‘I’m confident that I can now be a good role model for my young children.’

“I feel like I’ve been on a diet all of my life. I was always bigger than I wanted to be and during my first pregnancy I took advantage of being able to eat for two. In between my first and second pregnancies I lost weight and managed to maintain it for a short while. But after the birth of my daughter, my weight soon crept back up.

• Weight lost: 4st*
• Weight loss plan: Total
• Followed by Management

I’ve never had a great relationship with food, and have always been bigger than I wanted to be. I became a vegetarian at the age of four after being brainwashed by my primary school teacher. My parents managed to get me to eat sausages and fish fingers until I was seven, and realised they contained meat and fish.

Frozen food played a big part in my diet. I’m not a very creative cook, for me cooking was all about functionality. When I was growing up my mum wasn’t very well and my dad was in the RAF, so neither of them were around a lot. It wasn’t uncommon for me to get home from school and cook myself a frozen pizza and eat it between two slices of bread.

I didn’t realise how much my childhood influenced my eating habits as an adult, until I joined LighterLife. It’s the only diet that has ever worked for me because I don’t have to worry about calorie counting or cooking and the group support is phenomenal.

Group support makes all the difference. My LighterLife Counsellor, Hazel Harrod, uses cognitive behaviour therapy to help you get to the root cause of your eating habits. I’ve had so many light bulb moments in group. Having a trusted community behind you creates a great supportive environment which allows you to inspire and be inspired by others. The topics you cover each week can be applied to so many areas of your life, and they really help you address what’s going on with you.

Ever felt yourself reaching for carbs when you’re tired or stressed? That’s what used to happen to me. When I was younger and my dad was home we would spend Friday night in front of the TV watching Dr Who. Between us we would drink a 2 litre bottle of pop and six packets of crisps. Whenever I needed comfort, as an adult, I would revert back to that childlike state.

My trigger moment for going to Hazel in October 2015 was a photo. When you’re bigger you tend to avoid mirrors and having your photo taken. The photo I saw was taken at my Father in-law’s 80th birthday. I couldn’t believe how much weight I’d gained.

After a month on LighterLife Total I had lost a stone*. The problems with my shoulder and hip, which were aggravated by carrying around my extra bulk, began to ease with every stone I lost. I also have more energy, which I put down to my body getting all the vitamins and minerals it needs.

I’ve learnt my diet pitfalls and am confident that I can now be a good role model for my young children. Diets alone don’t work. LighterLife does.”