For the last two London Marathons, Nikki Matthews has been in hospital recovering from surgery, which has made her even more determined to make the Start Line this April.
Nikki was diagnosed with inflammatory bowel disease at 16 and says, “My Crohn’s journey has been turbulent – with high highs and very low lows.”
“I’ve lost count of the surgeries, treatments and tests. But I’ve also travelled, lived fully and had two healthy children. None of this would be possible without research into new medications and the support of Crohn’s & Colitis UK.”
Nikki started running thanks to Couch to 5K, and to finish the TCS London for Crohn’s & Colitis UK, a charity so important to her, has long been on her bucket list.
She secured a place in the 2023 TCS London Marathon, but had to defer following stoma surgery complications that saw her placed into a medically induced coma. Undeterred, she set her sights on the event in 2024.
“I trained hard for 2024, hoping to cross the Finish Line one year after being in intensive care,” says Nikki. “But two days before Event Day, I was hospitalised again with a gas build-up in my colon. My bowel perforated, leading to emergency surgery and a second stoma.”
Throughout her recovery, training milestones have become a powerful focus for Nikki. She has also adapted her fuelling and hydration, as she says no two days are the same with a stoma. Some foods that were fine yesterday can cause a blockage today, and she has started using a vest for hydration.
“Your colon absorbs most of your fluid. My colon isn’t being used at the moment, so I use a vest and drink squash, as water will just flush straight through and won’t necessarily hydrate me well enough.”
So far, Nikki has raised more than £5,000 for Crohn’s & Colitis UK, and has put together her top three fundraising tips to help you smash your fundraising target.
1. Share your story on social
Nikki started an Instagram account to talk about her stoma as a way of ‘opening up and owning it’.
“Poo is such a taboo subject,” says Nikki. “When I was 16, I remember not wanting to tell anyone about my inflammatory bowel disease because I was so ashamed.”
“Thanks to amazing people like Adele Roberts and Dame Deborah James, it’s becoming easier to talk about things like this. Hopefully, it’s not taking as long to be diagnosed too, which is incredible.”
As well as raising awareness, the account has introduced Nikki to lifelong friends.
“I've created friendships with people who understand – because you don't until you have a stoma – and it has helped with my anxiety and PTSD, as I have a reason to write. That has made a huge difference.”
Did you know frequent diarrhoea, stomach pain, blood in poo, or urgent need to go can all be signs of Crohn’s or Colitis? Use the Crohn’s & Colitis UK symptom checker.
2. Ask your community how they can chip in
Nikki’s friends and local community helped with her biggest fundraising drives.
One friend donated a two-night stay at an Airbnb in the Forest of Dean. Nikki converted this into a raffle prize and sold 100 tickets at £10 each. It was an instant hit and sold out in four days, giving her a grand total of £1,000.
She hosted a quiz night at her local gym and sold 65 tickets for £5. She also called on local businesses to donate prizes.
If you are overwhelmed by your target, break it down into chunks of £5 and £10 to make it more manageable. And remember, it’s really worth asking how others can help.
3. Keep everyone updated on the good and bad news
Training journeys are rarely straightforward. For Nikki, the update she didn’t want to give came in April 2024. Due to emergency surgery, she would have to put the marathon on hold for the second time.
“That Marathon Day was probably one of the darkest I had,” says Nikki. “It was going to be the moment of coming through all of this, a year after being in intensive care. And to have that taken away was really tough.”
That’s when her friend Charlie Ryan stepped in. Charlie was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis in 2020 and, like Nikki, has a stoma. When Charlie saw Nikki’s post, she called on her community to say she can’t run, let’s do it for her. Runners banded together and clocked a total of 276.3 miles in her name. People who didn’t know Nikki got involved, and her fundraising page spread even further. You can watch the reel on Instagram.
Never underestimate how someone championing your story can have an unexpected effect.
