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"I’ve found somebody who truly understands"
Radio presenter Aimee Vivian reflects on her coeliac journey, from diagnosis to making new friends and discovering a whole new way of eating
words PUNTEHA VAN TERHEYDEN
Aimee and her friend, fellow DJ Charlie (right)
The very same month that DJ Aimee Vivian bagged her dream job with Capital FM radio in London in 2015, she was diagnosed with coeliac disease – an auto-immune condition affecting the gut. Both the diagnosis and the job had taken many years to achieve, and each would mark the start of life-changing journeys for her.
She says, “I was poorly for a long time, suffering lots of different symptoms, including fatigue, bloating and tummy pain. Getting the diagnosis as I started my dream job was both a relief and a worry.”
While it was great to finally have answers, Aimee, now 31, was anxious about what her condition (where gluten in food causes the body to attack the lining of the gut) would mean for her life and career.