I felt like I was in a freak show ... now life is amazing

How holiday flight changed Sarah's life after years of weight struggles

- KIERAN ISGIN & NATASHA LEAKE

A WOMAN lost an incredible 11 stone after she was too embarrassed to ask for a seatbelt extender on a flight.

Sarah Speight, who tipped the scales at 25st and 1lb, wore size 28 clothes and indulged in a diet heavy with fast food favourites like pizza, chocolate cake, and McDonald's, while avoiding exercise.

The turning point for Sarah came when she felt too ashamed to request a seatbelt extender on a plane, instead pretending her belt was securely fastened.

After trying "every diet" without success, Sarah chose to have a gastric band fitted, shelling out £11k to bypass NHS waiting times.

Now weighing a svelte 13st 8lbs and fitting into a size 14, Sarah, from Stalybridge, says she feels "amazing" but has also noticed a stark change in how others perceive her.

The 35-year-old fraud investigator said: "I got a feeling that people would walk past me and say 'look at the size of her.' It gets in your head.

"People would just stare at you and wouldn't say hello or anything. It was like I was in some kind of freak show. Now, people tend to smile at you more. They say hi, I feel like you're treated like a normal person.

"I find that people interact a lot more with me. They'll talk to you and let on and smile at you, whereas before nobody batted an eyelid.

"The more people notice just makes you feel so good about yourself. And it's something I'm not used to because I've never had that."