Giulia Bould, Broadcast Journalist for BBC Merseyside, has sat down and spoken in detail about her career in the sports/ media industry and living with Addison’s disease.
From a young age, Giulia was always interested in radio, so much so that she decided to create her own radio station, Radio 600, and soon enough found herself undertaking work experience at Rock FM in Preston, before becoming a full-time employee at the station.
To the present day, Giulia finds herself working for BBC Radio Merseyside and recently started to commentate on selected football matches for BBC 5 Live Sport.
Giulia is also proud of her involvement in the successful BBC Studios podcast “Everton: Nothing Will Be The Same”, which can be found on BBC Sounds: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/brand/p0gkccq7, which was awarded Best Podcast at the Sports Journalism Awards 2023 at the Park Plaza Westminster Bridge on the 25th March 2024.
However, behind all the hugely positive aspects of Giulia’s life is another story of which most people are unaware. In 2016, after around a year and a half of being unwell, she was diagnosed with a rare condition called Addison’s disease, which less than 9000 people in the UK live with. The disease affects the workings of an individual’s adrenal glands, which sit just above the kidneys, and results in them not producing essential steroid hormones. When initially unwell, the disease was diagnosed and confirmed as an Addison’s “crisis”, meaning it was a race against time and if she had not been treated when she was her life would have been very much in danger. Since then, Giulia has had two further Addison crises, and unfortunately, they were both in the same year.
Giulia is now collaborating with the A&E department at Arrowe Park Hospital to help medics understand how to manage the situation if a patient in question is found to have Addison’s.
With Giulia being a female in a male-dominated industry and dealing with her illness, she initially decided to keep it to herself. However, after some soul searching, she decided to open up, claiming that “If I don’t start talking about this, then no one will know what Addison’s disease is!” As a result, Giulia has now spoken to people from several countries, such as Denmark, America, and Australia, who have the same diagnosis.
Even though this has been a significant obstacle for Giulia to overcome, she hasn’t let it stop her from fulfilling her potential. Her family, her bravery, incredible work ethic and dream to do a Formula 1 pit walk continue to drive her forward.
To find out more regarding Addison’s disease, including charitable efforts, volunteering, and fundraising, feel free to follow the link below:
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