Brittani Nicholl
Intro by Eilish Emery | Words by Brittani Nicholl | Images by Michael Hayes | Designed by Madison Watkins
Brittani Nicholl is a surfer. She loves the ocean and it is here
that she has found her passion. On the outside Britt is like any surfer
girl, she lives and breathes surfing and is most happy when she is
out in the water. However what many people would not guess is
that for years she has been living with an at times crippling disease
with symptoms as unpredictable as the New Zealand weather. Yet
this has not stopped Brittani from doing the things she loves. She
is the perfect example of a ‘glass half full’ type of girl. Anyone who
comes into contact with Brittani will realise she is a true role model
for how to live your life despite adversity. I think we could all learn a
little from this girl who continues to cross the finish line before her
disease every time.
Brittani Nicholl has been living with Crohn’s disease ever since
she was 7 years old. For those of us who aren’t too clear on what
Crohn’s is, it is a form of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). This
is where the body’s immune system attacks the gastrointestinal
tract causing inflammation and ulceration with any part of the
gastrointestinal tract from the mouth to the anus, but most
commonly affecting the small intestine and/or the colon. Within
a diseased section, Crohn’s disease can affect all layers of the
intestinal wall, not just the lining.
We caught up with Brittani when she visited New Zealand
earlier this year to compete in the Taranaki Surf festival. We were
keen to see her surfing again however, she had to withdraw from
the competition the day before due to developing an abscess which
required immediate surgery. Although devastated to miss the
competition, in her usual positive fashion Britt made the most of
her time in NZ and with her boyfriend Michael, explored the local
region where she climbed Mt Taranaki and made her very first
snowman.
Brittani generously gave us a background to her life of living with
her disease and how she has overcome its evils.
Brittani takes up her story.
“Prior to being diagnosed with Crohn’s disease I attended the
doctors on a few occasions, only to be diagnosed with giardia.
Though due to still being unwell I returned to my local GP who
then referred me to a gastroenterologist in Brisbane, in which after
further investigation it was found that I had Crohn’s.
I was diagnosed with Crohn's disease at just 7yrs of age, which
at the time was very surprising to find it in someone so young. Some
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of the symptoms I endured include, abdominal pain, lack of energy,
rectal bleeding, weight loss, skin problems, fevers, headaches,
diarrhea, vomiting, and anemia.
I’ve had plenty of hospital admissions over the years but 4 major
admissions. Two which took place when I was at the ages of 10 and
11 years; with one stint being 6 weeks and the other being 9 weeks,
where I received a central line and was being fed through a tube.
Growing up with the disease wasn't an easy thing, especially
with the symptoms I was dealing with. It was actually a common
thing for me at times to have to go to the bathroom 15+ times
during the day/night. I was on one medication in particular,
prednisolone, which caused me to have a fuller and round face
whilst also putting on weight. Coping with this at school wasn't the
best; most kids knew I was sick although it was hard to understand
what I was going through and why I was like that, so I did cop a
little bit of bullying not only off kids but also one or two teachers
throughout my schooling years.
In the May of 2007 at age 16 I was weighing in at 43kg, it was at
this time that I was told the news that that nobody wants to hear;
major surgery was inevitable due to a stricture (narrowing) in my
bowel.
The surgeon advised me that without further investigation they
would not know the full extent of the surgery needed.
Due to this, the doctor gave 3 possible outcomes:
1.
Have a bowel resection and require no bag.
2.
Have part of my bowel looped and require a temporary
ileostomy bag.
3.
Have all of my bowel removed and require a permanent
colostomy bag.
I came out of surgery with 30 cm of my colon removed, which
was where the structured bowel was, which meant I did not require
a bag. You could have imagined the excitement!! But that excitement
was very short lived and two days after leaving hospital I was at
home when a major haemorrhage occurred, I was rushed into
emergency surgery to stop the bleeding and receive blood infusions.
After a very near death experience I was then home for a
month, though ended up in hospital with more complications, to a
point where I spent weeks in complete agony.
The doctors tried everything, to a point I was in hot and cold
sweats hallucinating from a mixture of pain medications, but nothing
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