A woman diagnosed with two chronic conditions was living in constant pain – until she lost five stone and got her life back.
Tina Preston from Athy, Co Kildare, found out she had fibromyalgia and lupus 10 years ago.
Her illness was so debilitating she struggled to walk up the stairs and due to her limited mobility, the weight piled on.
Tina, 41, told the Irish Mirror her pain is now manageable.
She said: “I’d tried to lose weight twice before, but it was about was keeping up with the Joneses.
“This was about trying to lessen my pain. I just wanted someone to fix me.”
Tina was 35 in 2015 when her son told her she was going to be a granny and she knew then she had to prioritise her fitness.
She explained: “I was in constant chronic pain with fibromyalgia and lupus which is an autoimmune disease which can affect the heart, the lungs and the kidneys.
“I was on 20 tablets a day. What hurt the most was not being able to get a hug from the kids, I was in such agony.
“The January before I couldn’t even write on my daughter’s birthday card as the pain was so bad.
“Just a couple of weeks before I joined Slimming World I was thinking of getting a walking stick.”
In less than two years following the Slimming World food plan Tina went from a size 20 to a 12 and shocked her doctor with her efforts.
She added: “After I lost all the weight I cut down on all my medication by half, I’m now only on two tablets again. My doctor couldn’t believe how much weight I was losing on the Slimming World Food plan.
“In March 2017, I reached my target of losing five stone.
“There were weeks when I didn’t want to go but I never missed a group.
“Every day I’m in some sort of pain but losing the weight has helped me so much and lessened it.
“I even became a Slimming World consultant in Athy to help others.
“I couldn’t walk up the stairs without being in pain but now I can actively walk 5k. I’m learning to love myself again, there was an awful lot of guilt and hatred with myself, I was ashamed and embarrassed.
“For anyone suffering with a chronic condition like pain and fatigue, no matter what your age is you can change it.”
