Yes, it is
true, my time at #GetYourBellyOut HQ has come to an end and I guess I feel I
owe some sort of explanation which is not easy, as I am sure you can understand
that this was not a decision that’s been taken lightly.
#GetYourBellyOut
will ALWAYS be a huge part of me, my baby if you will. #GetYourBellyOut runs so
deep within me that I am pretty certain that if you slice off a limb,
#GetYourBellyOut would run right the way through me like a stick of rock.
I will not
be leaving the group and I will not stop supporting and taking part in
takeovers etc. I LOVE the members and it’s thanks to the support that the
campaign received so early on that I am still here today. #GetYourBellyOut
saved me from myself, saved my life and saved my sanity. My inbox will always
be open to supporters and IBD sufferers.
I guess it
doesn’t take genius to figure out that things have not been right behind the
scenes for a while. The honest truth of it is that the campaign took off so
quickly that I found myself swept along in the excitement, working with 3 other
ladies that I knew nothing about and that seemed to have the same ideals in
terms of what we thought the IBD community needed, but it is no secret that we are
four completely different people, with differing views, opinions and outlooks. We’re
all so passionate about our own personal views and the campaign that it has
meant we have often come to blows behind the scenes. For a long time things
have been swept under the carpet and we have continued to work together for the
good of that campaign and its members, believing at the time that we were all
heading in the same direction.
From my
personal perspective, and please remember that this is only my view on things, that we
haven’t really ever recovered from the Pride of Britain fiasco. There was not
one tiny part of me that enjoyed any of the entire process. From the filming to
the awards, it was like hell on earth for me. I went ahead with it because I
believed in the campaign and I believed that the coverage from receiving the
award could gain us the exposure we so desperately needed to reach other sufferers
who did not yet no we existed. No matter how tough things have got behind the
scenes we have always shown a united front to the outside world but I feel like that wasn't the case here. I personally feel that since then, tension has been
high. If the things that were said in the founder chat had
been written in the group, I assure you we would all have been removed and
banned a long time ago. Things get said in the heat of the moment that can
never be taken back and I am a stubborn and probably pretty bitter human being,
and I am not known for holding my tongue or forgiving and forgetting.
We’ve always
had a vote on decisions and then gone with the majority which never went
drastically wrong and seemed like a fair solution most of the time. I have
reached a point now where I feel I am in a different place in regards to where
I want the campaign to go and what I want it to achieve in comparison to the
other founders. I find myself out voted on most things and it has become a
struggle to go along with many recent decisions as it’s not the way that I
envisaged the campaign or the group going forward. It’s impossible to move forward when there’s
no trust or respect for one another. Where there’s passion there’s fire, and my
fire erupted.
In no way
has my passion for raising awareness and funds for IBD been extinguished so I
find myself considering what I can do next, to make a difference in the way I
DO envisage and considering who would embark on this journey with me. I am now
in a position where I am fortunate enough to know people within the IBD
community that I know are on the same level. I am not willing to give up
fighting for what I believe in just because I can no longer do it under the
#GetYourBellyOut umbrella.
I thought
long and hard about what I needed to do for the sake of my health, my sanity
and my self-respect. I figured out where I want to go and who I want to get
there with. I am a great believer in the fact that you have to make your own
happiness, it’s not something that anyone can make for you and the only way you
can do that is by being true to yourself. I need to fight for what I believe in
WITH people that I believe in. I know there are many people who are going to feel like I have let them down and for that I am truly sorry.
So what
started as a few ideas, has been mulled over and adapted with some very special
people and has now been developed in to an idea that we actually want to run
with.
So what is next?
The glowing
embers of my scorched heart have been reignited and like a phoenix from the
sooty ashes has risen the #IBDSuperHeroes.
We are NOT
in any way competing with #GetYourBellyOut, the funds raised will be going in a
different direction and the group will be the heart of the project and the
members the engine with which we will drive it forward. We aim to build a
community, fighting together for one main goal - to find a cure for IBD. Money
raised will fund research in to finding a cure for Inflammatory Bowel Disease.
Group members will be involved every step of the way, from contributing to
fundraising ideas and voting every quarter for the winner, to being involved
with the planning, promotion and execution of the chosen idea.
Success will
not be measured by numbers. The success of the #IBDSuperHeroes will be measured
by the passion and belief that people have for the cause.
Active
#GetYourBellyOut members will already be familiar with the team manning the
group. We have Corinne Vanessa Burns, Lisa Cummins, Roger Pasfield, Stephen
Gomm, AJ Mooney, Lee Kelly and as an added bonus, Rogers better half Kelly
Pasfield who will be able to view things from a different perspective, the one
of a partner to an IBD sufferer.
If you want
to know more, check out
#IBDSuperHeroes
