Kyrie and Carl Doran wanted nothing more than to have a baby together, but their weight was holding them back - so much so, that doctors refused to help them at all.
The couple were desperate to start a family, but weighing in at 45 stone between them, medics wouldn't even consider the pair for fertility treatments.
Kyrie, 29, says she ballooned to 20st as a result of health conditions including polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), endometriosis and an underactive thyroid.
The turning point came when she and Carl decided to try for a baby. But after struggling to conceive, they reached out to doctors - only to be shut down because of their size.
As well as needing to lose weight to start a family, Kyrie and her now-husband Carl, wanted to shed the pounds for their wedding day.
"My weight has been an issue for me for as long as I can remember, and it stemmed from hormonal conditions that began when I first started my periods," Kyrie said.
"My hormonal imbalances meant that my weight went up pretty much overnight.
"I went from being a healthy active child who did football and dancing, to being inactive and bullied because of my size as I ballooned up almost overnight.
"At my biggest size, which was 20st, I hated how I looked. I lacked confidence which seeped into my relationships.
"I was unhappy. I wouldn't look in the mirror at myself and I wouldn't take pride in my appearance at all.
"I genuinely was disgusted with myself. I hate how I made myself feel, and I hate that I let the bullies win."
When Kyrie and Carl started their fertility journey, doctors "wouldn't take them seriously" until they dramatically dropped the pounds.
"They wouldn't even look at me because of my size. I decided that was it, and I was done with struggling with my weight," Kyrie said.
Taking matters into her own hands, she decided to book in for a gastric sleeve in Turkey in May 2021, which helped her lose 10st.
Carl's weight had creeped up to 25st before he decided to follow in Kyrie's footsteps and undergo weight loss surgery too.
"Carl was scared to have the surgery at first, but after seeing my results within the first six months, he was ready to give it a go," Kyrie said.
"We travelled back to Turkey to the same surgeon who did my gastric sleeve, and Carl went under the knife to began his lifestyle change.
"He also had gastric sleeve surgery which has helped him lose 10st. We were also due to get married and both wanted to be smaller for the wedding."
When Kyrie, from Dublin, Ireland, first tried on her wedding dress, she was a bridal size 28 and it wouldn't do up.
"I needed a panel to be added into the back of the dress so that it would fit me properly," she said. "I hated how I looked, I had no confidence, and I didn't even want to look at myself in the mirror.
"I had to order my dress in a bridal size 10. The shop that I got it in was a plus-size bridal boutique, and they had to reorder it from the petite side of the factory.
"The shop that I got it in was a plus-size bridal boutique, and they had to reorder it from the petite side of the factory.
"By the time the wedding came around, I looked like a totally different person in a completely different dress."
Since their surgery, Kyrie and Carl are the healthiest they have ever been and have lost 25 stone between them.
Now, Kyrie, who works as a special needs assistant, is being taken seriously in her journey to becoming a mum.
"Myself and Carl have always spoken about having children. We have Carl's daughter, my stepdaughter, and she is our world," she said.
"She's at the age where she's asking for a brother or sister and we just have to keep positive that it will happen. We're hopeful it's in our future.
"I started this journey to begin trying for our family. We have had three miscarriages and are trying for our rainbow baby, but we are having difficulty because of my medical diagnosis.
"Since losing weight, my doctors are now actually trying to help me rather than ignoring me.
"We have just begun our fertility treatments, hysteroscopy and D&C, and we have just been given the go-ahead to begin trying again."
She says that weight loss surgery has totally transformed their lives and being able to buy clothes off the rack is "still a bit crazy".
"I'd love to have the loose skin on my stomach removed because after losing 10 stone, it hangs low and gets in the way in certain clothes," she said.
"However, I don't see the point until after we finish our family as it will just undo any work that a surgeon does to correct the skin."
The couple return to Turkey every year and "stop by the hospital to say thank you to the team" for saving their lives.
"We have a running joke between myself and Carl that he gained so much weight after my surgery because he was finishing my meals that I couldn't finish," Kyrie said.
"We used to order so much food, but if we get a takeaway now, one portion of curry and one rice does both of us for lunch and dinner.
"We get four portions or more out of what one of us would of eaten in one sitting pre-op."
Before diet:
Breakfast: Cereal or toast
Lunch: Four coffees
Dinner: Homemade pasta dishes or fast food takeaway
Snacks: Coffees, breakfast cereal bars, sweets
After diet:
Breakfast: Porridge or toast
Lunch: Chicken and veg soup
Dinner: Beef and vegetable stir fry with rice
Snacks: Breakfast bars, vegetables, and toast
Do you have a weight loss story to share? Get in touch. Email nia.dalton@reachplc.com.
