD Handbook is the resource I desperately needed in those early days—full of real-life experiences, practical advice, and evidence-based information tailored to the Australian healthcare system.
Whether you’re newly diagnosed, struggling to manage symptoms, or supporting a loved one, I want you to know: you are not alone, and it is possible to be able to find enjoyment in life again while managing the ups and downs of living with IBD. There is hope,
there is help, and there is a way to move from just surviving to truly thriving.
