Crohns and Colitis are invisible illnesses, where a person may look ok on the outside; they may be in daily struggle with symptoms such as pain, extreme fatigue and urgency to use the toilet.

Right now, over 300,000 people in the UK are living with a lifelong disease that many people have never heard of. And the real number could be almost double that. Because of the stigma and misunderstanding surrounding these diseases, thousands of people are suffering in silence. But they are not alone.

It takes guts to talk about these conditions, and that's why we are trying to highlight these conditions during Awareness Week 1-7 December and raise vital funds on Purple Friday. We want to raise awareness and money that will help the charity to achieve a better quality of life for those affected by the conditions, improve services and ultimately find a cure.