“I became a recluse” – A Salford mum’s journey towards body acceptance

Salford mum Sharne Wilkinson shares how she navigated grief and family illness on her journey towards body acceptance.

Across the first month of 2024, thousands of people up and down the country attempted to kick-start their New Year’s Resolution plan of losing weight to varying levels of success. 

According to Attic, 15 per cent of adults in the UK set weight loss as their main goal for the new year, making it the most common aim amongst the population. 

35-year-old mum from Eccles, Sharne, is all too aware of the pressures many face in January to better themselves but says there’s a primary reason why people’s goals to lose weight often don’t stick. 

“There’s a lot of psychology that gets involved; it’s the mental health side of things, not just the food. A lot of our mental health is affected by our weight.” 

Sharne’s path to feeling comfortable in her own skin began seven years ago with her late father. 

“My dad had been overweight all his life, he was miserable,” she says. 

“Me and him joined Slimming World, he lost five stone and I lost two.” 

Devastatingly, within months of the pair shedding monumental pounds, Sharne’s dad tragically passed away due to a brain hemorrhage. 

For Sharne, this shattering blow to her family dynamic caused her to spiral regarding her eating habits. 

She comments: “I was emotionally eating and got massive – my hair stopped growing and I couldn’t get up the stairs without being out of breath. 

“I was in pain every day from being overweight, I had a really bad back and sore knees.” 

Consumed with grief, Sharne felt like a shell of herself both mentally and physically. 

“I became a bit of a recluse, I didn’t like going out with friends and you don’t want to admit that.” 

It was only after the birth of her son Braydon that the reality of her situation began to settle in, forcing her to change the trajectory of her well-being and career. 

“We found out when (my dad) passed away that we actually have not got many pictures of him and it was because he didn’t really like his weight. 

“I noticed that I’d started doing that and avoiding the camera, and I desperately didn’t want to do that in my son’s life. 

“I wanted to be more present and involved so that he’s got memories with me. 

“For his first birthday I wanted to be in the pictures, so I set a mission; I was like: ‘Right, I’ve got a year to turn it around.’

Sharne returned to Slimming World shortly after her child’s birth; though juggling motherhood and physical and mental fitness was tough, she managed to lose five and a half stone in ten months. 

Though the weight loss produced a surge in Sharne’s confidence and eased the body burdens which had plagued her for years, she felt compelled to share her expertise with others in Greater Manchester. 

“In the April before his (first) birthday I opened my first Slimming World group. 

“I thought I could reach out and help people and show that you don’t need to starve to lose weight. 

“I knew that Slimming World worked because I’d witnessed it first-hand. 

“We (Sharne and her dad) could enjoy food and still lose weight, and we didn’t need to be miserable” 

Sharne currently oversees a multitude of groups across the Salford and Greater Manchester area, helping hundreds of people across the county restore their long-term relationships with food. 

The most recent group she has started in Winton is one of the area’s first and only wellbeing sessions that commences in the morning rather than the evening. 

This is in a bid to increase the accessibility of community Slimming World groups as Sharne found that many people struggle attending later sessions due to full-time jobs and childcare.  

“One of my big beliefs was that if people start cutting out different food groups then it’s only going to be a matter of time before they’re struggling” she says, “It’s (all about) a healthy balance. 

“I think the biggest misconception with the fitness and food side of things is that you can’t possibly eat food and lose weight, but ultimately it’s about having them in moderation. 

“Seeing them (the group members) changing their lives is my favourite thing about it. 

“I had one recently who’s going on a cruise – previously, she would’ve dreaded it, and now she’s loving putting on her dresses because she feels amazing in herself.” 

Recently, the Eccles mum faced an unimaginable hardship when her fiance, Nikki Smallwood, fought through a rare form of Hodgkins-Lymphoma. 

During his cancer battle, despite having to work harder to maintain a healthy mind and body, Sharne never lost the ability to appreciate and nourish her body, and has this advice for those who may be struggling to do so around this time of year: 

“The biggest thing is being kind to yourself, there’s no point in beating yourself up. 

“Forgive yourself, move on and continue to make those small changes.”