There’s nothing mummy blogger Constance Hall doesn’t share but she has been holding onto one very painful health secret.
The popular author and fashion designer has spoken out revealing that she has been suffering from Ulcerative Colitis.
It is a form of inflammatory bowel disease, most similar to Crohn’s disease.
Bowel Cancer Australia explain that the main differences are that the inflammation of ulcerative colitis is usually found just in the inner lining of the gut, while in Crohn’s disease the inflammation can spread through the whole wall of the gut.
The 34-year-old spoke of her turmoil existing even before she welcomed her fifth child Raja.
“After having Raja I knew things needed to change,” she penned on Instagram. “I was unwell during my pregnancy my disease Ulcerative Colitis was flaring. Meaning I was passing a lot of blood through my bowels and constantly uncomfortable.”
“I couldn’t take steroids because I was pregnant and it’s been linked to birth defects and all other meds including my enemas weren’t working anymore.”
“Scary because at my last colonoscopy my doctor told me that I had five years to get my disease under control before my risk of bowel cancer becomes a real concern.”
“In my past the only thing that’s ever really helped my disease apart from conventional medicine that now isn’t working was keeping my weight down and keeping my diet really healthy and especially kicking refined grains and starches. Pasta, bread, rice, potato, all the yummy things. I even quit chocolate a couple of months ago.
“You guys know me, you know how much I loved chocolate.”
Hall says she is now “healthy and ALIVE.”
“So I did it,” she writes. “I don’t f-ck up. I don’t have “cheat” meals because I believe that I was addicted to eating bad food. Just like an alcoholic can’t have a “cheat” drink I cannot have a cheeky bowl of fries.. ever.
“I had no idea how sluggish I felt. The kids would want me to do something with them and I’d groan to get up.
“I believe now that shit food makes you depressed, I felt heavy, depressed, tired all the time.”
“Ice-cream and Coke are still on the list as things to quit but I’m doing this very slowly because I want this to be a life-long change, not a quick fix that lasts a year.”
The Author continues, “I have no idea how much weight I’ve lost because that is irrelevant, my body wasn’t put on this earth to look like all of the other girls on Instagram or to stand on scales. My body is on this earth to hold my soul here. And to be loved.”
Since her changes, Hall hasn’t had a single flare of sickness over the past five months.
“For the last five months I haven’t had one single flare of sickness, no blood loss, no cramping and healthy blood tests,” she says.
“And the side effect of all this health is that I get to unashamedly love my body. Love your body, love your health, love being on Earth.”