A slimmer lost 11 stone after her dead son came to her in a dream to tell her to change her ways.
Alison White, 50, was housebound and a size 30 when she received the warning in her sleep. She saw her son Thomas, who died aged seven after being hit by a car, standing by his gravestone, which had her name on it.
Alison said her little boy told her: “I love you but if you don’t do something, you are going to end up like me.”
After being terrified by the nightmare, she joined Slimming World and in the first week lost 11lbs.
The mum-of-three’s weight had spiralled as she battled depression after the death of Thomas in 2005. By April 2021 she weighed 24 stones, 12lbs.
Alison, from Rotherham, South Yorks, said: “I was in a terrible place, I was incredibly unhappy and depressed and suffering with insomnia, I didn’t go out of the house because I couldn’t walk far. I was breathless all the time. It was horrible.
“But losing so much that first week spurred me on and I kept on going.”
She turned her back on chocolate, takeaways and crisps, started drinking water and snacked on fruit and raw mushrooms.
“I didn’t find it hard, I just changed my mindset, I found healthier alternatives for everything I ate, I cooked and shopped wisely” she said.
“I am now more adventurous with food, I’ve tried fruit and vegetables I’d never heard of and eaten food from all over the world. I just cook it up and give it a try.”
Alison is now a healthy 13 stones 9lbs and her two other children, Jess, 22, and Owen, 20, and husband, Gary, 62, who works at a recycling plant, are proud of her.
She added: “This has been the best thing that has happened to me and I want to shout from the rooftops about the difference this has made to my life.
“Before I would be sat in the house and be asking people to go to the shop for chocolate for me. Now I’m up and out and enjoying life. I’m not hiding in photographs anymore.
“I’ve just been on holiday to Torquay and I was up at 5.30am every morning to walk down to the seafront and have a cup of coffee and see the world before anybody was awake. It was wonderful.”
Slimming World instructor Lisa said: “When Alison first joined the group, she had no confidence and no self-esteem, but now she is a shining star.
“I am so proud of her for her hard work, dedication and commitment against all odds.”
Alison added: “I have a four-week-old grandchild now, Hailie, and am loving being there for her.
“As for Thomas, losing a child is the most difficult thing a person can ever go through. But I now feel at peace with him. He’s still there for me and I’ve done what I needed to to be healthy and happy.”
Alison’s diet before:
Breakfast: Six Weetabix with sugar and a biscuit
Lunch: Two sandwiches made with bread rolls, crisps and a biscuit
Dinner: Chips, pizzas or burgers - whatever was in the freezer, or a takeaway
Snacks: Bars of chocolate, crisps
Alison’s diet now:
Breakfast: Two Weetabix or porridge
Lunch: Jacket potato with cheese and beans
Dinner: Chicken, rice and veg, homemade curries and salads Snacks: Raw mushrooms or jarred beetroot
Best advice: “You don’t need to eat bars of chocolate, there is always an alternative for everything, even if that alternative is simply a piece of fruit.”
