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
MY 20 YEAR SECRET - IT'S NOT ALOPECIA OR CANCER, I HAVE TRICHOTILLOMANIA
A mum who has hid behind the hair loss condition alopecia for the last 20 years has bravely revealed a secret compulsion to tear out her own hair that has tormented her since she was a child .
BALD IS BEAUTIFUL: WOMEN WITH ALOPECIA TRANSFORMED INTO STUNNING SIRENS
A photographer has transformed women with alopecia into stunning sirens - showing that bald is beautiful .
MAKING A SPLASH - GORILLA GOES APE IN WATER
While often referred to as the kings of the jungle, gorillas - for all their might - are notorious hydrophobes .
TRANSGENDER WOMAN SPENDS £25K TO BECOME BEAUTY QUEEN
A transgender woman has beaten the bullies after spending £25K on surgery to become a beauty pageant queen .
MAN DODGES DANGER TO COMMUTE ON PENNY FARTHING
Meet the Victorian gentleman who could not face sitting next to smelly commuters on the bus - so he dodges danger to go to work on a penny farthing .
CATERPILLAR AND MANTIS BATTLE IT OUT
A little caterpillar fearlessly scampers down a branch and confronts a praying mantis .
ADORABLE EXOTIC KITTENS AT NASHVILLE ZOO
A BUMPER season of births has left zoo with three of the cutest exotic kittens you're likely to see .
LETTERS TO A SERIAL KILLER: PALS WITH DENNIS NILSEN AND I EVEN HAVE HIS ASHES AND GLASSES
Andrea Kubinova, 30, from London, became great friends with serial killer and necrophiliac, Dennis Nilsen .
A POOL WITH A VIEW
The view from this rooftop pool is sure to make most holidaymakers envious .
CHRISTMAS SNOWMAN ATTRACTS CURIOUS SQUIRREL
Peering curiously into a basket hanging off the arms of a snowman, this little squirrel appears fascinated by the snowy figure .
AERIALS OF FLOODING ON SOMERSET LEVELS
Sam Notaro built his own flood defences to protect his four-bedroom home in Moorland, Somerset Flooding is likely to get worse around Somerset as groundwater levels continue to rise .
FROZEN IN TIME LIGHTHOUSE
This frozen lighthouse in Michigan could easily be mistaken for a still from the snow swept disaster movie The Day After Tomorrow .