KIRA’S IN A CROP TOP – WITH BAG AT HER SIDE
KIRA MORGAN is feeling more confident now then she ever has and loves to wear crop tops and bikinis, despite the fact she has to wear an ileostomy bag.
The 27-year-old part-time sales assistant from Bridgend was born with an imperforate anus, which means she did not have one. Two days after coming into the world she had to have surgery to create a stoma for a colostomy bag. A stoma is an opening on the abdomen that can be connected to either your digestive or urinary system, it allows waste (urine or faeces) to be diverted out of your body.
This procedure was reversed when Kira was two and a half, and she was given a J pouch, which is when a surgeon removes the colon and rectum and uses the end of the small intestine, known as the ileum, to form an internal pouch, which is commonly shaped like a J.
Due to this, Kira has struggled all her life with constipation, and spent many years back and forth to the hospital throughout her childhood to top up on strong adult medication. As she got older hospital visits were less frequent as strong medication helped her for a few years, but after she gave birth to her daughter Lexi Rae when she was 20 years old things started to deteriorate.
Kira was experiencing bad constipation and she needed to go to hospital every three weeks for bowel drainage: “After trying many meds and procedures with not much improvement, the surgeon I was under suggested an ileostomy. After what felt like forever, my surgery was on the books. I had a lot of help from counselling and nurses to help prepare me for the upcoming change, but I wasn’t expecting to live a full life still as I hadn’t ever known it.”
On January 18, 2018, Kira had total proctocolectomy surgery to create an ileostomy and remove her large bowel and rectum, leaving her with a “Barbie butt” which means she had her rectum removed and closed up.
Kira was nervous for the surgery, but knew the future would be better for herself, her daughter and her partner Anthony, who has stuck by her side through the whole process.
“How would I cope as a parent with a bag was one of many questions I asked myself the many times I had doubt in myself but the truth is I have a great life now. Yes, I still have my bad days but now my good days outweigh the bad days. I have so much to look forward to the healthier I get.”
Since having her operation, Kira hasn’t had a full night’s sleep as she has to get up and empty her drainable pouch throughout the night or it can leak.
She isn’t at all nervous about showing her ileostomy bag and likes to feel confident while wearing a crop top and bikini.
She said: “Before my surgery, I had people telling me there’s no reason why anybody needs to know or that my daughter needs to see it, saying that it would be pretty hush hush, but my partner has been very supportive. I wear crop tops and bikinis and I’ve probably got more confidence now than I did before I had the bag because I was always bloating and in pain.
“Since the operation I have felt that I’ve had a life worth living. I learned to live, love myself, laugh – even at myself, have played with my daughter and had adventure after adventure.”
Kira wants to raise awareness for ostomies and is taking on a 10-mile walk along the Welsh coastline to raise funds for GetYourBellyOut, a charitable organisation supporting a global community of people affected by Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis.
She is excited for her future and is marrying her partner at the end of the year and said she would continue to raise awareness and be confident for others and herself.