Super slimmer:
“Having two heart attacks forced me to lose 12st”
Sharon Morgan still pinches herself when she looks in the mirror and sees the reflection of her trim figure.
In just two years, the 49 year old has lost over half her body weight, dropping from 22st to 9st. And she credits quitting her junk food addiction for her staggering 12st weight loss.
Sharon, who lives near Caerphilly, says, “I’ve never looked – or felt – better.
“I used to snack constantly. I’d eat at least 10 bags of ready salted crisps a day, as well as countless packets of biscuits. I never ate a proper meal. But after suffering two heart attacks due to my size, I ditched the junk food and lost 12st.
“It wasn’t easy, but I’m proud of myself for getting this far.” Sharon, who’s 5ft 4 and divorced, was an average weight while she was growing up. But like many mums, she put on a few pounds each time she had her three children: Samantha, now 31, Angharad, 29, and Ceri, 23. Sharon weighed around 13st by the time her family was complete.
But it was in 2006, when she took in her poorly sister’s four children – Scott, 23, Kera Lee, 22, Bethin, 18, and Kaitlyn, 15 – that her weight began to spiral.
Sharon explains, “My sister was unwell and her children had been living with my parents.
“But in December 2005 my stepfather died from a massive heart attack. And the following April, my mother died from one too.
“It was devastating for everyone and, of course, I took the children in – I love them dearly. But by then
I was divorced and looking after the kids on my own. I can’t pretend it was easy.
“I only had a threebedroom house and it was exhausting looking after seven kids. I put their needs first, so by the time I’d fed all the children, I didn’t have the energy to cook something nutritious for myself.
WILLPOWER
“Instead, I grazed on junk food all day, every day, just to keep myself going. My particular weakness was for ready salted crisps. I rarely ate any fruit or vegetables.
“I was worried about my weight, but the more I thought about it, the more stressed I got and I’d comfort eat. It was a vicious circle.”
Sharon says she tried to diet, but didn’t have the willpower to stick to it.
She says, “My diets never lasted longer than about three days.
“The kids called me ‘The Tank’. It was affectionate but, obviously, it made it clear how large I was.
“And though I did everything I could with all of them, I never went out on my own. I was far too selfconscious to have a social life.”
Sharon says she began to suffer health issues, too. She says, “At 22st and a size 30, I struggled to walk up the stairs – it would take me 10 minutes just to get up them, as I’d have to stop to get my breath back.
“My back, legs and knees
were in constant pain too.”
Then, in January 2017, Sharon found an abscess the size of a golf ball under her breast. She was prescribed antibiotics, but two days later was admitted to hospital with a fever.
LIFE-THREATENING CONDITION
Sharon remembers, “Doctors said I had an infection, which they tried to control with intravenous antibiotics, as they were so worried about doing an operation on me because of my size.
But I developed sepsis, which is a life-threatening blood infection, and so surgery was the only choice.
“I had to stay in hospital for three weeks to recover, and in that time I had a heart attack.
“Doctors said it was due to the strain my weight was putting on my heart, which was already weak from the sepsis.”
When Sharon was finally released from hospital, she knew she had to change her eating habits and was desperate to be around to see her children grow up and have families of their own.
She says, “Being so ill was the wake-up call I needed. I got home and, once I was fully recovered, I joined Slimming World, after my sister-in-law lost 6st.
“I cut out the crisps and ate three well-balanced meals a day, such as spaghetti Bolognese and salads. I couldn’t believe it when, in my first week, I lost 10lb. After that I averaged around 4lb a week.”
However, in April 2017, weighing 20st, Sharon had another mini heart attack and her doctor told her she absolutely had to continue her weight-loss journey.
She says, “It was a stark reminder that I couldn’t give up on my weight-loss journey.”
After five months, in August 2017, she managed to walk up the stairs for the first time without stopping – a huge milestone.
As her weight came off, her confidence grew and she started to exercise, walking for miles at a time and even joining a running club.
By January 2018, Sharon was buying size 14 tops. She remembers, “The first time I bought one, I was so chuffed I hung it up in the living room so that I could admire it!
“Having spent over 10 years as ‘The Tank’, it was an amazing feeling to walk into a high street store and know I could fit into their clothes.”
And in June 2018 her son, Ceri, took her away on her firstever holiday abroad to Majorca.
Sharon remembers, “I actually wore a bikini – something I never thought
I’d do. I felt amazing – and got a great tan too!”
CONFIDENCE
In March last year, Sharon finally reached her target weight of 9st 4lb. She now wears a size 8-10 and loves going shopping to buy the latest styles.
She says, “By sticking to the Slimming World plan,
I’ve managed to maintain my target weight and I feel so much healthier. Plus I haven’t had any further problems with my heart.
“Now, I’m a grandmother of eight, and I love being able to run around after the little ones. I love walking, and sometimes I can clock up to 15 miles in one day.”
Sharon says she doesn’t feel confident enough to date again, but she does now enjoy going out with her with her friends.
“Before I lost weight, I’d resigned myself to being big for the rest of my life,” she says. “I thought 46 was too old to change the way I looked. But
I’m proof that isn’t the case. I hope I can inspire other women like me to do the same.”
THE KIDS CALLED ME “THE TANK” – IT WAS AFFECTIONATE, BUT IT WAS CLEAR HOW LARGE I WAS