Strictly speaking
Strictly’s Amy Dowden says she was rushed to hospital on tour due to Crohn’s disease after trolling over early Covid jab
STRICTLY Come Dancing star Amy Dowden has revealed she has been rushed to the hospital in the past while on tour due to her Crohn's disease.
The 30-year-old pro dancer said her co-stars had to accompany her in an ambulance as she opened up about her illness and the recent trolling she received after getting her jab early.
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Speaking to she said: “Katya [Jones] has been in an ambulance with me.
"She stayed at hospital until 4am. Oti [Mabuse] also... she got herself in a car and came to the hospital until 11 o’clock at night, bless her.”
The star has recently been targeted by vicious trolls who attacked her for getting the jab early due to the debilitating disease.
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She explained: "I was disappointed. It is just people typing without thinking.
"I am just worried about teenagers today, the kids in my dance school who are growing up in this social media age.".
“There is more and more bullying now and something needs to be done.”
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The pro was given the opportunity to get vaccinated earlier than usual as a result of the inflammatory bowel condition.
Amy, who is a Welsh native, was diagnosed with Crohn's at the age of 19.
Despite her formal diagnosis in her late teens, Amy had suffered from the disease since the age of 11, being admitted to the hospital on hundreds of occasions in her youth.
People with the disease can experience abdominal pain, vomiting, exhaustion and bloody diarrhoea, among other symptoms.
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The star competed in the dancing competition in 2019 with CBBC presenter Karim Zeroual, placing 2nd.
Amy explained her struggles with the disease to : “I was either too skinny and people assumed I was anorexic, or I’d bloat from my medication.
What is Crohn's Disease?
It is a condition that causes inflammation of the digestive system.
The inflammation is the body's reaction to injury or irritation, and can cause redness, swelling and pain.
It is often described as a chronic condition and although sufferers will have periods of good health, there are flare-ups where symptoms are more active.
It is one of the two main forms of Inflammatory Bowel Disease - the other is a condition known as Ulcerative Colitis.
It can be caused by the genes a person has inherited, an abnormal reaction of the immune system and is probably triggered by something in the environment.
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"I’d just come off the dance floor when a dressmaker in the changing room looked at me and said 'She has a fat bottom and a thick middle.'",
"I was only 21 and still trying to deal with my condition. As a dancer struggling to fit into tiny costumes, I became very self-conscious.”
She said: “I had so many people tell when I got diagnosed, ‘Oh well it’s going to stop you dancing and I was a bit like: ‘How dare they?’.
Strictly Amy: Crohn's and me is available on the BBC iPlayer.
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