A woman has revealed how she lost 10 stone after replacing her daily bottle of wine with decaffeinated tea.
Jo Hurley, 50, from Harlow, Essex, began drinking heavily after a medical procedure went wrong in 2018.
The quality control officer had gone to the doctors for a check-up after having heavy periods.
But during an examination of her uterus, she claims a doctor accidentally punctured the lining and two days later she went into septic shock.
She spent 12 months in hospital after enduring three surgeries to remove the infection, including an emergency hysterectomy.
Once back home, she ate and drank too much cheese and wine for more than two years, until she weighed 21.6 pounds and wore a size 26 dress.
Jo Hurley, 50, from Harlow, Essex, lost 10 stone by giving up a bottle of wine one night after almost dying from septic shock.
Jo has now dropped to a dress size 14 after reaching her goal weight of 11.5 pounds and has become a Lighter Life mentor and has continued to maintain her weight.
But after concerned doctors offered her a gastric sleeve to help her lose weight, which she refused, Jo decided she needed to make a change.
He “finally gave up” his nightly bottle of white wine and went to the gym to take aquafit classes.
After two years, she weighed only 11.5 pounds and wore a size 14 dress.
Jo, he said: ‘I almost died from a simple checkup. She didn’t trust having another surgery. I wanted to lose weight naturally.
‘Before I lost weight, I drank a bottle of wine a night. I’ve cut everything out of my life to finally feel like myself again.’
In March 2018, Jo began having heavy periods once a month, causing discomfort and stomach pains, as well as changes to her lifestyle.
After speaking to a GP, she headed to the hospital to have a hysteroscopy, a procedure in which a small camera is inserted into the vagina to examine the uterus.
During the examination, a doctor accidentally punctured her uterus and caused an infection in her vagina.
Jo said: “I was terrified, I thought I was going to die.” I was diagnosed with sepsis and my body began to fail.
He “finally gave up” his nightly bottle of white wine and went to the gym to take aquafit classes. After two years, she weighed only 11 and 5 pounds and wore a size 14 dress.
Jo steadily declined and lost over 10 kilos in 10 months by swapping conventional foods for meal replacements and going to the gym and swimming as much as possible.
‘I couldn’t stop vomiting pure black liquid. My temperature was all over the place, I couldn’t keep any food down. I was taking a lot of antibiotics which made me more sick.’
A year later, Jo underwent a hysterectomy, a surgical procedure to remove the uterus and cervix.
Upon leaving the hospital, Jo developed a “screw it” attitude and decided to eat and drink whatever she wanted.
He regularly stuffed himself with crackers, cheese, and chips, all washed down with wine.
Jo said: ‘I didn’t put a filter on my intake. She drank a bottle of wine and ate two packets of crisps a night. The next thing I knew, I was heavier than the people around me.
‘I went to a New Year’s party in 2021 and realized that all the other women had lovely slim figures, I felt disgusting. “I knew I had to do something or I would never be happy.”
In February 2022, Jo needed surgery to remove an abdominal hernia, requiring her to lose weight, so the NHS offered her a gastric sleeve.
Jo used to overeat and drink cheese and wine for over two years, eventually tipping the scales at 21, 6lbs and a size 26 dress.
Jo said she has ‘never felt better’ and shows off her body proudly, instead of wine in the evening she now opts for a cup of decaffeinated tea.
Jo has now dropped to a dress size 14 after reaching her goal weight of 11.5 pounds and has become a Lighter Life mentor and has continued to maintain her weight.
Jo steadily declined and lost over 10 kilos in 10 months by swapping conventional foods for meal replacements and going to the gym and swimming as much as possible.
Jo said: ‘I didn’t want to risk getting sick again. I knew the gastric sleeve would be easier.
‘I wanted to push myself and lose weight myself. Weight loss was my emergency. I never wobbled and lost weight every week without fail.
Jo has now dropped to a dress size 14 after reaching her goal weight of 11.5 pounds and has become a Lighter Life mentor and has continued to maintain her weight.
She said: ‘I’ve never felt better. I show my body with pride.
‘I’m so happy I lost it myself.
“I used to end the night with a glass of wine, but now I just have a cup of decaffeinated tea.”