Glyn: I remember watching Gillian through the
car window, walking down to the beach on her own,
and suddenly truly understanding the impact that
my weight was having on our lives. Gillian and I had
driven to the Suffolk coast just to get out of the house –
it was the first time we’d been out in ages. ‘Go on, love,’
I told her. ‘You go for a stroll.’ There was no point me
even getting out of the car, as I could hardly stand,
so Gillian walked on her own. As I sat watching her,
I felt terribly sad. Not only had my 35st weight been
wrecking my life, it was ruining my wife’s, too.
Gillian: I’d persuaded Glyn to buy a bigger car just
so we could get out of the house together. Now, as
I strolled along the sand alone, I felt lost.
Glyn: Then, not long after that day, came the second
wake-up call. I’d agreed to having a wheelchair and
we’d had one specially made for my size. Just before
Christmas, we popped to Norwich to get some
presents. On the way back to the car, there was a
slight slope that we hadn’t noticed on the way down.
Gillian was trying to push me, but it was impossible.
Gillian: I was literally at a standstill – I couldn’t
move Glyn’s chair another inch. I started having
an asthma attack and reached for my inhaler.
Glyn: As I looked around in desperation, a man
smoking outside a shop sneered at me. Then, out of
nowhere, a mother and daughter appeared. ‘We saw
you struggling, can we help?’ they asked. It took both
of them, plus Gillian, all pushing together to get me
back to the car. I was so grateful for their help, at the
same time as being mortified, and worried for Gillian.
Gillian: We’d just moved to Suffolk and had bought
a bungalow as Glyn could no longer manage to get
upstairs. I’d made sure to empty all the rooms of
anything sharp just in case he fell.
Glyn: It was heartbreaking. I was 62 and Gillian
had become my carer: helping me out of bed and
doing everything round the house. I also had a nurse
come in to wash me and tend my sores – I couldn’t
stand for Gillian to do that. I was in constant pain,
and on medication for high blood pressure, type 2
diabetes, chronic sleep apnoea and arthritis, as well
as antidepressants. Our world had shrunk to the four
walls of our home and that made me feel angry.
Gillian: I loved Glyn and wanted to care for him, but
I also felt powerless to change our situation. And,Meet Glyn and Gillian Woodward, Slimming World’s
Couple of the Year 2018. Together, they share how they
lost 24st between them and started enjoying life again
‘Losing weight
brought us closer’
trapped in the house, my own weight crept
up. I’d always turned to food when I’d
needed comfort and the more we had to
stay at home, the more I ate.
Glyn: Unlike Gillian, my weight had always
been an issue for me, even as a small child.
By the time we got married, when I was
23, I weighed 19st. I felt like I was never full
and would snack throughout the day.
I particularly liked cheese and often had
a doorstep cheese sandwich an hour
after my dinner, or a cheeseboard with
a few glasses of wine. With my weight
going up by the year, I went to the GP
repeatedly for help. Finally, he referred
me for weight loss surgery as a last
resort. Then, just weeks before the
op, I cancelled it. I wanted to change
my lifelong relationship with food
myself. I just didn’t know how.
Gillian: In the end, it was our
move to Suffolk in 2012 that
changed everything.
Glyn: During my first appointment
with our new GP, I was shocked to
discover I weighed 35st. But instead
of surgery, this time I was offered
12 weeks’ free membership of
a weight loss group.
Gillian: That’s when I suggested
Slimming World and said that I’d
go, too. One of my old bosses had
done really well on it, so I thought
it could work for us.
Glyn: I agreed to give the Food
Optimising a go, but said to Gillian there was no way
I was going to group. I could barely leave the house
and I hated the way people looked at me. I know now
that I would have been welcomed in my wheelchair;
at the time, though, I feared I’d be humiliated.
Gillian: So I came up with a plan. I’d join group and
go on my own, as long as Glyn made me a promise.
Glyn: She made me swear only to eat what she made
me, no extra cheese sandwiches! I agreed, but I
wasn’t hopeful. Gillian threw herself into it, completely
overhauling our kitchen with all the basics needed toI weighed
around 35st
and could
barely leave
the house. I felt
heartbroken
that Gillian
had to act
as my carer100 SLIMMING WORLD MAGAZINE