JUST SEEING that ‘sparkle’ return to people as they attend Slimming World group sessions is enough to show they are having the right effect.
Kim Everett and Yvonne Taylor are just two members shining again after joining the group run by Sue Mills at Ashton’s St Christopher’s Church.
And as well as seeing her weight drop, Kim told how she has had other benefits since she first went in May.
She said: “With me it was a case of the doctor saying, ‘You’ve got diabetes type two.’ I said, ‘I’ve got to do something about that. I don’t want to go full diabetic.’
“I was depressed, really depressed. I had low Vitamin D levels but I also suffer from ulcerative colitis and an underactive thyroid gland.
“I was bad on my legs as my knee was bad and the arthritis in my leg was bad. Now because I’ve lost that two-and-a-half stone it’s made all the difference. I can walk a lot better.
“I went for a blood check recently and was told, ‘It’s good news. We’re going to stop your tablets for now. I want to see you in six months and if you’re still within the same range, we’ll let you stop completely.
“It’s completely turned my life around. It’s life changing.”
One other thing has happened to Kim after starting her Slimming World journey, she has formed a friendship with Yvonne Taylor.
She said: “I’d started a new job and was really conscious of myself. I kept walking past and kept seeing Sue’s sign.
“I nearly ran away when I came in, I was really timid about it but the group’s been really supportive and helpful.
“Kim and I didn’t know each other before I started coming to group sessions. Now we’re best friends.
“Now I’m more confident about myself. It’s that social and support side that makes coming to group so good.”
Sue, who runs the sessions on Thursday at 5.30pm and 7pm, Friday at 7.30am and 9am and Saturday at 8.30am, is on the end of a phone line for any member having issues or concerns.
And she told how one key sign tells her whether what he is doing is having the desired effect.
She said: “If I see that anything’s dipping, if I think, ‘Your weight’s getting a hit stuck or whatever.’ I’m straight on it. I’m like, ‘I’m here, what’s going on?’
“It’s the reason I do the job. I know how much it changed my life and I love seeing it change other people’s.
“When I see people come in on night one with their head down, sometimes they don’t like to make eye contact and obviously have very low self-esteem.
“I love to see them get their sparkle. You see them transform. I look in people’s eyes, once they get that sparkle, I know I’m winning.”
Kim and Yvonne may have bonded at Slimming World sessions but their friendship extends beyond St Christopher’s Church’s walls.
Kim added: “Every Thursday Yvonne comes to group and after then, she comes to my house and we have our tea.”
Yvonne chipped in: “I’ve offered to make it but she’s a better cook!”
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