The story behind my bag – Christophers story

08 September, 2026

For Stoma Aware Day, I want to share the story behind my bag.

My journey

My journey started in 2013, when I began experiencing constipation, mucus and eventually blood. At first I was told it was haemorrhoids, but I was later diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis.

What started as mild disease eventually took over huge parts of my life.

Over the years I worked through treatment after treatment, including mesalazine, Azathioprine, steroids, Methotrexate, Vedolizumab, Tofacitinib and Infliximab. Vedolizumab gave me around four years of remission, but during Covid my colitis returned aggressively.

Eventually, the medications stopped working. I was admitted to hospital on IV steroids and the conversation I had spent years hoping to avoid became reality.

On 29 December 2020, aged 33, I had my colon removed and woke up with an ileostomy.

Life with a stoma

At first, having a stoma terrified me. I worried about how I would look and whether I would still be able to work, travel, swim, eat normally or live the life I wanted.

What I hadn’t realised was how restricted my life had already become. Ulcerative Colitis controlled where I went, how long I stayed and how far I could be from a toilet.

My stoma changed that.

Recovery wasn’t easy. I had to learn how to change a bag, deal with leaks, understand my new body and rebuild my confidence. But my stoma gave me something I hadn’t had for a long time – freedom.

Since surgery I’ve travelled, swum, worked, made memories with my family and spoken openly about something I once thought I would have to hide.

Most importantly, I’ve lived.

Why Stoma Aware Day matters

That’s why Stoma Aware Day matters.

Behind every stoma bag is a person and a story. Our journeys may be different, but nobody should feel ashamed of something that has allowed them to keep living.

I now share my journey as The Stoma Accountant to show others facing surgery that there can still be a full life on the other side.

A stoma didn’t end my story.

For me, it gave me the chance to start a new chapter.💜

How You Can Get Involved

You can now visit the Stomas Unlocked campaign to learn all about each of our campaign initiatives, as well as discovering the many ways you can support us across all three themes.

We hope you will join us as we build towards Stoma Aware Day 2026.

Together, we can Unlock Understanding. Unlock support. Unlock Choice.