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As Lauren Wood posed for the camera, it wasn’t just her pretty bra and lacy panties on display. No, her black stoma bag was clearly visible in the sexy photos.
It’s not your usual modeling shoot, but the 30-year-old from Northern Ireland found it extremely liberating.
‘I was 21 years old when my ileostomy bag was placed and although it has been difficult at times, I am proud of who I am. And I’m still sexy’ Lauren tells Metro.co.uk.
Since birth, Lauren had problems with projectile vomiting. She couldn’t keep any food down.
Lauren Wood, from Northern Ireland, first struggled to get used to her ileostomy bag, also called a stoma, but eventually embraced it and now says she feels sexier than she does.
“I remember being in the hospital when I was only five years old with suspected appendicitis and excruciating pain and severe constipation.”
Chronic constipation continued through her teen years, along with bouts of diarrhea, severe nausea and vomiting, extreme weight loss, constant pain, and fainting spells.
‘My stomach was so bloated that when I was a teenager people would ask when “the baby” would be born.
As Lauren grew older, she saw numerous consultants, surgeons, doctors, and nurses, none of whom were able to provide her with any answers.
Lauren revealed that her stomach problems were so severe that she was unable to have a bowel movement for five months, despite taking laxatives. In the photo in the hospital
As she got older, Lauren faced stomach health issues and finally had a stoma placed in 2014, pictured now.
It was only when he was 17, when his appendix was removed, that surgeons noticed that his colon was severely ulcerated and diseased.
“While some of my pain was due to my appendix, the other symptoms pointed to chronic intestinal disease,” he says. ‘But even with this diagnosis, nothing changed.
“At one point, I didn’t have a bowel movement for five months, even with all the laxatives I was prescribed.”
Being in constant pain affected her much more than just physically.
As a teenager, Lauren experienced severe swelling, pictured, with people asking when her baby was due.
Lauren in the hospital at the height of her chronic stomach illness. She said it affected her relationships and made her feel isolated.
“I feel like I lost my childhood to trauma, illness and being in the hospital. My relationships over the years have also been extremely difficult.
“Many family members didn’t understand my problems and that made me feel alone.”
Finally, at age 19, Lauren was finally referred to a colorectal specialist and had a stoma placed in 2014.
‘There were so many things around my stoma that I was wrestling with mentally. I had to deal with a lot of leaks.
‘My stitches ripped open after surgery and I was on antibiotics for months.
“It was hard to look at it, change it, empty it, and leaving the house became too much.
“I found it difficult to look at my new body and accept this new way of life.
“Even though I’ve been sick before, nothing compares to looking down and seeing a piece of your own gut in your belly.”
Fortunately, some of Lauren’s symptoms began to improve thanks to her stoma bag, which she nicknamed Daisy, and gradually, she began to accept it.
“I want others with ostomies to know that they are not a bad thing, that they are not something to be ashamed of.
“This is why I chose to be open on my Instagram about being a disabled woman living with an ostomy bag.
“I post a variety of fashion posts, including lingerie, swimwear, and different outfits.”
Lauren said she initially found it difficult to accept her new body after her stoma bag was fitted (pictured)
Lauren now after having her stoma bag fitted, which significantly improved her quality of life after years of pain.
Lauren has also participated in four charity calendars, where a variety of people with disabilities, physical and mental or both, pose in lingerie, with words written on their bodies, explaining their symptoms and how their illness makes them feel.
‘Unfortunately, I am still fighting my illness.
“From bouts of chronic pain to problems with how my stoma works to taking a lot of medications, I find it difficult to do the normal things that a 30-year-old woman should do.
“But I’ll keep fighting this, while I show that I’m sexy.”