- For years, food was Jessica’s comfort as her weight climbed to 161kg and serious health problems took hold
- Told she needed weight-loss surgery, she decided to try one last time on her own
- Three years later, she’s lost 76kg, runs half marathons and has her life back
Here Jaimee Green, 35, shares her story in her own words
Floating around the wedding dress shop, I tried on dress after dress.
This isn’t what I expected, I thought, deflated.
While I felt beautiful dressed in a stunning white gown, I wasn’t the weight I’d hoped to be when I married my soulmate Jared, then 29.
It was 2021 and we’d met seven years earlier in 2014 after matching on a dating app. We bonded over the same family values and, aged 23, I knew right away I was
going to marry him.
Buying the dress, Jared and I tied the knot in October 2021, in front of our family and friends.
READ MORE: Weight loss win: I was too overweight to save Mum’s life – now I’m her hero
Growing up, I’d always struggled with my weight.
My parents, Sharon and David, had struggled with their weight too.
When I was six years old, Mum took me to my first Weight Watchers meeting. ‘Vegetables are good, lollies are bad,’ the nutritionist coach explained.
Armed with knowledge of good and bad foods, still I couldn’t keep the weight off. By high school, I was desperate to be skinny like other girls, and I restricted my food intake to a simple sandwich at lunch time.
But by the afternoon I was starving. Ravenous, I’d rummage through every cupboard, crunching biscuits, crackers, lollies and chocolates.
With my parents at work, there was no-one to stop me as I cooked and munched down a large frozen pepperoni pizza, box of chicken nuggets and hot chips.
While I worked hard in the classroom, my passion was on the tennis court.
I struggled with running, but I had a great shot.
Then a few years later I noticed the negative effect my weight was having on my game.
By age 18 I weighed 144 kilos. And as I got bigger, running across the court became even harder and my knees ached.
By my early 20s, I was stuck at the same weight and desperate to shed the kilos. Hoping for a quick fix, I tried different diets, including intermittent fasting, juice cleanses and detoxes. Committing to a low-calorie restricted diet for 12 months, I managed to lose 45 kilos. At 99 kilos, I was the lowest weight I’d been in years.
This is amazing, I thought as I ran across the court with more ease.
That’s when I met and fell in love with Jared. By 2015 I was studying to be a school counsellor.
READ MORE: Weight loss wonder: ‘I dropped 75 kilos!’
But life stresses meant I’d been battling with my mental health and depression, so I turned to food – snacking before dinner, having second and third helpings of the meal, then snacking before bed.
Over the next few years I piled on 62 heartbreaking kilos, and I had to give up tennis. Even after marrying Jared the number on the scales had kept going up.
‘I don’t like what I see in the mirror,’ I broke down to Jared one night.
‘I don’t care how much you weigh. You’re beautiful to me,’ Jared vowed.
By 2023 I was 161 kilos and the weight was taking a toll on my wellbeing. I had high blood pressure, was pre-diabetic, and my mental health was suffering.
‘You’re not going to make it past 40 at this rate,’ I told myself.
Diagnosed with polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome, formerly known as PCOS, and an autoimmune disease called Hashimoto’s, sadly the medication contributed further to my weight gain.
Wearing size 4XL clothes to cover my frame, I hid behind others in photos and avoided seeing my reflection. When meeting up with friends, I made sure to pick restaurants without booths which I couldn’t squeeze into, and avoided clothes shopping and walks so I wouldn’t end up huffing and puffing.
Finally I’d had enough. Making an appointment with my GP, I came clean.
‘I need help losing the weight,’ I said.
‘You need weight-loss surgery,’ the doctor told me.
Two other doctors said the same. But it wasn’t what I wanted.
Feeling defeated, I pushed the idea of weight loss out of mind.
But then I saw a gynaecologist for a non-related issue later that year.
‘You’re too big to fit on our tables,’ they said.
I was mortified.
I can’t live like this anymore, I realised.
‘I’m going to lose the weight myself,’ I vowed to a supportive Jared.
Working with a nutritionist, a therapist, and my GP, I began to make changes.
Introducing wholefoods, fruits and vegies into my diet, I focused on portion control.
Swapping my two helpings of saucy pasta for a plate of grilled chicken, rice and roast vegies, I was determined.
Weighing in weekly, I was amazed how fast the kilos were dropping off.
Five kilos here and there… it all added up.
Before I knew it, a year had passed and I’d shed 22 kilos! Slowly, the next 12 months of hard work saw me drop another 26 kilos.
By the 100 kilo mark, I’d started introducing exercise into my routine.
Walking to the park, I set myself a goal of running for 10 seconds every minute.
Pushing through the pain, within a few months I was getting stronger, running for 20 seconds, then 30.
Before long I was running 5kms.
READ MORE: Aussie weight loss: ‘I was too big to drive so I lost 115 kilo’
Now three years since starting my journey, I’ve lost another 28 kilos, now wearing size 16 clothing and weighing 85 kilos.
After losing a total of 76 kilos, I’m the healthiest and happiest I’ve ever been. Looking at myself in the mirror now, I’m so proud of how far I’ve come.
‘God I look good,’ I smile.
And I’m no longer pre-diabetic nor do I suffer Hashimoto symptoms.
I’ve even starting running half marathons!
With the kilos still dropping, once I reach my goal weight of 80 kilos, I’m hoping to get surgery to remove loose skin, then renew my vows with Jared in Hawaii.
I feared I wouldn’t make it to 40, now I’m living life to the fullest!
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