Nurse's fitness challenge for 'hidden illnesses'

A nurse will take on a fitness challenge to raise awareness of "hidden illnesses" and reduce the stigma around her own condition.

Amy Carberry, a junior sister at Hull Royal Infirmary, was diagnosed with Ulcerative colitis, a type of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), last year.

The 123 challenge, which will feature 123 CrossFit movements including box jumps and burpees, aims to represent the one in 123 people affected by IBD in the UK.

Carberry said: "I'm a positive person, and I'm really keen that my condition doesn't stop me doing the things I enjoy."

Before her diagnosis, Carberry said she struggled with fatigue, passed blood and had urges to go to the toilet.

"I put off going to see a doctor for quite a while as it was embarrassing," she said.

"I thought it would just go away, but it came to a point where it was affecting me so much that I couldn't put off seeking help any longer."

When Carberry was finally diagnosed, she said things "fell into place".

IBD is a term used for a group of chronic inflammatory conditions that cause severe tummy pain and diarrhoea, according to the NHS.

The main types of IBD are Crohn's disease and Ulcerative colitis.

Symptoms include diarrhoea that lasts longer than 4 weeks, tummy pain, bleeding from your bottom, feeling tired all the time and losing weight without trying.

Carberry said: "Unfortunately, because it involves gut issues, toilets and bowels, a lot of people are still embarrassed by the subject and don't feel able to talk about it, but that has to change."

She is taking on the challenge in aid of charity Crohn's and Colitis UK, with her friends at CrossFit Hull and Humber and has encouraged others to join in.

The one-hour workout on Saturday can be carried out individually or as part of a team from anywhere.

Carberry said: "If the 123 challenge gets more people talking about IBD and helps to reduce the stigma which goes along with it, then that's a double win for me."

She added: "Fitness has always been one of my main passions and one of my outlets for helping me cope with whatever life throws at me.

"Now it's a way of showing others that an IBD diagnosis isn't the end of the world."

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