A WOMAN from Glastonbury who feared she would never have children gave birth to daughter, Skye, last year.

Sarah Sanger, 33, was a child when she was diagnosed with Polycycstic Ovaries Syndrome (PCOS).

She suffered from excess hair, hormonal imbalances and irregular periods - and turned to food for comfort.

“It was no picnic growing up," she said.

"My school life felt like hell. I was always a chunky girl, but with added extras, like having unwanted hair mostly visible on my face.

“I used to get bullied at school, no matter how much I tried to cover myself up and I was called upsetting names like ‘a freak’, and ‘a man’ which no young girl wants to hear.

“This really made me an anxious person and set my self esteem at an all-time low. I used to comfort eat to try to make things better.”

When she was 12, Sarah's mum passed away and she went to live with her grandmother - where she learnt to cook healthy meals and managed to loose the weight.

However, after she completed her fine art degree, her grandfather fell ill and passed away in 2011. And so Sarah started to comfort eat again.

The weight gain made her PCOS symptoms worse. And so she joined Slimming World.

Sarah managed to lose three stone and gain control over her PCOS symptoms. And last year she fell pregnant with her daughter, who she welcomed into the world in November 2020.

Her and her partner, Chris, are "over the moon".

"I always knew I'd love being a mummy," Sarah added.

"People tell you, there's nothing like having your own baby, there certainly isn't.

"I thought I was a smiley happy person, but she's just the most happy little thing I've ever seen. She really has completed us."

Slimming World is endorsed by the Royal College of Midwives (RCM) to support pregnant women and breastfeeding mums in managing their weight.

Cathy Warwick, chief executive of the RCM, said: “Nothing could be more vital than the work of the RCM and Slimming World to improve the health of women and, through this, their babies.

“Their approach to weight management with pregnant women is sound, achieves positive results and helps to change the lives of many women.”

If you are interested in attending Sarah's Slimming World group, she runs sessions in Wells on Wednesday evenings and Thursday mornings. For more information, contact her on 07715 958590.