At just 21 years of age, I had suffered a stroke and had been in a coma for three weeks. I then spent a further two months in hospital recovering. I was advised by my doctors that, if I didn’t lose weight, I was in serious danger of having another stroke and next time I might not survive.

I have two young children, one of whom has Down’s syndrome, and I couldn’t even contemplate not being around for them.

Junk food to me was like an addiction, craving my next fix of chocolate, chips, anything that gave me a false sense of happiness. Because let’s face it, when you’re clinically obese you are never really happy. You portray this fun-loving front, but deep down inside you are depressed. Even after your fix of “happiness” in that high fat chocolate wrapper, you then submit to guilt, regret and disgust. The stroke should have been my major wake up call, but I always slipped back to my old ways.

After my son was born with numerous disabilities, I finally decided that something had to change.

I started my Cambridge journey back in April 2013 – it’s a time I will never forget! I was so nervous and worried about starting the Plan. I remember one of the most difficult things about doing the Plan was that suddenly many of my friends and family became “nutrition experts”, and people started bombarding me with their so-called knowledge saying that this diet wasn’t healthy and that quick fixes would end up with me just piling all the weight back on as soon as I stopped.

However I did very well on CWP. The one-to-one support and encouragement helped me re-shape not just my body, but my life.

If I need a chocolate fix, I can indulge on the Bars without feeling guilty, but the most important thing is that I am now able to enjoy quality time with my two kids. Especially with the challenges my youngest has with Downs, I could have never coped if I was still at my heaviest weight. I now have more energy, and I feel healthier and happier with who I am.

I am determined to maintain this healthier lifestyle and weight, I’ve managed to keep my weight off for more than 2 years so already, I hope I can show people who were just like me anything is achievable with the right support. I am looking forward to sharing a healthier way of eating with my children, and thanks to my new weight I know I will now be around to see them grow.