After spending a large proportion of this year in hospital and coming out with a feeding tube, life felt completely upside down. I’d gone from running a busy home, juggling work, family and the everyday chaos that comes with it, to suddenly being ripped out of normality and forced to slow down in ways I never expected. When I finally returned home, I felt fragile – physically and emotionally. Getting dressed felt like climbing a mountain some days, never mind feeling remotely like myself.

So I decided to try something small but surprisingly powerful: I started sharing my “fits of the day” on TikTok, which basically means I started sharing my outfits. My most-liked video is a simple one of me in an unremarkable cord skirt, oversized collar blouse and knee-high boots.

It began as a simple promise to myself. Posting a video meant I had to get up, get dressed and show up in some form. It was a combination of accountability, motivation and a way to reconnect with the world again. I honestly didn’t expect it to become anything more. However, TikTok has a funny way of surprising you.

Each video starts the same way, with my tiny bio: “Hi, I’m Jen: fat,........

© The Guardian