I lost 11st thanks to Mounjaro but hate my apron belly & saggy boobs – I need strangers to help me pay for op to fix it
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A MUM who lost 11st with the help of Mounjaro says she "struggles to look at herself naked" after she was left with saggy skin.
Jade Stalker, 36, weighed 22st 8lbs at her heaviest, after decades of scoffing crisps, Chinese takeaways and piled-high plates of spaghetti Bolognese.
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Jade Stalker shed an incredible 11st with help from Mounjaro
Credit: SWNS
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But mum Jade has been left with saggy skin that she hates
Credit: SWNS
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She tipped the scales at 22st 8lbs at her heaviest
Credit: SWNS
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Jade has launched an online fundraiser so she can have the excess skin surgically removed
Credit: SWNS
Just before her daughter, now five, started nursery in May 2023, Jade was concerned she'd be seen as one of the "fat mums" at the school gates - and made a bid to lose 10st.
After splashing out £3,500 on flights to Turkey and gastric sleeve surgery, and starting Mounjaro, Jade dropped nearly 30in from her waist and feels "fantastic."
But she admits there has been a major drawback when it comes to her weight loss.
Now 11st 8lbs, she says she's been left with an "overhang on her stomach" and "saggy" boobs due to excess skin, and added: "The loose skin makes me depressed and I struggle to look at myself naked sometimes."
She has launched on online fundraising page to raise £6,000 for surgery to remove excess asking from her stomach, breasts and inner thighs.
Jade, a telecommunications engineer from Sauchie, Scotland, said: "My skin now is so loose, when I get in the bath, it ripples.
"I have quite a large overhang on my stomach - and my boobs are saggy, despite my doctors telling me they'd get smaller after losing all the weight.
"My partner loves me the way I am - she doesn't care about all that - but I think when you're in a relationship, you do want to look good for your partner."
Jade, who wears men's clothes and started at a 58in waist, says she's never been bothered about her size.
She'd have four ham rolls for breakfast, two bags of crisps as a snack, a Tesco meal deal for lunch and a "man-size" plate of spaghetti Bolognese with garlic bread for dinner.
I'm so happy with my Mounjaro body after dropping 4 stone but there's a side effect I hate & trolls say I 'cheated'
But becoming a mum changed her view.
Wanting to teach her daughter "what a healthy body looks like" she booked flights and a gastric sleeve operation in Turkey, in May 2023.
She could barely eat three-quarters of a burger, after the surgery and lost 5st 8lb in a year.
But she said the operation hadn't done enough to cure her "head hunger," so began a course of Mounjaro via an online pharmacy in October 2024.
"The only thing that made me less mentally hungry was Mounjaro," she said.
"Being on it is like walking through Tesco when you've just had a huge meal."
Everything you need to know about fat jabs
Weight loss jabs are all the rage as studies and patient stories reveal they help people shed flab at almost unbelievable rates, as well as appearing to reduce the risk of serious diseases.
Wegovy – a modified version of type 2 diabetes drug Ozempic – and Mounjaro are the leading weight loss injections used in the UK.
Wegovy, real name semaglutide, has been used on the NHS for years while Mounjaro (tirzepatide) is a newer and more powerful addition to the market.
Mounjaro accounts for most private prescriptions for weight loss and is set to join Wegovy as an NHS staple this year.
How do they work?
The jabs work by suppressing your appetite, making you eat less so your body burns fat for energy instead and you lose weight.
They do this my mimicking a hormone called GLP-1, which signals to the brain when the stomach is full, so the drugs are officially called GLP-1 receptor agonists.
They slow down digestion and increase insulin production, lowering blood sugar, which is why they were first developed to treat type 2 diabetes in which patients' sugar levels are too high.
Can I get them?
NHS prescriptions of weight loss drugs, mainly Wegovy and an older version called Saxenda (chemical name liraglutide), are controlled through specialist weight loss clinics.
Typically a patient will have to have a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or higher, classifying them as medically obese, and also have a weight-related health condition such as high blood pressure.
GPs generally do not prescribe the drugs for weight loss.
Private prescribers offer the jabs, most commonly Mounjaro, to anyone who is obese (BMI of 30+) or overweight (BMI 25-30) with a weight-related health risk.
Private pharmacies have been rapped for handing them out too easily and video calls or face-to-face appointments are now mandatory to check a patient is being truthful about their size and health.
Are there any risks?
Yes – side effects are common but most are relatively mild.
Around half of people taking the drug experience gut issues, including sickness, bloating, acid reflux, constipation and diarrhoea.
Dr Sarah Jarvis, GP and clinical consultant at patient.info, said: 'One of the more uncommon side effects is severe acute pancreatitis, which is extremely painful and happens to one in 500 people.'
Other uncommon side effects include altered taste, kidney problems, allergic reactions, gallbladder problems and hypoglycemia.
Evidence has so far been inconclusive about whether the injections are damaging to patients' mental health.
Figures obtained by The Sun show that, up to January 2025, 85 patient deaths in the UK were suspected to be linked to the medicines.
About half a million Brits use weight loss drugs - and the number is expected to double in the next year.
Mounjaro works by suppressing your appetite, making people feel fuller for longer.
The injections are licensed for patients with type 2 diabetes and to assist those who are clinically obese (with a Body Mass Index of 30 or over).
One jab is administered each week but the duration is dependent on someone's weight.
Jade lost a further 5st 2lb thanks to the jabs. She noticed "saggy skin" early into her weight loss journey but initially thought it was "fat" she "still had to lose".
She added: "I'd say my most conscious areas are my stomach, my boobs and my inner thighs - although I'm quite a tomboy so I wear long trousers most of the time.
"I've held off from doing a GoFundMe, but it's getting to the point where it's bothering me so much - even if one or two people could donate, it would be a huge help."
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