01/05/2026
🫁💜 Cystic Fibrosis Awareness 💜🫁
Since May is Cystic Fibrosis (CF) Awareness Month, I thought I’d share something very personal to me that not many people know.
I was born with CF ((a genetic disorder that affects your lungs & digestive system, along with other organs)) and spent most of my childhood and early life in a hospital room. It’s always been something I hid and felt ashamed of because I looked different and have always had to act differently than other people my age. Part of that shame stemmed from when I was a child during P.E. at school where I was made to change in a separate room so that my scars, feeding tube, and portacath wouldn’t frighten my classmates. I have had countless operations throughout my life that started the second I was born, a feeding tube from the age of 3 to the age of 16, nebulisers four times a day, physio twice a day, inhalers twice a day, plus I take over 40 different tablets a day to keep my health stable.
At one time, I did develop CF-related diabetes and had to inject insulin once a day. I left school at the age of 15 because of my health and the anxiety surrounding that. A few years after that, COVID hit, and it was one of the scariest times for me and my family, since nobody knew the effect the virus would have on my already weak immune system. I was told by my doctors to lock down three weeks before the rest of the U.K. I felt isolated, scared, and ashamed.
I needed an outlet to focus on - something that could clear my mind: crochet. I’d always loved bohemian crochet clothing, and I needed a new hobby that would ease my anxiety, so I picked it up. Six years down the line, crochet is the biggest thing in my life. I teach people how to crochet five times a week, run my own yarn and craft shop, and even got a crochet tattoo!
Because of my condition, I do get tired easily. I do face a lot of anxiety around flu season, and part of me will always be the quiet, sick girl who needed her own personal nurses in school and was constantly told she wouldn’t live past the age of 30 - but I found my peace with my pretty pink shop, my lovely ladies, and all my wonderful customers.
I’ve hidden cystic fibrosis for so many years because I was ashamed, but I have decided to embrace it and share my story. A percentage of all profits from the month of May will be donated to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (an amazing charity dedicated to giving CF patients the treatment they deserve). Without this charity, I know I would not be alive right now.
I’m grateful that, at this time and for the last few years, I’ve been very healthy, and I hope other CF patients can find the peace that I have. I’ll always be grateful to crochet for saving me from spiralling in a dark time and for giving me a career that I love!
