Hartlepool double lung transplant patient Emma celebrates incredible seven-stone weight loss

She joined her local Slimming World group due to her doctors’ concerns for her weight after undergoing a double lung transplant.

Emma, 35, from the Throston area of Hartlepool, was given two new lungs in 2011 as a result of damage caused by a rare heart condition that she lived with since childhood.

But due to steroids she had to take and problems with her body rejecting the new organs, which caused lasting damage, Emma struggled to exercise.

Combined with a diet that included ready meals and takeaways her weight topped 19 stones and 9.5 pounds.

She said: “I was so unhappy with my weight.

“It was getting where it was affecting my breathing and the hospital were concerned because excess weight isn’t good for anybody never mind with a transplant.”

Emma joined a Slimming World group run by consultant Sarah Fishburn in May 2016.

She recently achieved her target of losing seven stones and has been crowned the Golden Lion group’s Greatest Loser.

Emma, who now weighs 12 stone 9.5 pounds, said: “I didn’t think I was as big as I was until I look back on photos of me and think ‘oh my God I was huge’.

"I didn’t realise how unhappy I was with my weight until it started coming off.”

She praised the support given to her by consultant Sarah and her fellow slimmers.

Through the group, Emma, who had previously been a yo-yo dieter, transformed her diet by ditching full sugar pop, prepared sauces in jars, frozen ready meals and takeaways in favour of home cooking such as stews.

“It got me interested in cooking or making things and trying new things that I wouldn’t have tried before,” she said.

Emma said of reaching her weight loss target: “I was over the moon but more shocked that I had finally done it because it’s such a significant amount of weight to lose.”

But she continues to attend the weekly group, saying: “It’s a way of life for me now.”

Sarah added: “Her commitment to herself is outstanding. She is so inspiring without realising it.”

For more information about Slimming World at the Golden Lion, call Sarah on 07508 886292.

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