Stoma Stories: Nicola Ridler

" A colostomy, no way. I told my consultant I would rather be dead." Nicola shares her story of how reluctant she was to have stoma surgery following a stage four bowel cancer diagnosis. Nicola feared that having stoma surgery would have a hugely negative impact on her life but slowly came to terms with it with the support of her family and healthcare team. Now Nicola wants to raise awareness of what a stoma is and tackle the stigma around them. Colostomy UK is a registered UK charity that provides information and supports to ostomates and empowers them to live life to the fullest. www.colostomyuk.org