Suffolk transgender woman sheds 5st after coming out
A transgender woman who ballooned to 22st after comfort eating to cope with being trapped in the wrong body has shed almost a quarter of her body weight, after finally coming out gave her the confidence to get in shape.
Jennifer Lees, 31, from Suffolk, who was born a boy named Mark, identified as a woman but had a lifestyle that revolved around football, beer and video games.
She sought solace in pizza, sweets and chocolate in her years of living a lie, but has turned her life around - and dropped 5st - after embracing her true identity boosted her confidence.
Jennifer, who now revels in her love of shopping, karaoke, and all things glamorous, is well on her way to achieving her target weight of 15st, which will allow her to safely undergo gender reassignment surgery.
Jennifer Lees, who was born Mark, ballooned to 22st due to the stress of 'living a lie'
She's since dropped six dress sizes and is working towards gender reassignment surgery
Jennifer, 31, from Suffolk, says she comfort ate in order to cope with feeling as though she was trapped in the wrong body
Jennifer had been terrified of her family's reaction, but finally came out in October 2015.
She started hormone replacement therapy a year later, but was told she'd need to lose 7st in order to reach a safe weight to undergo gender reassignment surgery.
Eight months later, Jennifer has slimmed down to 17st 2lbs, going from a dress size 28 to a 16.
And she said she's gone from a 'shy shut-in' to a social butterfly.
'Coming out and knowing that I need to lose weight to have my surgery were exactly the inspiration I needed to get in shape,' said the supermarket assistant, who lives in Ipswich.
The supermarket assistant, who lives in Ipswich, says she has made lots of new friends since embracing her true identity
These days Jennifer is a social butterfly who loves shopping, karaoke, and all things glam
Jennifer weighed 22st at her biggest, but says coming out gave her the motivation she needed to get healthy
As Mark, Jennifer's lifestyle revolved around beer, football and video games, but now she's embracing the real her
Jennifer has gone from being 'down' to 'determined', and says her coming out has been met with 'nothing but love'
'I'm so motivated and determined,' she said.
'It's given me that end goal that I think everyone needs when they've struggled with their weight.
'When I was living as Mark and I was at my biggest I used to just shut myself away because I was so insecure.
'I was so down that I comfort ate all the time and I was eating all the wrong stuff.
'I kept Jennifer secret and would only ever order clothes online so I could dress up at home by myself. But even then it was hard to find clothes because I was so big.'
Jennifer joined her mates at football games before coming out, but now openly pursues her true interests.
'I would go to karaoke but stand in the corner and never talked to anyone because I was so shy. Now I'm anything but shy and I've made so many friends,' she said.
'And it feels so great to be able to go out into town shopping and buy whatever I want.
'I am finally being true to myself and living life as the person I should be and always was on the inside. I just can't wait to lost another two stone and have my surgery.'
Jennifer, who was born Mark Lees, quickly realised she identified as a woman, but was terrified of her family's reaction
Jennifer said she's known she was a woman since the age of four, and couldn't understand why 'wasn't like the other girls'.
It wasn't until she was 19 that Jennifer got to be herself for the first time when her parents Susan, 68, and Richard, 71, went on holiday, and Jennifer seized the opportunity to raid her mum's wardrobe.
JENNIFER'S CLOSET COMFORT EATING... BREAKFAST: Three pieces of buttered toast (690 calories) and a very large bowl of bran flakes with semi-skimmed milk (280 calories) LUNCH: Fried chicken wrap with cheese (560 calories), two cans of Dr Pepper (300 calories) and a slice of cake (297 calories) SNACK: A big bag of Haribo sweets (547 calories) and a family bar of Cadbury chocolate (500 calories) DINNER: A 12' takeaway meat feast pizza (1,040 calories) TOTAL CALORIES: 4,214
... AND HER NEW LOOK DAILY DIET BREAKFAST: Low fat natural yoghurt with fruit (110 calories) SNACK: A punnet of grapes (150 calories) LUNCH: Baked chicken pieces (117 calories) with Uncle Ben's rice with steamed vegetables (209 calories) and a small protein yoghurt (58 calories) DINNER: Slimming World nacho cheese bake (600 calories) TOTAL CALORIES: 1,244
Despite her fears about her religious family's reaction to her transgender status, Jennifer says her transition has been 'embraced with love' by everyone around her, especially colleagues and friends.
Just days after starting hormone replacement therapy in October 2016, Jennifer joined Slimming World and swapped her once fatty and sugary diet for lean home-cooked meals.
Now thanks to her incredible weight loss, Jennifer, who was named Slimming World's Greatest Loser for 2017, is just two stone away from the surgery that will allow her to live her life in a body that reflects the woman she has always been.
'Me coming out has been embraced with nothing but love. It's amazing - I'm so lucky,' she said.