Self-confessed sugar ‘addict’ mom-of-four reveals dramatic weight loss

A size 24 sugar ‘addict’ has revealed how she shed 11 stone (150 lbs) after doctors warned she was so fat she may go blind – by splashing out £15,500 ($17,250) on incredible body transformation surgery. Michelle Parsons (pictured), who tipped the scales at 19 stone (266 lbs), from Wigan, Greater Manchester, struggled with her weight since childhood and as an adult found herself gorging on chocolate bars washed down with a tiramisu or cheesecake daily.

The 34-year-old, who ballooned to a size 24, said she was given the wake-up call she needed when doctors warned her that if she didn’t slim down, she could lose her eyesight permanently. Fearing she would be unable to get weight loss surgery on the NHS, she ended up shelling out thousands on surgeries abroad, including in Egypt, Lithuania and Prague. Now she feels more confident and confessed many people had struggled to recognize her, adding: ‘People say I’m a completely different person.’ 

Michelle, who is mother to Thomas, nine, Amber, eight, and Andrew, four, said her weight started creeping up during her parents’ divorce when she was four and she started using food as a comfort. She said she would skip breakfast and scoff takeaways, crisps, chocolate and cake after she and student mental health nurse husband Carl, 48, put their children to bed.

Michelle said: ‘I’ve always been the bigger person in my circle of friends. My weight gain started when my parents divorced when I was two and it started creeping up when I was four. I started getting chunky because I was comfort eating and trying to make myself feel better with food.’

‘I didn’t eat set meals, I grazed a lot. I didn’t eat breakfast, which is the most important meal of the day, so my metabolism wasn’t kicking in. We ate loads of takeaways. In the evening when the kids were in bed, I was eating crisps, chocolates, cakes and dessert. I had a mega sweet tooth.’ 

She started to suffer from pressure headaches in 2019 and was diagnosed with intracranial hypertension – a build-up of pressure around the brain that can result in vision loss. Michelle said: ‘They said if I didn’t lose the weight that I’d risk losing my eyesight. I felt frightened that if I waited, I’d lose my eyesight. I was absolutely terrified. I was against the clock, I had to do something.’

Michelle, who confessed she had a ‘mega sweet tooth,’ says she was ‘too scared’ to wait for an NHS appointment so forked out £4,000 ($4,450) on a gastric bypass in Egypt in March 2020. ‘I found an amazing surgeon in Egypt, he’s registered to work in the UK and he worked in America. I checked his credentials, looked at independent reviews and everyone praised this man. They got me booked in in weeks.’

‘Everything went brilliantly, they were so good. I was really sore for the first few days but it was spot on. The weight started dropping off [but] I did have to make changes to my diet as well. Before, I was eating a 200g (7oz) bar of chocolate and a dessert every single night, it’s so embarrassing. I was more comfort eating than anything.’

‘I knew I needed to start making changes, you’ve got to challenge yourself psychologically. Some people think surgery is a quick fix but you still choose what you put in your mouth and you’ve got to make healthier choices. Some people spend thousands on the surgery or get it on the NHS and it doesn’t work for them. You’ve got to have self-control.’

‘When I was bigger, I had to be admitted into hospital to have lumbar punctures to drain the fluid around my brain and I haven’t needed that since the surgery.’ After shedding a whopping 11 stone (150 lbs) Michelle, now a svelte size 8, was left with rolls of excess skin so shelled out a further £5,000 ($5,560) on a tummy tuck in Lithuania in June 2021. In March 2022 5ft 3 Michelle paid £3,300 ($3,670) to have her breasts reduced from a 44E to a 34D in Prague.

Finally, 8st (112 lbs) Michelle underwent surgery to remove skin from her arms in Lithuania this July that set her back £3,200 ($3,560). The student mental health nurse has saved her eyesight after shedding more than half her body weight. She said: ‘The risk of going blind is gone now. I’m full of energy now, it’s lovely to be able to run and play with my kids and not be out of breath.’

‘My confidence has improved a lot. Life is very different, I feel a lot better physically. Running up the stairs is amazing. Before I’d be out of puff at the top, now I can skip up here and I’m perfect when I get to the top.’ Michelle has turned her back on sweet treats and only eats three or four cubes of chocolate per week.

She said: ‘Now I eat high protein and low carb, like chicken and fish, my portions are so small now. I’ve made small changes like swapping white pasta with wholewheat pasta and white rice with basmati rice. Making those small changes have really helped – cutting down on sugar and using a sweetener [instead]. We’ll have a takeaway but nowhere near as much, maybe once every month.’

‘You have to mentally prepare for the surgery, it’s an emotional rollercoaster. You’re comfort eating for a reason so you’ve got to work out why that is and sort out the psychological aspect of it. You’ve got to have will power, determination and motivation.’ After Michelle’s incredible body transformation, she splashed out £400 ($445) on a new wardrobe to fit her new svelte figure and says friends don’t recognize her. 

Michelle said: ‘The upside is enjoying shopping, because when you’re bigger the clothes are limited. I’ve enjoyed getting a whole new wardrobe but it’s cost a fortune. There was one friend I hadn’t seen for months and we went to a motorbike rally. I was stood next to my husband and he came over and shook my husband’s hand but ignored me. I wondered what I’d said to upset him then an hour later he approached me and said he was so sorry but he didn’t recognize me. He ignored me because he thought my husband was chatting up another woman.’ 

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