A MUM-OF-FOUR from Tameside who was an alcoholic and food addict has shared her experience of how support from Slimming World has helped turn her life around.
Gemma, who has been a member of the weight loss giant on and off for 10 years, began to struggle with her weight, self-confidence and mental health after having her children.
The trauma of nearly losing her youngest child Jaxson led Gemma to spiral into post-natal depression and post-traumatic stress disorder, using alcohol as a coping mechanism.
As she became a dependent drinker and rarely ate, it was after taking an impulsive overdose in 2014 when drunk that Gemma sought help towards achieving her goals of being a mum, a nurse and slim.
“I started going to Slimming World while I was still drinking,” she said. “I hid my alcoholism well at times and was struggling to lose weight.
“Finally in 2015, I got sober with the help of 12 step fellowships but once I put the alcohol down, I realised I was using food more and soon learnt that I was not just an alcoholic, I was an addict too in many forms – shopping, food, exercise, overeating and undereating.”
Gemma then went back to her Slimming World group in Ashton-under-Lyne – the only thing she says has helped her to manage her weight.
She admitted she started drinking alcohol as a child to “cope with difficulties at home”, not knowing at the time she had ADHD and autism as “a really anxious and shy” girl.
Gemma, who has been a single mum for the past nine years, said even though she was sober she was “really struggling with life” and her head would feel “like a washing machine most days on a fast spin cycle” as she would alternate between binge eating and then starving herself.
Gemma started training to be a mental health nurse when she was 19 but left when she became pregnant with her daughter. She returned to university in 2017, which she loved but she soon realised she was different to other people in the group.
“I went to see a psychologist at uni and they suggested I get assessed for ADHD,” she explained. “This made sense as, by this time, my younger two children were also being assessed for ADHD and autism.
“I finally got diagnosed at the age of 41 and it changed my life and answered so many questions about my life – my relationship with food, struggling in relationships. I am now on the autism pathway too, this has just helped me on my journey with self-acceptance.”
After returning to Slimming World, Gemma reached her target weight in 2020 and even received a ‘Woman of the Year’ award but made the mistake of thinking she could do it on her own.
After leaving the group, the weight returned – which affected her mental health again. In the past 18 months, two of her children have been diagnosed with the eating disorder Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID) and, after qualifying as a nurse, Gemma knew she had to control her relationship with food to set a good example to her children.
Gemma, who is now nearly nine years sober and attends the gym three times a week, started attending her Slimming World group every week after feeling “physically sick looking at myself in swimwear” at nearly 13 stone on holiday in Egypt in April this year.
“I’ve found a great bunch of old and new friends,” she said. “I now openly share about my struggles instead of trying to manage on my own. By June, I was at my goal weight and feeling like a different woman.
“I’ve even lowered my goal weight now and feel amazing not only in the way I look but in my physical health. I have also noticed that when I am eating healthily on Slimming World, my ADHD is easier to manage, my skin looks healthier, my mental health quickly improves and I am also showing my children healthy eating patterns.”
Gemma plans to stay at Slimming World now and wants to share her experience to inspire others to make changes to their life for the better.
“I am telling my story to help other people who might have similar problems and can’t see a way out of any kind of addiction,” she explained. “I am living proof that with the right help and support, you can get better.
“Without my Alcoholics Anonymous and Slimming World friends, I would not be living my best healthy slim life like I am right now.”
Terri Shelmerdine reached out to Gemma when she took over the Slimming World Ashton group last September.
“I am so proud of how far Gemma has come to overcome her battles with food, binging and then feeling guilty and spiralling out of control,” she commented.
“Now when Gemma has a moment of weakness, it helps her if she messages myself or the closed Facebook group and puts it out there as she knows it’s often not as bad as she thinks. I am looking forward to supporting Gemma as a target member and helping her to sustain her personal target weight.”
- Find your local Slimming World group now by visiting: www.slimmingworld.co.uk. Slimming World groups offer members support, commitment and accountability – a powerful combination that helps boost happiness, self-esteem and slimming success
Alcoholics have an Illness not an addiction.
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