Retired nurse Sarah Higgins, from Newport, lost an impressive 10 and a half stone after doctors refused her a knee operation because of her weight. At her heaviest, she weighed nearly 21 and a half stone. Following her weight loss journey with Slimming World, she is now due to have her knee replaced and has become a Slimming World consultant to help others.
Comfort eating and tragedy
Sarah admitted she had been overweight all her adult life. At just 11 years old, she wore an adult size 14 to high school. She said: "I've been overweight all of my adult life. Over time I just got bigger, and bigger, and bigger, and I flitted around with diets, seeing dieticians and all that sort of thing in my youth but didn't really commit to anything."
In 2016, her brother Nick died at 44 from kidney disease, leading Sarah to comfort eat. She said: "My brother got diagnosed with kidney disease, and he needed a transplant. At that point I was told by his surgeon I was too big to be a donor for him. Things went on with my brother and unfortunately he didn't survive." She added: "I did mope for quite a while, and I was quite upset. I'm a comfort eater so I did comfort eat all the time."
Denied surgery due to weight
Sarah also suffered from arthritis and saw an orthopaedic surgeon who said she was too fat for a knee replacement. She said: "I saw an orthopaedic surgeon who said I'm too fat to have a knee replacement, which I needed at that time so I was like 'right I'm going to lose the weight' and I lost a bit and I gained a bit more and I just kind of yo-yo'd back and forth for quite a while."
After 37 years working for the NHS, she retired due to severe knee pain, struggling to kneel to help patients. She said: "I was just like, I can't keep doing this. I can't get people to help me do my job when I'm supposed to be the senior."
Commitment to weight loss
At her heaviest, nearly 21 and a half stone, Sarah decided to make a change. She said: "So I went back and forth to different weight loss groups over the years. Then about four years ago I decided I was going to commit to losing the weight, and I did I've committed to it and over the last four years now in total I've lost nearly 10 and a half stone with Slimming World."
Now weighing 10 stone 6lbs, she has lost enough to finally have her knee surgery. She said: "So even though I've still got a lot of pain in my knees because of the arthritis, it's still easier for me to walk around, it's easier for me to do my day-to-day things."
Improved mental health
Sarah also noticed a positive impact on her mental health. She said: "My mental health now is the best I've ever been. I'm happy and I'm excited to get up, and I can get up which is easy. I can get up and go out and do things. Which I couldn't before, because I would be going to work, being in a lot of pain in work and then coming home and just sitting down and doing nothing because I was in too much pain."
Becoming a consultant
After her success, Sarah decided to become a Slimming World consultant. She said: "I have always wanted to help people lose weight, because it's always been a problem for me for the whole of my life. I thought if I can do it and successfully do it, I can change people's lives, because I've changed my own life now."
Her group runs every Tuesday at 5.30pm in The Old School, Sully. She launched her first official session on Tuesday, June 30 and said: "It was amazing, I really enjoyed welcoming new members to the group and starting them on their weight loss journey."
