So I am now back at home and recovering. It has been going pretty well. I had some separation around my stoma, so am changing the bag daily and applying a stoma-hesive powder to dry the skin and heal the wound.

My mid-line incision is healing very well, I can’t believe how little pain I’ve had with it! There is a tiny little over granulation at the bottom which will need some attention either at the weekend or next week.

I did however develop on Wednesday evening a dull ache in my right buttock. This has persisted and got slowly worse. It’s not terrible, I can sit fine but she mm I go to stand or sit or move about I can feel… something. It feels like the beginning of an abscess.

So I contacted the hospital ward who advised me yo see my GP. My GP had a look and referred me yk the surgical assessment unit at my local hospital, the Bristol Royal Infirmary. They had a look, took some blood and after a few hours sent me home with some more antibiotics and instructions to go back of it gets worse over the weekend.

When we were planning for my recovery, we decided that about a week after I came home, my wife would take our 7 month old son to see her family in Ireland, so I could get some proper rest (he wakes up quite early) and my parents would come and do nursing duties. Unfortunately I was on hospital 2 weeks not 1, and so I hardly saw Jonah before he jetted off to the Emerald Isle, so I am missing him (and my wife!) quite a lot – although there is something reassuring about having your parents looking after you!

Am now trying to stay awake for the second half of Wales vs England on the 6 Nations. It’s a great game, I’m just really tired!