Health conditions are always a difficult topic to discuss with your employer. They are, after all, incredibly personal and disclosing them is never easy.

I've been in a difficult situation in the past where I had a condition that would make me go to the toilet - a lot.

The "toilet" symptom wasn't going to last long but I was leaving the office more often than normal and I had the feeling people were noticing. I felt like I had to give them an explanation or people would start to think that I'm just taking a lot of breaks.

So I bite the proverbial bullet and took my line manager aside. I explained the situation in a professional manner - giving her all the information that my doctor had told me.

In that situation, I felt very vulnerable. I was nervous and knew that I was trusting her with some highly confidential and potentially embarrassing information.

My line manager was very professional about the entire situation. She was sympathetic and offered her assurances that the information would not go beyond her. She told me about a similar situation she had been in, which made me feel a lot better.

A weight had been lifted and I no longer felt self-conscious about going to the toilet as much as I liked. It was all handled very well.

I recently read an article by Emily Gerson, who describes the time she had to reveal her chronic digestive disorder.

Emily went through similar feelings when she got to the point of having to discuss her condition with her manager. Emily also felt relieved after telling her manager and co-worker.

In a situations like these you are placing an enormous amount of trust in your manager or who ever you decide to tell. But you'll often find that manager's handle such situations with care and professionalism. Those that don't aren't fit to be manager's and I'd suggest you speak to HR about the entire situation.

Good luck. It's not the easiest thing but my experience is that it's a great relief to explain the situation. We're all human after all.