A Dublin woman has lost more than half her body weight after being inspired by her daughter, who feared she would eat herself to death.
Mother-of-one Wendy Deacon, 49, from Lucan, Co. Dublin, has been named Slimming Worlds Woman of the Year 2019, after shedding an enormous 12st 4.5lbs (79kg).
She said: I always came across as jolly and smiley, but inside I felt anything but. It was getting to the point where I felt uneasy whenever I left the house.
I remember once a small boy pointed at me in the street and said look at that fat lady to his mother.
She tried to hush him, but the damage was done. Id never felt so embarrassed, I just wanted the ground to swallow me up. But the real turning point came when she discovered that her daughter, Amy, had confided in her grandmother that she was worried Wendy would eat herself to death.
Hearing that broke my heart and I knew I needed to change, she said.
The thought of my daughter being so worried about my health really spurred me into action.
She added that one of the most difficult lifestyle changes with the Slimming World plan was learning how to cook from scratch, but that everyone in her group was kind and supportive.
Wendy soon got to grips with the eating plan, which encourages slimmers to fill up on foods like lean meat, vegetables, rice, potatoes, pasta and eggs without weighing, counting or measuring.
She said: Straight away I embraced the eating plan. Ive never called it a diet because the plan is so flexible. I fell in love with proper food and discovered so many different new dishes. Its a world away from the takeaways and fast food I used to eat.
Now that shes dropped from a size 32 to a size 10/12, Wendy said she now has the confidence to plan a wedding with her long-term fianc, Dave.
Dave and I have been engaged for a long time, but I never really felt confident enough to actually get married.
Finally having the confidence to go wedding dress shopping was a huge moment for me. Before I would have just chosen whatever would fit me, but now Im asking for size 10 and 12 outfits, its just an incredible feeling. I havent been able to do that for 25 years! She said the weight loss and recognition have boosted her confidence and she is now looking forward to her 50th birthday in January.
By far the best thing about losing weight though is seeing the pride in my familys faces, especially Amys. Ive finally started to feel proud of myself too Ive got my whole life back, she added.
Original post:
Daughters fear spurred Dublin mum to lose half her body weight - Extra.ie
