A WOMAN from Ellesmere Port says that she has been "given her life back" after losing 6 stone with the help of her local dieting group.

Valerie Lunt, who attends a morning Slimming World group at The Groves Sports & Social Club in Whitby Road, Ellesmere Port, had been advised by her GP to lose weight in order to be eligible for surgery to relieve chronic and persistent pain from her gallbladder.

Valerie needed to lose 5 stone (nearly 32 kilograms) for a procedure to remove the organ and began visiting the sessions in October 2021.

She was determined to succeed and be pain free, achieving her weight loss goal in July 2022. The life changing surgery was then successfully completed at the beginning of September.

Christine Robinson-Lloyd, Valerie's consultant at Slimming World, said: "When Val walked through my doors she was so incredibly unhappy, she was frustrated and upset with her limited restricted diet.

"She felt helpless, and wasn’t enjoying food and she desperately wanted to find a love for food again and lose weight."

Christine says that Slimming World’s Food optimising plan was suitable for Valerie and any gallbladder sufferers as it’s about creating healthy habits, a well balanced health diet, which is low in fats, saturated fats and sugars.

Valerie said that she was "absolutely loving" her weight loss journey which had helped her to find new recipes which she could enjoy whilst continuing to drop the required weight. She also "couldn't wait" to get back amongst her friends and returned to the group on September 20 to claim her 5 Stone Award.

Valerie added: "Slimming World has changed my life completely and I couldn’t have done it without the help, support and encouragement from Chris my consultant and our wonderful group.

"Our group is full of very special people all helping one another."

For further information about the Slimming World group in Ellesmere Port, call Christine 'Chris' Robinson-Lloyd on 0797 4145061. To find out more about Slimming World and how to join , visit slimmingworld.co.uk or call 0344 897 8000.