Scary psychic prediction prompted my drastic weight op
A DERBYSHIRE woman has lost an incredible 16-and-a-half stone after a psychic made a terrifying prediction.
Rebecca Wilkinson, from Ilkeston, was told by the mystic that unless she took drastic action, she would die.
The 30-year-old had struggled with her weight since she was a teenager, with things spiralling out of control after having a child at the age of 18.
Following the birth she put on 10 stone in just under two years, often having two takeaways a day with snacks like chocolate, crisps and sweets accompanied by litres of Lucozade.
When she was at her heaviest, Rebecca weighed 28st 12lbs and struggled to fit into a size 28-30.
However, she was scared into action when she saw a psychic who said she had “no future” if she carried on this way and that she should “do whatever it takes or die”.
The bombshell kick-started her weight loss journey and she booked a flight to Antalya, Turkey, to undergo a private gastric sleeve operation in September 2020.
A year after the operation to remove part of her stomach, she lost a staggering 16st 7lb – slimming down to 12st 5lb and a svelte size 10-14.
Rebecca, an apprentice plasterer, said: “I was desperate after years of trying and failing to lose weight. During a visit to my psychic, he scared me into action.
“He said he saw ‘no life’ for me on the cards. He also said: ‘Do what it takes – go to the extreme or you will die.’
“I knew I had to take drastic action and surgery was the only way.
“The weight has fallen off after having my stomach removed – it’s turned my life around.”
Rebecca started struggling with bullies during her teens and turned to food for comfort. She saw the weight start piling on, especially after she fell pregnant with her first child, Libby, 12. The mum would often tuck into a takeaway for lunch and dinner – followed by snacks.
She said: “I went to an all-girls’ school, and I was bullied really badly. In school they nicknamed me ‘Rebecca double-decker’ because I was bigger than the other girls.
“I definitely ate to feel better. I’d start the day with four pieces of buttered toast, and if I was peckish at mid-morning, I’d easily repeat this.
“For lunch I’d get a takeaway and dinner every single night was a takeaway as well.”
As her weight spiralled out of control, Rebecca struggled with her mental health and suffered from anxiety and depression.
She hoped for another baby
Rebecca Wilkinson before and after her amazing transformation with partner of 16 years, Matt, 34, who owns a plastering company, but struggled to conceive for the next 12 years due to her weight. At her biggest, she weighed 28st 12lbs and struggled to fit into a size 28.
She said: “For years I tried to ignore the mess I was in. I wouldn’t leave the house without my mum or fiancé by my side. I was selective over where I went in case I didn’t fit in the seat or the toilet cubicle.
“I even had people shouting profanities at me from passing cars.” Rebecca tried and failed to diet over the years and was left feeling ‘defeated.’
She was ready to “give up” when a trip to visit a psychic in 2020 changed everything. According to Rebecca, he couldn’t see a future for her in the cards and told her to “sort it now” or she would die.
“I was sceptical of the psychic at first, but he knew things no one else did,” she said. “The way he knew about how I’d eat and ‘hibernate’ afterwards. I left the reading in tears, but it was important I did.
“He said: ‘I don’t see any life left for you.’ It was the wake-up call I needed to change.”
After the reading, Rebecca looked into private surgery for a gastric sleeve in the UK, but it would cost upwards of £12,000.
She found the operation abroad in Turkey costing a fraction of the price – £3,000 – and flew over in September 2020 with her mum, Jayne Nunn, 47, who also underwent the surgery.
The operation involved removing three-quarters of the stomach and the remaining amount formed a “sleeve” or tube that leads to the intestine.
After the surgery, Rebecca flew back to the UK and had to live on a diet of liquids, purees, and soft foods for a month before being able to eat solid food again.
Rebecca continued: “My mum came with me and was such a big support. It all went well but it was a lot to adjust to with my new diet.
“Now I can only eat small amounts every two hours – like a Babybel or a small bit of protein like a salmon fillet. For dinner, I’ll usually have a very small portion of whatever I’ve cooked for the family.
“I don’t feel hunger or miss food.” Over a year, Rebecca said the weight “fell away” and she a lost a whopping 16st 7lb, slimming down to 12st 5lb. She now wears a size 10-14 and said she has been given a whole new lease of life.
Her mum Jayne also lost a staggering 13 stone after the surgery.
Rebecca said: “The weight has fallen off me – it’s been amazing. Mum did an incredible job as well.
“We’re hoping to return to Turkey for another surgery to remove the excess skin.
“I gave up my work from home job and now I’m an apprentice plasterer.
“I enjoy super-long walks, going out and socialising which I never imagined would be possible.
“Most importantly, I’m able to move around and live pain-free.
“Hopefully the weight loss will help with my fertility and having another baby.
“It’s changed my life.”