A university student who said she fell mysteriously unwell two Christmases ago has been raising awareness about her chronic disease on TikTok.
Lucy Harman, 20, from England, claims she lost 56 kilos in 30 days soon after starting her studies in 2020.
She recalled feeling weak, enduring constant stomachaches and spotting blood in her stool. She said she refused to imagine anything was seriously fallacious until she was home for Christmas dinner.
Harman said she took two bites of her holiday meal before she appeared to pass out on the couch.
She remembered waking up in a hospital room to the news she was suffering severe malnutrition and dehydration. She said she remained within the hospital for treatment with steroids and immunosuppressants.
After an MRI scan, Harman was reportedly diagnosed with Crohn’s disease, an incurable condition that causes digestive tract inflammation and irritation.
“To offer my body a rest, I used to be given a feeding tube for around six months before I slowly built as much as eating properly again,” she told the Independent.
“But I even have to stick with plain food like rice and chicken, so I don’t irritate my bowel.”
Harman began posting about her journey on TikTok, where she has 1 million likes on her page and greater than 5,000 followers.
“At first, I made story-time videos about my life and health issues, then I began making comedic videos around the subject,” she said.
“I’ve had a variety of lovely responses from individuals who have been coping with similar things, but one comment that stuck out to me was a man who saw my videos and realized he had similar symptoms, so he got checked and discovered he had colon cancer.”
“Luckily, since it was caught early, it was very treatable. It was amazing to listen to that my videos had helped him a lot,” she added in regards to the commenter.
Harman can also be educating others through her work with Crohn’s & Colitis UK on its “Cut the Crap” campaign.
“The campaign is all about helping people to get an early diagnosis and stop people from being within the situation I used to be in,” she explained. “You may fill out a questionnaire about your symptoms and it offers you advice, and in addition email you a letter to take to your [general practitioner].”
Harman said the campaign would have been useful to her because she was “terrified” to speak with a physician about her symptoms and bowel movements.
“Any change in your health, if it’s your bowels or anything, it is best to get it checked since it’s higher to be protected than sorry,” she advises. “Crohn’s can occur at any age, but an early diagnosis will assist you get your life back on target.”
A university student who said she fell mysteriously unwell two Christmases ago has been raising awareness about her chronic disease on TikTok.
Lucy Harman, 20, from England, claims she lost 56 kilos in 30 days soon after starting her studies in 2020.
She recalled feeling weak, enduring constant stomachaches and spotting blood in her stool. She said she refused to imagine anything was seriously fallacious until she was home for Christmas dinner.
Harman said she took two bites of her holiday meal before she appeared to pass out on the couch.
She remembered waking up in a hospital room to the news she was suffering severe malnutrition and dehydration. She said she remained within the hospital for treatment with steroids and immunosuppressants.
After an MRI scan, Harman was reportedly diagnosed with Crohn’s disease, an incurable condition that causes digestive tract inflammation and irritation.
“To offer my body a rest, I used to be given a feeding tube for around six months before I slowly built as much as eating properly again,” she told the Independent.
“But I even have to stick with plain food like rice and chicken, so I don’t irritate my bowel.”
Harman began posting about her journey on TikTok, where she has 1 million likes on her page and greater than 5,000 followers.
“At first, I made story-time videos about my life and health issues, then I began making comedic videos around the subject,” she said.
“I’ve had a variety of lovely responses from individuals who have been coping with similar things, but one comment that stuck out to me was a man who saw my videos and realized he had similar symptoms, so he got checked and discovered he had colon cancer.”
“Luckily, since it was caught early, it was very treatable. It was amazing to listen to that my videos had helped him a lot,” she added in regards to the commenter.
Harman can also be educating others through her work with Crohn’s & Colitis UK on its “Cut the Crap” campaign.
“The campaign is all about helping people to get an early diagnosis and stop people from being within the situation I used to be in,” she explained. “You may fill out a questionnaire about your symptoms and it offers you advice, and in addition email you a letter to take to your [general practitioner].”
Harman said the campaign would have been useful to her because she was “terrified” to speak with a physician about her symptoms and bowel movements.
“Any change in your health, if it’s your bowels or anything, it is best to get it checked since it’s higher to be protected than sorry,” she advises. “Crohn’s can occur at any age, but an early diagnosis will assist you get your life back on target.”
