I didn’t want to be known as ‘fat mum’ SHELLEY LOSES 9ST & JUNK DIET AFTER OP
A MUM decided to have lifechanging weight loss surgery after struggling to carry her baby without getting out of breath.
Shelley Townsend, 38, noticed the pounds piling on when she moved out of home for the first time aged 18 and lived on junk food.
Her weight continued to creep up when she met her husband Martin and had daughter, Aryia, now five.
The turning point came after the arrival of second daughter Winter, 15 months, who she couldn’t carry without getting out of breath.
Shelley said: “I didn’t want to be the fat mum at the school gates.
“I couldn’t join in while my daughters played, I had to sit on the sofa and watch – I didn’t want to be that sort of parent.”
Up until then, the family indulged in nightly takeaways including KFC and Domino’s.
A self-confessed secret eater, Shelley said: “I would also secretly binge on snacks while Martin was at a night shift. I’d rifle through the cupboards for things like biscuits and crisps, just mindlessly eating.
“It was definitely a bit of a comfort for me.”
At her biggest, she tipped the scales at 19st 2lb and struggled to squeeze into a size 24. Shelley “tried every diet under the sun” but nothing worked for her, so she looked into weight loss surgery and found a clinic in Turkey. The assistant teacher paid £3,000 to undergo a gastric bypass operation there in July 2021.
She went on to lose more than nine stone – dropping to 9st 8lb – and can now slip into a size 10 to 12. Shelley, of Peterborough, Cambs, said: “It was a last resort but the best decision of my life. I feel amazing.
“I did it all for my family so I could be the best mum for my girls.”
But she warned: “It’s important to do your research and not just pick the cheapest clinic, because there are a lot of dodgy places abroad.”