I’ve been performing for as long as I can remember. My childhood memories mainly consist of me gathering my family into the room to watch my latest performance.

By the time I was 7, my parents signed me up to Merseyside Youth Theatre and I thrived. It was like I was always meant to do this, and I’ve just always known that I’d be an actor. I never really questioned it.

This changed just after my 18^th when I was diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis.

I had made the decision to delay auditioning for drama school because I was in and out of hospital with no idea why. The idea of being away from home brought on a lot of anxiety.

The following year, I was still learning to navigate my new normal and understand my condition. The idea of being away from home brought on a lot of anxiety so I only auditioned for places within 30-mile radius. I remember feeling really down about doing that, as I imagined I’d train somewhere in London, but the diagnosis had really knocked my confidence.

So, I enrolled at University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) for actor training.

After about two months, I started to get more confident being away from home, so I moved into student halls. For the remaining 7 months of the term, I carried on like I didn’t have Colitis.

Then, the summer before second year I encountered my first flare-up since diagnosis. I still remember my Dad carrying me out to the car because I was in too much pain to move. This was when the gravity of having Colitis hit me for the first time.

I missed the first few weeks of second year and UCLan were very understanding and supportive. When I rejoined, I was on steroids and so self-conscious of how I looked. I became so focused on how I looked that I hated performing as people would be looking at me.

And then I found my voice.

With the help of my tutor, Terence, I got my confidence back by using a voice different to mine for my characters. It was so freeing because I knew that people were engaging with the character, not me. It was one of those light bulb moments that really helped me overcome a barrier I had put in front of myself.

My final year was fantastic. I was in remission and my last performance was with Helen, the most supportive and talented tutor. After showcase, I signed with an agent and had booked a theatre job before I had graduated. On paper everything was going in the right direction.

But I was struggling with the side effects of azathioprine. They made it hard to keep up with juggling temp jobs and last-minute auditions in London. After 2 years, I encountered another flare-up and felt totally helpless.

I quit because I had no support. I quit because I didn’t see anyone else in the industry with Crohn’s or Colitis talking openly about their struggles.

I started working at a call centre for a major airline. I’ve met some amazing people in the travel industry and have had some phenomenal experiences travelling abroad. Despite this, it hurt to know that I wasn’t doing what I loved. I went completely cold turkey and wouldn’t talk about acting, even if it was brought up. I refused to revisit it.

In 2018 I had my first flare-up with responsibilities as an adult and it was my hardest yet. I was on steroids for a long time it forced me to change my perspective.

I can’t just quit life when a flare-up happens.

Once I gained remission in 2019 I had 6 months of getting back on my feet and building my stamina back up before the pandemic began.

A few of my colleagues and I received a hamper from Matt Damon (yes, that Matt Damon) as a thank you for helping with his flights at the start of the pandemic. He had been in London filming with Jodie Comer and I started reading her journey as an actress.

I networked online during lockdown and discovered Disabled Artists Networking Community (DANC). DANC is an organisation for deaf, disabled, and neurodivergent artists who advocate for a more accessible industry. Not once did I ever feel confident enough to ask for a later audition time or the option to tape instead whilst flaring as I feared how it’d be received.

Thanks to DANC and its members, I could stop putting up my own barriers, and start asking others to remove theirs.  

After meeting a casting director called Nikki and sharing my IBD journey with her, she helped me book my first commercial, for NSPCC, and put me in touch with my agent. Since then, I have auditioned for roles for BBC, Netflix & recently ITV!

Earlier this year I started flaring after 3 years of remission but this time round I did not quit. My life did not fall apart, and I was surrounded by support within the industry.

After emailing a director, he responded saying he enjoyed my work and had something in mind for something he was working on. It was on coronation street, so I taped and audition and got the role! I couldn’t believe it was happening during a flare-up, the one thing that used to scare me so much it would hold me back from acting. Coronation Street was going to be my first TV credit.

My agent made sure that ITV were aware of my flaring, and I was open about it too. DANC had reassured me that asking for help is okay and the whole crew at Coronation Street could not have been more accommodating.

Seeing the likes of Sacha Dhawan and Amy Dowden being vocal ambassadors for Crohn’s & Colitis UK has given me the inspiration to follow in their footsteps. It's been 12 years now since I was diagnosed and I honestly believe that if people spoke about it then as openly as they do now, my path would have been very different. But this path is the reason I’m determined to speak up and set an example for others in the community, and in my industry.

For the first time in a long time, I’m proud to have Colitis and I’m motivated more than ever to achieve my dreams. I hope sharing my story motivates you to achieve yours.