A MUM from Burtonwood lost more than two stones after being 'disgusted' by her weight.

Now she is launching her first Slimming World group in the village to help others.

Emma Dewan says she has found new eating habits and the joy of managing her own health conditions whilst still eating healthily.

She said: "I felt disgusting! Having attended a ball with my husband and been looking forward to the evening, I was now in the hotel looking at myself in the mirror, distraught with the reflection looking back at me. I knew something needed to change.

"Two years earlier my husband had accepted a posting to Cyprus.

I knew that I was getting bigger, but the social aspect of living in Cyprus meant there was always another barbecue to attend or drinks out with friends, so as not to be a party pooper we always made the effort. Within our first two years I jumped up the dress sizes and was now squeezing into a size 14. My health was at its worst having recently been diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis (UC) on top of Coeliac disease which I’d had for the past nine years and life was becoming a real struggle, I had lost myself."

She found a Slimming World class in Cyprus and lost two stones with healthy eating and a gluten free diet.

She added: "For the first time in years, I was happy in my own body and more confident than ever. I loved going to balls again with my husband, who in turn was very happy to walk into the function to all his mates informing him that he was punching."

After five years in Cyprus ended, the family returned to Burtonwood.

Emma added: "This was an extremely stressful time, with my dad’s health, huge amounts of work to repair our home, being in the middle of a pandemic, my husband deploying overseas for another six months, and trying to get all three of our children settled in new schools, all got on top of me and slowly I began to lose the amazing habits that I had picked up.

"When my husband returned, and we had managed to get back into a more normal routine I knew it was time to get back on track and get back to a weight that made me happy. I attended the local Slimming World Group in the village, and I was immediately welcomed into the group and relished being back in an environment that is encouraging, motivational and non-judgemental."

After four months she lost two and a half stone.

The new group is on Mondays at 5.30pm, St Michael’s Church Hall.