I was very pleased to have got a blog post on, even if it was short, in January already. It’s been a very busy week this week, with work (just one of those weeks) life and volunteering. The children have been waking up very early too!

Last weekend I was volunteering at a residental for the church youth group which was amazing – not done one for a while, and it was nice to flex the old youth worker muscles. I’ve been volunteering with the church youth group for about 18 months having stopped full time youth work in 2013 after I had my first huge abscess and the late nights were not working well for me with the pouch complications. Today I was supporting recruitment of a youth minister which was a very interesting process, and the young people had some great insights to offer.

It’s also been a funny week ostomy wise. I had to change my bag each day from Monday – Wednesday (usually I change every 3/4 days) and eventually worked out that one of the dips by my stoma had reduced, so no longer needed paste. Because I’ve been doing more running I’ve lost some weight/ improved my body tone. A little change can make a big difference! I shall do a future post about my current Ostomy appliance and accessories soon.

Coaching

I am determined to get my coaching qualification finished off, and have dedicated Monday evenings, as well as a week in February to this. I started work with a new coaches this week, and it reminded me how much of a difference it can make to the coachee, but also how great it feels to have a good session with someone.

Running

I have entered the Old Sodbury Scramble again this year, which takes place in March, and then got a place for the Westonbirt 10k in May too. I’m really enjoying running, and hoping to make it to 50 parkrun’s this year too. You can follow my running activity on Strava if you are so inclined.

I’m going to set up a JustGiving page for my running activities this year and raise some money for Crohn’s and Colitis UK.

#IBDHour

IBDHour hasn’t happened for a while now, and maybe post coaching qualification it could make a reappearance… Or be reborn as a podcast! I’m a fan of podcasts, and have a few ideas for theme and content / but no idea how to get it going!

Friends

One regret from 2019 is not being in touch with my friends as much as I would like, so this is something that needs to change this year. No excuses, just one of the things that you never seem to get around to with young children, which also makes travelling that bit more difficult.

What are your plans for 2020? Leave a comment!