AT her heaviest, Rebecca Johnson couldn’t walk up a hill without gasping for breath.
But after a mortifying moment while on holiday in Benidorm, the XXL-wearing 29-year-old vowed to turn her life around.
She has since lost more than 6st and wears a size extra-small.
But Rebecca, from Newcastle under Lyme, Staffordshire, tells Sun Health: “This isn’t just about weight loss, it’s about reclaiming my life.”
Rebecca spent most of her adult life battling with her weight, which hovered consistently around 22st.
She suffered a slipped disc, spondylosis (wear and tear on the joints and disks of the spine) that caused constant pain, and was on antidepressants for mental health issues.
“It was all made so much worse because of my weight,” she says. “Everything hurt more – even walking up and down the stairs or walking to my car.”
Being on her feet all day as a dog walker and trainer, Rebecca feared she might have a heart attack or stroke at any moment.
“Walking the dogs left me out of breath, and even small hills felt impossible,” she says. “I honestly thought I was going to have a heart attack or a stroke.
“I’d struggle to keep up with the dogs – it was mortifying.
“I couldn’t even walk into a pub without worrying if everyone was staring at me.
“Even everyday things felt impossible. I felt like I was carrying extra weight everywhere.
“It affected my confidence, my mood, and even my relationships.”
It wasn’t helped by her diet, which was full of ultra-processed junk foods, due to what she describes as unbearable “food noise”.
“I loved takeaways, drive-throughs, multipacks of crisps, sharing-size bars of chocolate and frozen meals,” Rebecca, who is 5ft 11in, says.
“I was easily spending £400 a month on takeaways and convenience foods like frozen pizzas.
“I would walk into any shop and buy dozens of bags of crisps and chocolate bars, sandwiches and cakes, and I’d go to McDonald’s and KFC almost daily.
“I became obsessed with having snacks in my van while I was at work ‘just in case’, but then I’d eat them all day.”
The true wake-up call came during a family trip to Spain, when Rebecca sat down and realised her legs were stuck in a chair.
She’d already struggled through another embarrassing holiday moment, when she was forced to ask for a seatbelt extender on a flight to Northern Ireland.
As a result of both “mortifying” encounters, her confidence plummeted.
I feel like I’ve been given a second chance at life
Rebecca Johnson
She says: “For my partner’s mum’s 50th in Northern Ireland, I had to use a seatbelt extender.
“I felt like everyone was looking at me when the air hostess walked down the aisle to give it to me.
“I felt like whoever sat next to me on the plane would be thinking, ‘Oh goodness, I’m stuck sitting next to the fatty’. And if I ordered any snacks or sugary drinks, people would think, ‘Of course she’s ordering that, I’d expect nothing less for a fat girl’.
“In Benidorm, I sat down in a chair and my legs got stuck.
“I knew people saw it happen and I tried to laugh it off but inside, I wanted the ground to swallow me up whole.
“There was a group of people sitting near us and they were laughing – I was laughing too but there’s a difference between laughing with me and laughing at me.
“Both situations were mortifying.”
In February 2025, after months of hesitation, Rebecca decided to start taking Mounjaro – a so-called ‘fat jab’ used to treat type 2 diabetes and obesity.
It mimics hormones like GLP-1, which help regulate appetite, slow digestion and make you feel fuller for longer – often leading to dramatic weight loss.
Rebecca was nervous at first, especially as the drug needs to be self-injected once a week and carries a risk of side effects, including nausea, diarrhoea and hair loss.
But within two weeks, she’d already dropped a stone.
“Before the jabs, my food noise was extremely loud,” she says. “The only way I can describe it is that it would take over my brain.
“There would be multiple voices in my head saying, ‘What’s in the cupboard?’, ‘Order a takeaway’, and, ‘I wish I got some snacks from the shop’ all at the same time.
“Now it’s non-existent.”
How fat jabs work – and how to get maximum results safely
WEIGHT loss jabs were originally developed to treat type 2 diabetes – and Ozempic is still prescribed for that.
Wegovy and Mounjaro, which are now available on the NHS, along with Saxenda, are licensed for weight management in obese adults (BMI over 30) or those who are overweight (BMI over 27) with related conditions such as high blood pressure or high cholesterol.
They work by mimicking hormones like GLP-1, which help regulate appetite, slow digestion and make you feel fuller for longer – often leading to dramatic weight loss.
The health benefits can be huge, since obesity is a major risk factor for type 2 diabetes, heart disease and certain cancers.
But not everyone sees the same results. One common mistake is expecting it to work instantly.
For example, taking it right before a takeaway, special occasion, or big night out in the hope it will stop you from overindulging.
Jason Murphy, head of pharmacy and weight loss expert at Chemist4U, says: “Taking the jab right before a takeaway or party won’t automatically stop you from indulging.
“Weight loss injections need time to build up in your system. They don’t blunt your appetite immediately after injection.
“It usually takes a few days to start feeling a difference, and several weeks for the full effects to settle in.”
Inject your dose mid-week if you plan for a heavier weekend.
Another common error is injecting in the same spot each time.
“People often default to injecting in the same spot over and over, but this can cause local irritation or even small lumps of fat under the skin (lipohypertrophy),” Dr Crystal Wyllie, GP at Asda Online Doctor, explains.
“This can affect how well the medication is absorbed and make it less effective.”
She recommends rotating injection sites between the abdomen, thigh, and upper arm, and even picking different spots within those zones.
And never stop using them suddenly as this can lead to rapid weight gain, Mital Thakrar, a pharmacist from Well Pharmacy, warns.
“There’s a tendency to ditch weight-loss treatments as soon as you reach your desired weight,” he says. “But that’s not our advice.”
A recent University of Oxford study found people typically return to their original weight within 10 months of stopping treatment, especially if lifestyle changes weren’t firmly established.
“Without the appetite suppression, hunger and cravings return quickly,” Mr Thakrar explains.
This includes healthier eating, which means cutting out junk food and alcohol while increasing protein and fibre, as well as exercising regularly.
“Building habits like these during treatment is key for sustaining results,” he says.
“Many patients see improvements in blood sugar, cholesterol, and blood pressure.”
But stopping too soon can reverse these gains if weight creeps back.
Finally, if you’re not seeing results, you might be missing the oldest rule in the book – drinking enough water.
“Dehydration is a common, yet indirect, side effect of weight loss injections,” Dr Wyllie says.
The drugs dull appetite, and in doing so, they can also blunt thirst signals. Yet hydration is crucial for the body to function properly.
“Aim for two to three litres per day, sipping regularly, not just when thirsty,” Dr Wyllie explains.
“Hydration supports metabolism, digestion, and can reduce side effects like headaches, nausea and constipation.”
In total, Rebecca has lost 6st 7lbs (41kg) – 30 per cent of her starting weight. She has also gone from a size 24 (XXL) to a size XS.
“I can now wear XS Primark clothes and buy high street fashion,” she says. “This is everything I needed.
“The food noise is gone. I can eat three meals a day, make good food choices.
“It’s truly helped me take control of my appetite.”
Rebecca adds: “I avoid ultra-processed foods like the plague now.
“The number of chemicals in those types of foods is so bad they have a detrimental effect on hormones and weight.
“I just couldn’t think of anything worse than going back to how I was before.”
Because of the changes, she can now power through high-intensity workouts, including burpees – something she never imagined – and walking dogs is no longer a struggle.
Her old back problems have eased completely – she hasn’t had a single flare-up in five months – and she’s come off her antidepressants.
“Now, I rarely get any pain – only when I’m due on my period, which is normal,” Rebecca says.
“I can walk the dogs for hours without getting out of breath and I don’t feel like everyone is staring at me anymore.
“I’m even playing football and going to women’s exercise classes. The difference a few months can make is incredible and I’m so proud of myself.
“Even my partner [Rosie] has joined me on this journey, which has made weddings, holidays, and meals less stressful.
“I wanted to feel my best for this next chapter. By the time I’m 30, I want to be a healthy weight, and this journey is helping me get there.
“Even my mental health has improved.
“I feel like I’ve been given a second chance at life.
“I can finally walk into a shop and buy clothes that fit without worrying, and I can take on activities I never thought possible.”
Rebecca first got Mounjaro through her local pharmacy but after two months she switched to Voy – a support platform that pairs medication with one-to-one coaching and AI check-ins.
She is on a 15mg dose – the maximum maintenance dose. Her goal weight is 14st.
But her journey hasn’t been without challenges. Rebecca suffered numerous side effects, which initially made her life miserable.
“I had rosy cheeks and headaches at first,” she says.
“This was due to dehydration as I simply wasn’t drinking enough.
“I introduced electrolytes and I still stick to two to three litres of water a day. Obviously sometimes I don’t reach that amount as no one’s perfect, but if I don’t hit it, I get a headache.
“I’ve also had constipation a lot over the last couple of months but that’s something I’m sorting with natural remedies and children’s prune pouches.
“Body dysmorphia is also something I’ve suffered with since losing the weight – it’s almost like my brain hasn’t caught up with my body!”
The couple are starting IVF and planning their wedding in 2027, and also plan to climb Snowdon for Rebecca’s 30th birthday next year.
She says: “I honestly don’t think I could have done this without Voy’s ongoing support – it’s more than a programme, it’s a lifeline.”
