
A woman in her 50s whoās lost over 7 stone and is still learning how to show up for herself, one small step at a time.
This isnāt about perfection, quick fixes, or pressure.
Itās about progress, kindness, and building a life that feels good to live in.
For years, I felt stuck. Trapped in a cycle of emotional eating, shame, and feeling like real change was for other people. I lived with pain from lymphedema, carrying nearly 20 stone, my weight creeping up each year, whilst nothing I did made a impact. Then I discovered something different and for the first time, I started to believe it wasnāt too late.
I have started taking Mounjaro, a licensed drug to help treat obesity in the UK. I had been thinking about starting this treatment for quite a while and looked into this and other alternatives that are available in the UK.
There is so much misinformation about these drugs online and in the media so I hope I can help by sharing my experiences and provide you all with more information through my blog posts.
If you have any questions please feel free to drop me a message or let me know if there is anything in particular you would like me to discuss.
Please note that I am only documenting my experience, always do your own research and speak to a doctor or pharmacy for medical advice or if you have concerns whilst taking GLP1 medication.
With love, Helen š©·


If youāre new here, welcome ā Iām really glad you found your way.
This is a quiet space for women in midlife who are navigating weight loss, self-trust, and real life ā imperfectly and honestly.
You might like to start with:
My Story
How I lost over 7 stone and learned that transformation is about more than numbers.
š Read More
My Most Read Blog Posts
The posts readers return to when they need encouragement and perspective.
š One Year On. One Step at a Time. š
š Hormones, Paddington & The Great Chocolate Crisis of 2025
š What No One Tells You About GLP-1 and Emotional Eating
My Digital Journal
After years of struggling with emotional eating and self-doubt, I created a gentle companion journal to support women on GLP-1 journeys.
Itās designed for reflection, self-kindness, and realistic progress ā not punishment.
š View the Journal
What Iām Building Next
Iām beginning to share more of my journey on YouTube.
[Coming Soon]












November 2025 ā Mounjaro Diaries
Well.
November really said,
āLetās see how steady you are now, shall we?ā
And apparently⦠quite steady actually.
But before we talk about concerts, painters, Paddington at 5:30am, and roast beef the size of a duvetā¦
Letās address the rather enormous elephant that is no longer on my frame.
šÆI Have Lost 101.8lbs
Yes. You read that correctly.
Starting weight: 19 stone 13.8lbs (279.8lbs)
Current weight: 12 stone 10lbs (178lbs)
Total loss: 101.8lbs
Thatās 7 stone 3.8lbs.
Thatās 46.2kg.
Triple digits.
I donāt even know how to process that.
Thatās not āa bit of weight.ā
Thatās not ādoing well.ā
Thatās an entire personās worth of weight.
And yetā¦
What feels bigger than the number is this:
I didnāt white-knuckle my way here.
I didnāt punish myself here.
I didnāt arrive here exhausted and broken.
I arrived steady.
And that feels like the real win.
Right. Now we can proceed with November chaos.
š¶Marti Pellow at The O2
First weekend of November and Iām back in London.
Because apparently I now live on trains.
Marti Pellow at The O2 ā another work freebie (honestly, I love my job sometimes).
Hereās what struck me:
I stood the entire concert.
No leg pain.
No squeezing into the seat.
No pretending I ājust needed the looā because my back was screaming.
I sang. I swayed. I existed in the moment.
Old Helen would have been calculating angles for photos and wondering how big she looked in the crowd.
This Helen just wondered if the train home would be cancelled.
Growth.
šCar Service & MOT
Car went in.
No dramas.
No advisory notes.
No surprise £800 bill.
A November miracle.
šPaddington & Pall Mall
Back to Paddington three times this month.
Why are dark mornings so personally offensive?
In summer Iām a capable woman with ambition.
In November Iām a Victorian orphan on Platform 3.
The 12th was particularly epic:
Office all day.
Evening event in Pall Mall.
Ridiculously long hours.
And yes⦠there was complimentary champagne.
Now this is where old patterns used to live.
āFree drink? Well thatās the day ruined.ā
āMay as well eat everything.ā
āStart again Monday.ā
This time?
I had a glass, or two.
I enjoyed it.
I came home.
I carried on.
No spiral.
No drama.
No internal war.
That is emotional weight I have lost too.
š½Sunday Lunch at the Spa (Exercise = 0)
Spa day.
Did I swim? No.
Did I gym? Also no.
Did I demolish a roast beef dinner like it was my job? Yes.
And you know what?
No guilt.
Because food is no longer either:
Reward
Punishment
Escape
Failure
Itās just food.
And that might be the quietest transformation of all.
šØWhy Did I Renovate The Entire House?
The painters arrived.
Lounge.
Dining room.
Kitchen.
Hall.
Stairs.
Landing.
Downstairs toilet.
WHY did I choose all at once?
The sofa is currently in exile.
There is dust in places I donāt want to discuss.
And the house looks like weāre preparing for a low-budget home makeover show.
But hereās the metaphor (because you know I love one):
Sometimes everything looks messy while itās being rebuilt.
And thatās okay.
šThe Bit I Wish I Wasnāt Writing
November hasnāt just been concerts, champagne and paint fumes.
My sister-in-law is very poorly. Stage 4 cancer. Sepsis. Hospital stays that feel never-ending. The kind of weeks where your phone lighting up makes your stomach drop before you even look at it.š±š
Itās been one of those months where life feels very loud and very fragile all at once.
Hospitals have a way of putting everything into perspective.
The decorating chaos? Doesnāt matter.
The early trains? Donāt matter.
Even crossing the 100lb milestone ā as huge as that is ā feels quiet in those corridors.
What matters is being there.
Sitting. Listening. Holding hands.š«¶
And hereās the thing I didnāt expectā¦
Iām able to be there.
Not breathless.
Not in agony from my legs.
Not desperate to sit down after five minutes.
Just⦠there.
When I started this journey, I thought it was about weight. About clothes sizes. About finally not avoiding photos.
But in moments like this, I realise it was about something much deeper.
It was about getting my health back so I could show up when life gets hard.
Not smaller.
Stronger.šŖāØ
And if youāre walking through something heavy right now too ā Iām sending you the biggest squeeze. This journey doesnāt happen in a bubble. Real life keeps happening around it. And sometimes itās messy and heartbreaking and beautiful all at once.
šCurrent Weight: 12 Stone 10lbs
Which means I have officially crossed the 100lb milestone.
Not because November was calm.
Not because life was tidy.
Not because I was perfect.
But because I kept showing up.
On the weeks with concerts.
On the weeks with champagne.
On the weeks with hospital visits.
On the weeks with dust and disruption.
Consistency beats perfection. Every time.
š§ Mindset Shift This Month
You donāt need a quiet life to make progress.
You need:
Self-trust.
Emotional steadiness.
And the ability to come back to yourself when things wobble.
Mounjaro has helped the weight shift.
But the real transformation?
Itās in the response.
No spirals.
No āIāve ruined it.ā
No dramatic restarts.
Just:
āOkay. Back we go.ā
āļøJournal Prompt of the Month
When life feels overwhelming, what does āsteadyā look like for you?
Not perfect.
Not impressive.
Just steady.
Is it:
Taking your injection on time?
Eating protein before pastries?
Going to bed early?
Sitting with grief instead of numbing it?
Small still counts.
Always.
November has been loud.
Heavy.
Messy.
And yet here we are.
101.8lbs lighter.
Stronger in ways that donāt show on the scale.
Still going.
If youāre reading this thinking,
āI could never do thatā¦ā
Please know: I once thought that too.
This wasnāt about willpower.
It was about finally doing the inner work alongside the injection.
One small step at a time.
With love (and longing to get my home back to normal),
Helenš