A Hertfordshire woman who weighed just five stone and was told she would die “within a few months” at 20-years-old after a bowel disease diagnosis is encouraging people to not ignore symptoms to the point of “agony“ after she had her large intensive removed in life-saving surgery. Billie Anderson, 27, who works in PR, was 19 when she first spotted blood in her stool and was running to the toilet 30 times a day.
Billie “ignored” her symptoms until she was in serious pain and her father rushed her to A&E. At first, medics believed the young woman’s health problems originated from an iron deficiency linked to her menstrual cycle.
However, a gastroenterologist diagnosed Billie with ulcerative colitis – a long-term condition where the colon and rectum become inflamed. In late 2017, Billie – who stood at 5ft 2ins tall and her weight fell to five stone, with a resting heart rate that reached 140bpm – was warned she would die “within a few months” if she did not receive surgery to remove part of her bowel and be fitted with a stoma bag.
Billie received this in January 2018 and the now 27-year-old stated that she wishes she had reached out for help sooner. Billie – who now lives in London with her boyfriend Marcus, 27, who works for a construction company – is urging people to see a doctor if they face similar issues.
She said: “I really do believe that if I hadn’t been so afraid of the symptoms I’ve been experiencing and I’d seen a doctor sooner, then I don’t think I would be in the position I’m in now. Just getting diagnosed early, getting it under control and seeing a professional is so important because I lost years of my life.”
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Billie first started experiencing symptoms aged 19 after she had moved from her hometown of Hemel Hempstead to Portsmouth for university. Billie researched her symptoms online and was “horrified” to see serious illnesses like bowel cancer being listed. The Hemel Hempstead lady – who was worried about what the issue could be – decided to “ignore it” and pretend that she was not ill.
She explained: “At first I was just a bit under the weather and groggy, but it didn’t take long to go from experiencing a bit of bloating to noticing blood in my stool. I left it for three months or so but the bleeding would not stop, so I went to see my GP. Without any tests, she told me that she thought it was bowel cancer. I laughed at first but her face was stone cold and I realised this was not a joke.”
Billie was referred to a specialist, and her symptoms were not considered to be signs of cancer. While she was continuing to endure pain and blood in her stool, Billie remembered that she had been “ignoring” the issues. She said: “I just made up my mind that I was fine because the doctor had said I was fine, and I decided to ignore the fact that I was still finding blood every 10 minutes.”
Billie returned to university in Portsmouth for her second year, which was the time when her health “hit the floor”. After four weeks, the young woman went from being “functioning” to not being able to walk or have a conversation.
She said: “I was rushing to the toilet 30 times a day, I wasn’t really eating or drinking anything because it was just so painful and I was telling my parents that I was fine the whole time. My dad eventually got fed up with me lying to him and he drove to Portsmouth and took me to A&E.”
At this point, Billie’s weight had dropped as she weighed just over five stone and had a resting heart rate 140-beats-per-minute. She added: “The doctor said that it was probably iron deficiency linked to my menstrual cycle and gave me a prescription for iron tablets, but the tablets caused havoc with my stomach and I cannot even begin to describe the pain I felt when I took them.”
Billie’s dad wanted a second opinion after seeing his daughter in severe pain and just days, after her trip to A&E, this led the then-20-year-old to be seen by a gastroenterologist. The doctor believed Billie had an inflammatory bowel disease and more testing confirmed her diagnosis of ulcerative colitis.
Billie was being rushed to and from hospital in the next few months, as she was fighting nasty flare-ups. She said: “Despite being on medication, I was still rushing to the toilet 20 times a day and I couldn’t put any weight on. My joints started to swell, I had severe acne and I was losing my hair, which was a bit of a shock.”
In December 2017, Billie was informed by her doctor that she would die in the next few months if she did not receive surgery to remove part of her bowel and have a stoma bag fitted. She said: “I genuinely don’t know how I got through Christmas that year. I remember just camping down in the bathroom, I set up my duvet in there and just had to get through it before my surgery.”
On January 2, 2018, Billie received a six-and-a-half-hour operation to remove her large intestine and she was fitted with a stoma bag before spending three days in intensive care. She said: “Life after surgery was a mental and physical adjustment because I had been so used to the feeling of pain and my stomach being stressed all the time, and the mental impact of that was enormous.
“Obviously, it’s such a massive surgery, I wasn’t jumping out of bed but I remember just feeling like that sensation I’d had that felt like someone was almost digging their nails into my stomach, was gone as soon as I’d had the operation.
“I always say that the life-changing nature of the surgery was that I was wheeled into hospital in a wheelchair and I was able to walk out eight days after having my large intestine removed.”
Following her live-saving surgery, Billie has become comfortable with a stoma bag and has made the decision to keep it permanently, as she had the option to reverse the procedure. The young woman is now encouraging people not to ignore their symptoms to the point of “agony“.
She said: “Everyone had been telling me that having the stoma bag was going to be a positive and that it was going to help. Not only is that true but also I wouldn’t be alive if I hadn’t gotten it, to be honest.
“I think that, although it’s not an easy thing to live with, especially quite young, I’m incredibly grateful for the fact that I’m still alive. I hope to encourage others to seek medical help if they notice something is wrong. Don’t let it get to the point where you’re in agony before you get the help you need.”
Sarah Sleet, CEO of charity Crohn’s & Colitis UK, said: “There are more than 500,000 people living with Crohn’s and Colitis in the UK and our research tells us that those aged 18-34 are the most likely group to ignore the warning signs.
“As Billie’s story shows, waiting a long time to find out what’s going on can lead to major complications. There’s nothing to be embarrassed about: the doctor will have seen it all before.”
Sarah Carter is a health and wellness expert residing in the UK. With a background in healthcare, she offers evidence-based advice on fitness, nutrition, and mental well-being, promoting healthier living for readers.
