December
Mount Kilimanjaro training walk carrying 12kg
December offers an opportunity to reflect on the many personal, professional, and advocacy achievements and highlights that defined 2024.
It also marks five years since I became an ostomate after undergoing colostomy surgery in December 2019. I celebrate this anniversary each year as it is a powerful reminder of the freedom, fresh start and opportunities that having a stoma has given me. This is why I am starting with my stoma advocacy highlights first.
Supporting Ostomates
Mount Kilimanjaro Chameleon Buddies Charity Trek
My biggest adventure and personal challenge yet - Oct 2025
Taking on this challenge will push my limits in so many ways, but supporting women and girls in Kenya with stomas after life-changing childbirth injuries is a cause deeply close to my heart. I feel truly privileged to embark on this adventure with the goal of raising funds to build a dedicated stoma care unit at the Gynocare Fistula Hospital in Eldoret, Kenya—helping to provide the physical and emotional support these women so urgently need. If you would like to support my fundraiser please click on my JustGiving link below:
https://www.justgiving.com/page/jo-prance-climbs-kilimanjaro-4-chameleonbuddies
‘Ask Jo’, column for Colostomy UK’s ‘Tidings’, quarterly magazine
Absolutely delighted to be supporting Colostomy UK by writing this exercise column. This amazing publication is full of helpful information, stories and advice for anyone with a stoma. My aim is to inspire and empower ostomates, encouraging them to embrace an active lifestyle to the fullest extent possible.
For help and advice for stomas, I highly recommend visiting and subscribing to colostomy uk, see link below:
Thank you to Susanna Galton @ The Telegraph online and photographer Clara Molden for this feature about my life as an ostomate.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/health-fitness/diet/gut-health/living-with-stoma-bag/
Professional Achievements
Qualifying as a Menopause Movement Trainer
Studio improvements - upgrading my teaching facility with air conditioning, new lighting and equipment.
Personal Achievements
Swimming
South East Region Long Course Championships 2024 setting a new PB in 800m 12:53
Learning Butterfly which is still a work in progress and limited to 25m in one go and enabled me to enter an Individual Medley.
Competing in my first 100m Individual Medley presented a huge learning curve combining all the strokes together. Since returning to competitive swimming in 2021 following my colostomy in 2019, I have only competed in Freestyle.
Swimming in Australia’s pools
From Melbourne's Sports & Aquatic Centre to the picturesque Prahran Aquatic Centre, then to Tasmania's Doone Kennedy Aquatic Centre, and finally to Sydney's iconic Iceberg Pool in Bondi—each swim was unforgettable. Crossing off the Iceberg Pool from my bucket list was a tidal thrill I won’t forget in a hurry.
Melbourne Sports & Aquatic Centre
Australia Adventures
A journey I had wanted do for many years to visit family but it was unrealistic pre-stoma surgery. Visiting Tasmania, Melbourne & Sydney via Singapore was a truly unforgettable trip and I had many incredible experiences.
Women’s Health Advocacy
Featuring in a BBC Iplayer documentary ‘Prolapse & Me’, highlighting the impact of pelvic organ prolapse with thanks to Hayley Jarvis Senior Broadcast Journalist at BBC Scotland.
Speaking on BBC Breakfast
BBC Breakfast joining hosts Naga Munchetty and Charlie Stayt to promote the release of the ‘My Prolapse & Me’ BBC iPlayer documentary was an incredible experience and a fantastic opportunity to promote MASIC and raise awareness of the impact of birth injury.
The Birth Trauma Inquiry Launch, Palace of Westminster I was invited to attend as a thank you for helping to process the submissions to the inquiry.
BBC Radio The Late Show with Asma Younus - I was invited to talk about my life and my advocacy work challenging the stigma surrounding incontinence. We also discussed my 25 personal challenges to mark 25 years since birth injury and my upcoming Kilimanjaro charity trek 2025 for Chameleon Buddies.
Raising Awareness of Birth injury, challenging stigma surrounding incontinence and the importance of pelvic floor exercises. Thank you to JUNOFEM for this great media coverage achieved over so many outlets.
APPRAISE STUDY - LEEDS BECKETT UNIVERSITY
Continuing in my role as Co - PPI Lead (Patient and Public Involvement) in this much needed research study.
This research is specifically for women who’ve undergone surgery for pelvic organ prolapse (POP), stress urinary incontinence (SUI), or experienced mesh-related complications.
Some treatments involving polypropylene mesh have led to complications requiring further surgery. This PROM (Patient Reported Outcome Measure) will help these women share their experiences and assess how pelvic floor surgery impacts their quality of life. It will also aid in measuring and comparing surgical outcomes, risks, and benefits.
See https://www.leedsbeckett.ac.uk/research/iris/appraise/ for further details.
MASIC Advocacy
MASIC Birth Injury Support Group Guildford - Co-ordinating and running this peer to peer support group on behalf of the charity MASIC is hugely important to me. This is my second year running this group.
Co-chairing a MASIC webinar: OASI (Obstetric Anal Sphincter Injuries) and Disability: Employment, Rights and Assessment sponsored by Leigh Day. MASIC explores and discusses your rights as an employee and how to advocate for yourself following a birth injury.
Speaking at Kingston Hospital Pelvic Health Conference 2024
St George’s Hospital PPHS awareness day 2024
Pelvic Health Physio Team at Nuffield Health – presenting online at their team training day 2024.