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Amy Dowden is well used to managing pressure. Indeed, for her it's a vital health issue, as her Crohn's can flare up when life gets hectic.

"I know when I need to rest, and when I have to eat simply and drink lots of water." says the dancer from Caerphilly, well known to TV audiences from Strictly Come Dancing.

Amy discovered her love of dancing when she was eight, at a holiday park where she took part in an amateur competition. "There was no stopping me after that," she says. "Mum and Dad sacrificed their spare time taking me to classes and shows. I have always been driven to win, so Crohn's wasn't going to hold me back." Between bouts of illness, which started at the age of 11, Amy was determined to achieve her ambition to be a professional dancer. But a particularly bad flare at 19 led to her being referred to a specialist in London, where tests confirmed Crohn's.

"It was such a relief to finally receive a diagnosis," she says. Amy controls her symptoms with mesalazine. "It's working, although sometimes there's a flare-up," she says. "I just have to look out for the signs, which for me start with swollen eyes. Then I call my doctor." With multiple series of Strictly under her belt, Amy is prepared for a punishing upcoming schedule. As well as the live TV show, there are regular one-off appearances, plus touring shows, in which she appears alongside her fiancé, fellow dancer Ben Jones.

Having overcome childhood embarrassment, Amy has decided to be vocal about her Crohn's. And her condition won't get in the way of her ambition – she has her eye on the Strictly crown.

"If I won, I'd not only be the first Welsh professional dancer to do so, but the first with Crohn's," says Amy. "Now wouldn't that be a great title to hold?"