TOO FAT FOR HUGS BUT NOW I'VE LOST 9 STONE

Aged 27, I was swept off my feet by my gorgeous husband, Lee, now 42. I was 13st and loved my curvy figure. Lee was the perfect gentleman, and we quickly fell in love. We enjoyed nights out at fancy restaurants and cosy evenings in feasting on takeaways. But our romantic nights took its toll on my weight, and I gained four stone in as many years. Lee told me he'd love me at any size, so I wasn't too worried. However, my weight spiralled out of control after falling pregnant in 2003 with my son, Oliver. Three years later, I weighed a whopping 20st. ‘Does my bum look big in this?’ I asked Lee, as I stuffed myself into a pair of size-24 jeans.

Other great stories
CHEEKY MONKEY KEEPS UP TO DATE WITH THE LATEST NEWS

A small Indian monkey is seemingly gob-smacked after reading the latest stock market news .

VISOR FASHION FAIL

FROM motorcycling to department store shopping these spookily faceless people are part of the Chinese-fad for wearing protective solar-visors in public .

STUNNING UK LIGHTHOUSES

A photographer has travelled the length of the UK capturing lighthouses and their picturesque surroundings .

SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER BEAR

An American black bear mimics John Travolta’s famous Saturday Night Fever dance move by hurling its arm in the air .

BEAUTY AND THE BEAST: SWIMMING WITH SHARKS

Armed with a snorkel, flippers and her skimpy bikini, an intrepid female free diver swims alongside an array of reef sharks .

EASTER ISLAND REPLICA STATUES DESTROYED IN SEA FALL

A project to create an underwater tribute to the stone Moai statues of Easter Island ended in disaster when 15 replica structures were destroyed after toppling from a boat and into the sea .

TEMPLE OF ZOOM

WELCOME to the Temple of Zoom where you can “experience” sliding down a Mayan temple into shark infested waters .

DARK DISNEY

THESE are the Disney Princesses you wouldn't want to run into in a dark alley .

RING OF FIRE ECLIPSE IN OZ

THIS RING of fire in the sky is the annular solar eclipse that wowed our cousins down-under .

AURORA BOREALIS ILLUMINATES LAPLAND

From vivid greens to glowing pinks, the colours of the aurora borealis fill the night sky above a snow covered Lapland .

FLORESCENT PLANKTON LIGHT UP AUSTRALIAN SEA

An Australian beach is illuminated by an enticing neon blue glow as a rare phenomenon lights up the water .

SHARK SELFIES

NOT YOUR everyday selfie, this plucky diver poses with some of the scariest predators in the ocean .