Bethany Townsend's photo story on Crohn's and Colitis UK Facebook page goes viral!

View Bethany's Story

Bethany Townsend decided that she didn’t want her colostomy bags to control her life and she was confident and brave enough to send us a holiday sunbathing snap to our Facebook page that has been seen by an estimated 12 million people – perhaps even more since her story has gained so much media attention. Thousands of our members with Crohn’s Disease or Ulcerative Colitis - and many more supporters - have told us that Bethany is inspirational and that her actions have helped them to shed insecurities of their own.

What Bethany has also achieved is to shine a bright light on two forms of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) - Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis - which are life-long and debilitating conditions for which there is no known cure. Both conditions are more prevalent than Parkinson’s Disease or Multiple Sclerosis, yet are less well-known and so we are extremely thankful to Bethany for telling her story to so many people. It is only through greater awareness that we can help change the way people perceive and treat people with IBD since it is often a sensitive and intimate condition which people living with IBD tend to keep very private.

It is important to recognise that because of the range of symptoms and the treatments available not everyone with IBD will require surgery, an ileostomy or colostomy bag. However, with at least 18,000 new cases being diagnosed every year in the UK alone it is vital that we ensure a greater awareness of the condition and raise significant sums of research money in order to pursue a cure.

Media Coverage

Bethany's photo and story have been covered by media across the world, including the US, Australia, South Africa, Brazil and most of Europe, which has helped raise awareness of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD). Below are just a few examples of UK media coverage that Bethany's story has received so far. 

Monday 7 July

• Watch Bethany on ITV This Morning

Sunday 6 July

• Daily Mail - Scores of Crohn's sufferers across the globe post bikini selfies inspired by model who became an internet star after posing with her colostomy bag on show
• Sunday Times - Bethany Townsend: My bikini pose is quite revealing about a little-known disease (Subscription needed)

Thursday 3 July

• BBC Newsbeat - Crohn's sufferer: Get your colostomy bag out on holiday
• Listen to BBC Radio 1 Newsbeat Broadcast

Wednesday 2 July

• BBC News - Colostomy bag bikini photograph seen by nine million
• The Telegraph - The most inspiring bikini photos you'll see this summer

BBC Midlands Today: