Obese woman sheds EIGHT STONE because being the ‘big, funny girl’ left her battling severe depression
Freya Seale had gastric band surgery at one point, but it made her put on even more weight
A nurse lost a whopping eight stone after her family told her they were so worried about her weight they feared she’d have a heart attack.
Freya Seale’s weight problems began when she was 22 and resulted in her having depression and an eating disorder.
By the time she was 22 she weighed 22 stone and took time out from university in an effort to make herself feel happier. It was then that her parents stepped in.
“Food was my friend.
“I had gotten out of a horrible relationship and I had struggled with my sexuality throughout school and I had come out as a gay women at 21, kind of, but I was such a sad individual.”
When she was a teenager, Freya got used to be the “bigger funny girl” even though she wanted to be slimmer.
She fell into depression and medication only made her put on more weight, with Freya eventually reaching 16st 5lb by 19.
It was then that her parents agreed to let her have gastric band surgery, which she now calls the worst decision she’s ever made.
Freya was bulimic when she was younger and the operation made her ill again.
“But the band triggered this intense eating disorder because I couldn't eat anything and actually ended up ballooning over two years to 22st,” she said.
“I felt like I was nothing and thought the band would fix everything but I didn't have the insight then that it needed to come from somewhere else.”
By 22 Freya didn’t have the confidence to go out much, so instead of being with her friends she would stay at home and eat a whole cheesecake or other junk food.
After her parents’ intervention, Freya went to a retreat to tackle her weight.
She dropped 3st 9lb in eight weeks and then decided to reverse her gastric band surgery.
At 6ft tall, Freya dropped to 18st and felt happy, but when she began working as a nurse she had less time to concentrate on fitness.
Realising she needed to prioritise it, Freya began exercising with her partner Tay.
She used a program called 12 Week Body Transformation by Michelle Bridges, which has helped her understand the calories she needs and get a healthy relationship with food.
After losing 4st in five months, Freya now weighs 13st 7lbs and is a dress size 14.
She aims to run a half marathon and updates people on her weight loss .
Her main tips are to break goals down into small sections, so you don’t get swamped by the thought of needed to lose stones and stones.
She also focuses on how she feels rather than what the scales say.