A MUM-OF-THREE who lost more than nine stone feels that it has saved her life.

Lee O’Neill was convinced she was seriously ill because she constantly felt unwell, lethargic and suffered from joint pain for as long as she could remember.

Doctors carried out tests and, fortunately, found there was nothing wrong.

Hearing that it might be her weight that was impacting on her health came as a shock to the Haddington mum.

It was then that she decided to make a change, which ultimately saw her losing nine stone and three-and-a-half pounds in just over two years.

She said: “I knew I had to change – I had no choice. If I continued on the way I was going, I could have greatly increased my risk of having a heart attack, a stroke, or contracting type 2 diabetes.

“I had to change my ways to save my life, it was that simple.”

Lee, mum of grown-up twins Jade and Jamie, 30, also has a younger son, Daniel, 11.

She dreamed of going swimming and running with him, but years of bingeing on up to two takeaways a day and snacking on family-size bags of dry roasted peanuts, crisps and chocolate had made it difficult.

Lee, of Craig Avenue, also hated shopping for size 26 clothes and lacked the energy to get through the day without a nap.

The 49-year-old joined her local Slimming World group in June 2018 with engineer husband Craig for moral support.

Craig was also able to reach his target of losing five stone.

In her first week, Lee, who works in Ladbrokes on Musselburgh High Street, embraced the new food optimising eating plan and was amazed to lose six-and-a-half-pounds in only seven days.

She added: “Knowing that Slimming World had researched 1.1m members with a result showing the more weight you lose in your first week the more likely you are to be able to be successful in the longer term, I already knew I was in safe hands.

“With Slimming World having over 50 years’ experience, helping people achieve weight loss dreams, this made me even more determined and motivated.”

Swapping her unhealthy diet for a new way of eating with Slimming World changed everything.

Now, her favourite dinners include chicken and leek risotto or homemade spaghetti Bolognese.

However, she has not reached the finish line just yet.

Even though she has dropped from a size 26 to a slender 12, she is also focused on losing another eight-and-a-half-pounds to get to her dream target.

Lee, who has also trained as a Slimming World consultant and opened her own groups in Prestonpans, said: “I always stayed to group after being weighed as I want the expertise of the consultant and the encouragement and support I got from other members was amazing.

“They made the time to speak to me and tell me to believe that I could really do it, it was so lovely.

“Virtual is just Slimming from home, but great fun, and still with everyone receiving the help and support they need for the week ahead.

“At the start, I was afraid to speak to anyone but the members spoke to me and before long I started to feel more confident and learned that I was among friends.”