A brave mum has vowed to create a legacy for her son after he passed away suddenly from complications of a rare and life-changing disease aged just 28. Jordan Crombie was diagnosed with Addison’s Disease three years ago after being plagued by a sudden onset of extreme tiredness which left him struggling to walk report the Record.
At just 25, he was told he could never play football again due to the autoimmune condition, which had to be managed by taking hormone tablets daily. The disease, which affects around 8400 people across the UK, is caused by damaged adrenal glands that fail to produce enough cortisol or aldosterone.
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Jordan, who recently began working for the People’s Postcode Lottery, had been due to fly out to join mum Sharon Copland and sister Dharma, 22, in Spain for a family holiday. But after failing to make contact, his grandfather went round to his flat in Markinch, Fife, where he was found to have passed away on July 29.
His grief-stricken mum, 53, from Glenrothes, is now speaking out in a bid to raise awareness of the hidden condition while also urging other young people to take their health seriously to prevent further heartbreak. The beauty therapist explained: “I don’t think Jordan even realised the seriousness of what he had. This was life-changing for him.
“Before all this, he was a boy who was very physically fit, he played football since he was six-years-old. He played right up until the week before his diagnosis and he went to the gym two or three times a week. He looked after his body and appeared to be a very healthy young man.
“But with a snap of the fingers, he was told he was never allowed to play football again. It had a real impact on his whole life. He seemed to cope well at first but after about 18 months, he began to deteriorate quite rapidly.
“Not only did it bring a change in his whole life, it actually brought a bit of a change in his personality. Life went from being amazing to being a struggle because every day he was tired. Everything that he did took so much effort.
“Any kind of shock which leaves your body needing adrenaline has an impact on people with Addison’s. Any trauma or stress that he had in his life, it drained his body of its normal energy.
“It could take two or three days for him to recover whereas our bodies just naturally do it. I didn’t know he was supposed to take his tablets at the same time everyday - I only found that out after he had passed. Jordan took the tablets when he remembered.
“I think young people perhaps take their health for granted sometimes and think they’re a bit invincible. But sadly that’s not the case. I really want to raise awareness of Addison’s Disease because people have all heard of diabetes, which is similar, but not many people have heard of this.
“I looked into it three years ago when Jordan was diagnosed and there wasn’t a lot of information out there. There is definitely more now but there are still so many people that have never heard of it.
“If we can help just one family not to go through what we’re going through right now, then that will be a legacy for Jordan. There has to be something good that comes from this tragedy.”
Recalling Jordan’s diagnosis, mum-of-two Sharon told how she received a worrying phone call from her son telling her he was feeling very unwell while at work in Edinburgh.
She said: “It got acute very, very quickly. He was at work and had an appointment which he decided to walk to. But he found that he couldn’t. He was really struggling to walk.
“He called me and told me he really didn’t feel well. He said he was struggling to lift the phone to his ear because he didn’t have the energy. I told him to either call an ambulance, jump in a taxi to A&E or I’d go get him.
“But he just wanted to come home so he got a friend to put him on a train. I picked him up at the station an hour later, not realising the extent of how weak he was. He couldn’t walk - he couldn’t do anything.
“We called NHS 24 who sent us up to Glenrothes Hospital who sent him straight down to the Victoria Hospital in Kirkcaldy. He was kept in overnight and by the next morning he had been diagnosed with Addison's Disease.”
Jordan’s family are awaiting the conclusive results for his cause of death however medics believe it was caused by an underlying infection which he may not have been aware of.
Sharon added: “It could have been anything. He had an ear ache the week before so it could have been that. Or something as simple as the common cold. He was actually back in hospital in March because he had an Addison’s crisis. But he picked up a bit after that.
“We hoped that the little tweaks made to his medication and the lecture that he got from me was going to make a difference. And I think it did a little because he picked up a bit after that.
“The weekend before he passed, I spent time with him and actually thought he was looking the best he had done in a long, long time. His whole being just seemed better - I saw a glimpse of the old Jordan that weekend. So this was a bolt out of the blue.
“I did go and see him after he passed. That did help because the thought of not seeing him again, not being able to hug him, not being able to give him a little kiss or to tell him how loved he was by everybody was just too much.
“The outpour on social media has just been incredible. I don’t think he knew just how many people’s lives he had touched because the illness did isolate him. The condition did have an effect on his mental health but he was very strong minded.
Addison's Disease explained
Addison's disease, also known as primary adrenal insufficiency or hypoadrenalism, is a rare disorder of the adrenal glands.
The adrenal glands are 2 small glands that sit on top of the kidneys. They produce 2 essential hormones: cortisol and aldosterone.
The adrenal gland is damaged in Addison's disease, so it does not produce enough cortisol or aldosterone.
About 9,000 people in the UK have Addison's disease, with over 300 new cases diagnosed each year.
It can affect people of any age, although it's most common between the ages of 30 and 50. It's also more common in women than men.
An adrenal crisis can occur following severe trauma and shock which can cause cortisol levels in the body to fall significantly.
An adrenal crisis is a medical emergency which, if left untreated, can be fatal.
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“How many young men who aren’t as strong would cope with what his life was like for the last 18 months? Addison’s is a hell for the people that have it and those that love them. Some people can manage it but I think for younger people, it's perhaps harder because they want a more active life.
“In time, I want to start a charity for people with Addison’s to raise awareness and have a support system out there for people and their families, who need just as much information as the person with the disease.”
Jordan, who was the dearly loved son of Sharon and John, much loved brother of Dharma, loving grandson of Morris and Senga Crombie and Ray and Irene Copland, was laid to rest on Wednesday, August 24.
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