I had to have ‘Barbie butt’ op to stitch my rear end shut – I can’t control my bowels anymore but I’m free

A MUM was forced to person her rectum removed and her anus sewn up to prevention her beingness - a surgical process that's been dubbed 'Barbie Butt'.

Meghan Cary Brown was 23 erstwhile she was forced to person country owed to a unsafe complication of Crohn's disease.

The condition, which implicit 540,000 radical successful the UK unrecorded with, is a chronic inflammatory bowel illness that causes inflammation successful the digestive tract.

Meghan, from Charlottesville, Virginia successful the US, was archetypal diagnosed with Crohn's illness astatine the property of 13 aft suffering years of pain, fatigue, and hospitalisations.

She said: "As a teen, I had to beryllium home-schooled for a twelvemonth due to the fact that my symptoms were truthful atrocious I was bedridden astir days. My parents would find maine lying connected the bath level due to the fact that I couldn’t adjacent locomotion to the bed. I was successful truthful overmuch pain, and I was perpetually exhausted."

Although her Crohn's illness went into remission for a while, the symptoms returned during her assemblage years.

By the clip Meghan reached her aboriginal 20s, doctors informed her her bowel had go precancerous, leaving her with a captious prime - person it removed oregon hazard processing bowel cancer successful a fewer years.

She said: "I was adamant that I wasn’t going to person my colon removed. I thought my beingness would beryllium implicit if I had that done. I was successful a precise acheronian place.

"But I knew I wanted to 1 time person children, and the imaginable of facing crab arsenic a young mum - adjacent if it was years down the enactment - pushed maine to acquisition the surgery. I decided to look astatine this arsenic my 2nd accidental astatine life."

In a process known arsenic proctectomy, Meghan's bowel was removed, a imperishable ostomy container was fitted, and her rectum was sewn shut.

She admitted: "Of course, seeing the carnal changes made to my assemblage was a shock, but the betterment was besides challenging. The hardest portion was not being capable to sit.

"For 2 weeks pursuing the surgery, I had to stay successful a 45-degree presumption successful furniture to debar putting unit connected the stitches, which could origin them to tear. Standing was painful, and the changeless soreness made adjacent elemental tasks difficult."

Meghan besides developed an excruciating rash nether the stitches.

She recalled: "I virtually had tegument falling off. My mum helped maine attraction for the area, utilizing diaper rash pick and a instrumentality to support it dry. Eventually, the tegument healed."

Having her bowel and rectum removed meant Meghan could nary longer walk discarded the accustomed way.

Instead, her discarded is collected successful an ostomy container attached to a stoma - an opening successful her abdomen wherever portion of her intestine is connected.

She continued: "I don't person the impulse to spell to the bath anymore; it conscionable happens.

"I bare my container six to 8 times a day. Although surviving with a stoma comes with its ain acceptable of challenges, I americium grateful for the prime of beingness it has fixed me.

"Before the surgery, the unpredictability of Crohn’s illness made societal situations and question anxiety-inducing. I was ever disquieted astir uncovering a bathroom. Now, I person bid of mind."

The container itself became thing Meghan had to accommodate to successful each aspects of life, including intimacy with her husband, Thomas.

She said: "I wore beauteous lacy wraps with a pouch to tuck the container successful during intimate moments. It helped with my assemblage representation due to the fact that I felt pretty. But honestly, we’ve reached a constituent wherever we’re truthful comfy with each different - we tin laughter disconnected immoderate awkward moments.”

A twelvemonth aft the surgery, Meghan decided to stock her travel online, creating an Instagram relationship to dispersed consciousness astir surviving with a stoma. 

Today, she has implicit 64.6K followers connected Instagram and an further 149.7K connected TikTok. Her contented is simply a premix of humour and education, addressing communal questions astir stoma beingness - similar whether her intestines could ever “fall out” (known arsenic a stoma prolapse) and what it’s similar to person her 'Barbie Butt' sewn shut.

She insisted: "Sharing my communicative and uncovering humour successful what has happened to maine helps maine enactment things into perspective.

“Life is short, and I’m truthful blessed to beryllium steadfast and surviving beingness to the fullest. I person 2 beauteous children, Cora and Colin, and an incredibly supportive husband. I can’t power my bowels anymore, but I besides don’t person to interest astir it. I consciousness free."