Too fat for my wedding ring
When Dawn Thomas struggled to get her wedding ring on, she knew it was time to lose weight…
Itried to slip my wedding ring on to my finger. It wouldn’t go past my knuckle. I tried again. No. There was no way the band of gold that represented 31 years of happy marriage was ever going over my swollen, sausage-like fingers again!
I sat down and cried. As if going shopping and being reduced to buying giant tent-like dresses wasn’t enough. Now I couldn’t even get my wedding ring on.
It was the final straw. At 55, I weighed 16st 5lb, which was far too big for my 5ft 5in frame.
The weight had started to creep on when I gave up smoking. It had taken 10 years to get this big – quite an achievement. I’d always had a sweet tooth but I’d just stopped controlling it. On a daily basis, I was eating three big meals.
Then, there were the snacks… If I wasn’t eating a meal, I’d be eating crisps, biscuits or midget gems (my favourites). I could easily get through a couple of packets as I sat in front of the TV.
My husband Alan, now 57, didn’t seem to mind. ‘I love you as you are,’ he said.
When I moaned about my wedding ring not fitting me, he gallantly lent me his, but I wanted us both to be able to wear our rings. My weight was making me desperately unhappy. I couldn’t exercise, and could barely climb the stairs at our home in County Durham without feeling puffed out. And my knees hurt whenever I walked.
With the kids grown up – Christopher, now 28, Emma 27, and Michael, 20 – Alan and I loved our holidays. We especially enjoyed going on cruises. But flicking through pictures of our latest trip to the Caribbean in 2012, I was staggered. Who was that giant woman with my hair, wearing a tent?
I’d taken a beautiful new blackand-white dress. I thought I stood out in it. But seeing the holiday snaps, I realised I stood out for all the wrong reasons!
Deciding to do something about my weight was hard. But once my mind was made up, I went for it. If I accept being fat now, that’ll be it for me, I thought. I’ll be fat for ever.
I found a Slimming World group that met on Friday mornings and, as Fridays were my day off from my secretarial job, it seemed like it was meant to be.
So, in February 2016, I joined
Slimming World, and although it was the most terrifying decision I’ve ever made – it was also the best.
For the first few months, I kept my 16st 5lb frame to myself and hid in my huge black coat.
That first week, I lost 4lb. And, after three weeks, I’d lost a bit more. I began to talk to people and make friends. After that first week, I was never a big weekly loser but I always lost something. Every pound counts, I’d tell myself.
It took me 18 months to reach my goal weight of 10st 3lb and a size 10/12. I couldn’t believe I’d lost 6st!
Soon, I realised that Alan’s wedding ring was loose on my finger. I found my own one, and bingo! It slid on to my finger perfectly. Alan was over the moon to have his own ring back.
I really enjoyed throwing out my giant dresses. The size 20s went to the charity shop and I went shopping with my daughter. I’d still pick up big sizes and she would laugh. ‘That’ll be massive on you, Mum,’ she’d say.
Now, I comfortably fit into a dress size 10 or 12 – I could even fit into my wedding dress if I still had it!
And the best bit? Booking our holidays and packing a bikini! It’s great to know I won’t be cringing when I look at snaps of our next cruise!
The only piece of ‘fat’ clothing I’ve kept is that black coat I hid behind at my very first Slimming World meeting. It’s a great reminder of how I never want to be again!