A Northampton grandmother has revealed how a weight-loss medication helped her shed five stone and break a decades-long habit of binge drinking and unhealthy eating.
Ann White, 69, had spent thirty years trapped in a cycle of yo-yo dieting, swinging between extreme restriction and consuming a bottle of wine and crisps every single night. The part-time auditor estimates she has lost a cumulative 40 stone over her lifetime, only to regain it repeatedly.
A Lifetime of Diet Struggles
'I've tried everything to lose weight,' Ann confessed. 'I've joined different diet clubs, I've even gone on diet pills, which just made me shaky, but I'd always put weight back on again.'
Despite her persistent efforts, maintaining weight loss proved impossible. By September 2024, she found herself at 15st 11lb and a dress size 20, a moment that became her turning point.
Her unhealthy patterns were deeply entrenched. 'I'd drink wine, and then I binged because of drinking,' she explained. 'I wasn't an alcoholic, but I would easily drink a bottle of wine in a night, and then I would binge on anything. I'd starve and binge, starve and binge.'
Ann traced her complicated relationship with food back to her childhood, noting her mother was constantly dieting. After marrying in 1977 and having two children by 23, she initially maintained a healthier weight. However, a move from Essex to Northampton for her husband's job with Travis Perkins left her lonely and using alcohol as a crutch.
The Turning Point with Mounjaro
Determined for a permanent change, Ann began researching the medication Mounjaro and eventually joined the Second Nature weight-loss programme. After hesitating for six months, a moment of clarity in front of her mirror prompted her to take the plunge.
'I was standing in my bedroom looking at myself in the mirror, trying things on, and I thought, 'I've thought about this too long, I've had enough.''
The effects were rapid. 'The term "food noise" suddenly made sense to me,' Ann recalled. 'It stopped the food noise, and the appetite suppression kicked in straight away.'
Remarkably, her desire for wine vanished alongside her food cravings. 'When I had my second dose, I just stopped drinking. I didn't come home and think, 'I want a glass of wine now', I just didn't think about it.'
A New Lease on Life
The weight loss was swift and steady. The first stone disappeared quickly, and she continued to lose around a pound to a pound and a half each week. She has since transformed from a size 20 to a svelte size 10/12.
Her daily routine is now radically different. She starts her day with a banana and protein yoghurt, prepares lunch in advance, and enjoys dinners like turkey salad or an M&S ready meal. Snacks have been replaced with berries, dried apricots, or nuts.
Beyond the physical transformation, Ann claims Mounjaro eliminated lifelong phobias of needles, flying, and heights. Friends remark that she seems happier and more confident.
'I'd had enough of being overweight - it wasn't me,' she stated. 'I would wear baggy clothes that covered me up. I'm totally opposite now, in completely fitted clothes all the time.'
Her husband of 48 years is quietly supportive, and Ann has developed a passion for fashion, estimating she has spent £5,000 on a new wardrobe. She has discarded all her old clothes, symbolically rejecting her former self.
While she aims to lose another half stone, Ann is confident she will not regain the weight. 'I've changed myself entirely and like who I am now,' she declared, embodying a powerful, hard-won transformation.
