by Nick Lillitos

Yolanda Barker, having shed eight stone in almost the same number of months, declares: "It's nice to be able to sit on my husband's lap now."

The 37-year-old mum of two from Singleton, went on a specialised diet when she reached "crisis point" at nearly 17 stone. Her dress size has now shrunk from 24 to a stunning size 10.

Mrs Barker's achievement is all the more remarkable because she suffers from Multiple Sclerosis (MS), a disabling neurological condition which interferes with messages to the brain and other parts of the body. She can no longer drive a car and when walking outside she uses a walking stick.

"I had reached crisis point with my heavy weight, having also MS and other medical problems," she said. "I realised I had to lose weight for health reasons but most of all for my own self-esteem.

"So I got involved at the SureSlim clinic in Ashford checking in at nearly 16st 13lb. I had seen what other people had achieved there but felt confident I could give it my best shot.

"It didn't take long for people to start noticing that I was losing weight, and this of course made feel fantastic."

Now, some nine months after she started her diet, people stop her in the street and say: "Sorry, but don't I know you from somewhere?"

Mrs Barker added: "It really is quite funny. "Friends I haven't see for a while pass me by, and then do a double take and come back to tap me on the shoulder to ask if it really is me!"

Of the diet, she says: "The hardest thing in reaching the ideal weight is staying there. But I know exactly what to do. You've got to stick with it because you feel so much better."

Christine Hursell, of SureSlim, in Elwick Road, commented: "I don't know how to describe how overwhelmingly proud I am of her."

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