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Long term health conditions >> Women 19-23 >> Jodie - Interview 18 >> She has tried many sports including skiing and scuba diving. She does not cough so says she does not need to do her physiotherapy.

Jodie has cystic fibrosis (CF) and was diagnosed with CF related type 1 diabetes in her early teens. Of the two conditions she finds her diabetes the harder to control particularly because she has a very active life. She finds that the specialist care she received is brilliant. She remains thankful for all the nagging she got from her Dad and her children's consultant.

Long term health conditions >> Men 16-18 >> David - Interview 20 >> He has found that sport has definitely helped him to control his asthma.

David was diagnosed with asthma at the age of 5 and his mother thinks that it was triggered off by a really bad cold. His asthma is mild and he is not on regular medication but he uses his inhaler before doing sports. He sees a specialist nurse once a year for check ups.

Long term health conditions >> Women 19-23 >> Kate - Interview 19 >> She is in her final year at university and also works so she finds it difficult to go to the gym everyday. Prefers exercise to physiotherapy because s

Kate was diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis (CF) when she was 4 years old by a new consultant who spotted the symptoms straight away. Previously, she had been misdiagnosed with other conditions such as asthma and a milk allergy. Kate has very few CF related symptoms and although she has had the odd chest infection, she has never required intravenous antibiotics.

Long term health conditions >> Men 16-18 >> James - Interview 21 >> He is not allowed to do any contact sports or go swimming. Under the supervision of his PE teacher he is allowed to go to the school gym and do some v

James has a renal condition called Senior Loken Syndrome and it means that his kidneys didn't develop as he grew older. James was diagnosed with his condition when he was eleven years old and since then he has spent much of his time on dialysis. Four times a week he goes to hospital to have dialysis and he is able to attend school two days a week. This condition affects both his kidneys and his eyes and James is now registered blind.

Long term health conditions >> Men 16-18 >> Jamie - Interview 12 >> Says that he gets breathless very easily and describes the situations that aggravate his problem.

Jamie has a heart condition called hypoplastic left heart syndrome. He was diagnosed when he was six days old and underwent pioneering and life saving surgery. He gets breathless very easily and is not allowed to play any contact sports. Jamie absolutely loves football so at home he plays it in the garden with his sister and a neighbour.

Long term health conditions >> Men 16-18 >> Joseph - Interview 17 >> Says that since the age of ten he has been restricted regarding contact sports and that this situation is normal for him. He used to do a lot of swimm

Joseph was diagnosed with Enthesitis Related Arthritis at the age of seven. After initial remission his condition flared up again and it became more difficult to control. He was started on a new drug, Enbrel and has been on remission for the last two years.

Long term health conditions >> Women 19-23 >> Helene - Interview 04 >> Her mother enrolled her in dance classes. She loves her dancing and would only give it up if it made her sickle cell worse.

Helene has had sickle cell anemia since birth. Sickle cell is when the blood cells are shaped like a half moon and they cannot pass through the veins so easily and this causes pain in, for example, elbows and knees. Helene takes penicillin and folic acid everyday and needs to avoid getting cold.

Long term health conditions >> Men 16-18 >> Tomas - Interview 09 >> Has more asthma attacks when the weather is bad, or if he does not uses his inhaler before doing sport. He also needs to try to avoid dust mites and p

Tomas has had asthma since he was six months old. Apart from asthma, Tomas has developed various allergies and he attends a specialised hospital clinic. He says that the work that Asthma UK does at schools has helped to improve the understanding of the condition among teachers and children.

Long term health conditions >> Women 19-23 >> Sara - Interview 27 >> She talks about the positive effects of taking part in a Tai Chi class for people with arthritis.

Sara was diagnosed in 1990 with Juvenile chronic arthritis. She has had a finger tendon repair & a hip replacement. Current medication Anti-TNF Humira injected 2/month, indometacin, co-codamol & Lansoprazole. Says that with her current medication she has more energy to do things like exercise. She attended a Tai Chi course for people with arthritis and really enjoyed it.

Long term health conditions >> Men 16-18 >> Tomas - Interview 09 >> Says that just knowing that he is able to play rugby makes him feel better.

Long term health conditions >> Women 19-23 >> Elizabeth - Interview 01 >> She goes regularly to the gym and does at least 40 minutes walk everyday but says that she is self-conscious about her shoulders and does not go to th

Elizabeth was diagnosed with scoliosis at the age of 16. She now works for a Department of Health funded project. She says that as a teenager she 'rebelled' against her condition and stopped taking her painkillers. Her attitude now is to work with her condition rather than against it. She takes regular exercise and does a lot of walking.

Long term health conditions >> Men 16-18 >> Jamie - Interview 12 >> Enjoys playing football and finds it frustrating if he is not able to play at school.

Long term health conditions >> Women 19-23 >> Jodie - Interview 18 >> Says that provided she takes antibiotics she can go on skiing trips and she is absolutely fine and does not get any chest infections.

Publication date: October 2007 Last updated: February 2012

Review date: February 2014

Various long-term health conditions can occur in young people. We interviewed 30 young people about their experiences of different chronic illnesses. Select from the key topics below, choose from the full list of topics on the right hand side of this page, or explore all the interviews by clicking on people's stories below.

Sophie says: “I've had a good weekend despite my lungs not feeling too good. My boyfriend's training to climb Mount Kilimanjaro so we have been hiking!”
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