A 54-year-old woman refuses to let her loss of sight stop her from living her life to the fullest and getting down to a healthier weight.
Sonia Dawswell, a court volunteer, worked hard to shed half of her body weight after reaching 21 stone and being upset by her reflection.
The East Londoner went from a size 28 down to 10st 7lb size 12/14 with a BMI of 26.
However, her efforts seemed in vain as she ended up piling the weight back on after going blind and being unable to cook for herself, snacking instead of eating proper meals.
Suffering from sight issues all her life, Sonia needed stronger and stronger glasses, leaving her registered partially sighted due to cataracts and glaucoma.
Then, overnight, in 2018, she completely lost the sight in her left eye, leaving her registered blind.
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Sonia explained: "I went to bed with sight, woke up completely blind in my left eye. As I only have a small amount of sight in my right eye, it made everyday tasks impossible."
Living alone, she had to rely on pre-packed or takeaway food and found herself tucking into "endless snacks all day long".
She continued: "There was no end to it. I’d just be picking from morning to night. Crisps, biscuits, sandwiches. Anything I could just buy and eat. I couldn’t even see the calories on the back of the pack.
"On my way home from work, I’d stop off at the chip shop, get chips and eat them at home with a cheese and onion pasty.
"I’ve been to lots of support groups for people with sight loss and a lot of us are overweight. I believe we’re dying sooner because of it."
Still, Sonia never let her blindness hold her back in other areas of her life and she's now determined to learn how to cook once again, so she can make WW meals.
"It doesn’t prevent me from socialising or working and I wasn’t going to let it stop me going to WW," she proclaimed.
Coming out of lockdown, Sonia discovered she had reached 15st 7lb and a size 18 again, giving her a BMI of 38.4, which meant she was once more classed as obese.
Knowing the WW diet had worked for her before, she recommitted to the plan.
As well as eating healthier, Sonia began walking six miles a day, stopped eating after 7pm and started learning to use some of her kitchen appliances once more - including a blender and frying plan.
This allowed Sonia to make herself omelettes and breakfast smoothies.
Her friends and family also stepped up to support her efforts, dropping off food and giving invaluable words of encouragement.
She said: "I learnt tricks like using appliances with big, simple buttons.
"I’d go to the supermarket, take pictures of the back of packets and enlarge them on my phone, so I could work out the points."
She now has three healthy meals a day, walks 10,000 steps six days a week and snacks on fruit instead of crisps.As a result, she has now lost another 4st and is down to 11st 6lb and a size 14 - just half a stone from her goal weight.
She added: "I hope my story can encourage other people. I’m a woman of a certain age and menopausal, but that hasn’t stopped me. I have visual impairment but that hasn’t stopped me either.
"I want people to realise you can have a life with a disability and still watch your weight. It’s not easy but keep knocking on those doors until they open for you."
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