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The Irish Sun
38 minutes ago
- Entertainment
- The Irish Sun
I got a £15k body makeover paid for by my ex – now it's Christmas everyday for my NEW man
CHECKING the weather forecast, Melissa Jolly let out a sigh. While full sunshine and 7 Melissa Jolly used her divorce settlement to resculpt her whole body Credit: Bauer Media 7 She says she was sick of covering up her loose skin and 'spaniel's ears' Credit: Bauer Media 7 Melissa loves showing off her new £15,000 makeover Credit: Bauer Media 'I dreaded summer coming round each year,' she admits. 'I'd cover up as much as possible, but in the heat, it was impossible.' Previously happy with her looks, Melissa admits that since becoming a mum she had become increasingly self-conscious about her appearance. 'After my eldest, Lucca, was born when I was 20, my belly and boobs had changed for the worse,' she says. Read More on Real Lives 'Then I'd had Annabel, and after 'We'd 'While I loved that my body had kept my babies safe, I hated how it looked. It felt unrecognisable to me.' Over the years, Melissa, from Manchester, had tried everything she could to try to lose the flab, from Most read in Fabulous But at 29, Melissa was still a size 16. 'It was my I spent £75k to turn myself into a 'yummy mummy' - not only am I now more confident in a bikini, but a better parent too 'I tucked my saggy tum into big Bridget Jones-style pants while my 34E spaniel ears would be hoicked up in a bra. 'When I went for drinks with friends, they'd be in teeny co-ords and body-con dresses. 'I always wished I could do the same but instead, I donned a frumpy shirt dress to cover up my baggy tum.' Shopping was out of the question for the mum too. 'I couldn't cope with changing room mirrors,' she admits 'So, I'd live in oversized tees and big jumpers, two sizes too large. 'I'd moan to my husband that I looked like a woman in my 50s and gradually became more depressed about the way I looked.' Then, when Melissa's granddad passed away suddenly it made her take a new outlook at her life. 7 Melissa finally feels comfortable wearing a bikini Credit: Bauer 7 She says that her makeover has made her a better mum to her kids Credit: Bauer Media 'I missed him dearly and it made me think that life was too short to live my life this way,' she says. 'I wasn't happy in our marriage, so I moved out and we got divorced.' The former couple stayed civil and took it in turns to take care of the kids but Melissa says that her body hang ups were still taking a toll. 'I'd always put my kids first,' she says. 'If they needed something, of course I'd go without. That's just what mums do. 'But I realised, I have to do something for myself.' Melissa began looking into surgery to have her excess skin removed. 'It was pricey, but I was investing in me,' she says. 'Luckily, I had a pot of money left over from the divorce settlement.' She came across a clinic with great reviews online, the Pall Mall clinic in Manchester. When a friend went in for surgery and came out looking 'fabulous' Melissa decided it was time to take the bull by the horns. After a consultation with Dr Prabad at Pall Mall, she booked in for a breast enlargement with uplift, tummy tuck, liposuction, and muscle repair on her stomach. And it didn't come cheap with Melissa's final bill coming in at £15,000, a price she was happy to pay. 'I wanted to make sure I was in safe hands,' she explains. 'I only told a few people close to me what I had planned because I didn't need unwanted opinions. 'My friend Steph agreed to help out with the kids and change dressings. 'Luckily, she was a nurse, and so was my mum. My stomach was full of butterflies as I was wheeled into the operating theatre Melissa Jolly 'They'd take care of me while I rested up after the operation.' Only Steph had another idea of how she could help her friend out. 'One day, about two weeks before my surgery, she suggested that I go on a date with her brother,' says Melissa. 'I'd met her brother Will a few times, and he seemed a good sort. 'But we didn't know each other well. Still, we went on a date and had a few drinks and he was easy to chat to. 'When I explained about my surgery, he looked me up and down and told me I didn't need to have it done. 'It was sweet but I wasn't doing this for any man. This was all for me.' The pair began dating and Melissa says that she still felt self-conscious about her figure. 'I felt self-conscious getting undressed in front of Will but he made it clear he fancied me rotten anyway,' she says. 'Even with my boobs hanging down round my middle!' When the day of the operation rolled around, Melissa arranged for her two eldest to stay with her mum for the weekend while the two youngest were at their dad's so she could recover in peace. Will joined Melissa at the clinic where the reality of what she was undertaking dawned on her. 'My stomach was full of butterflies as I was wheeled into the operating theatre,' she says. Different types of weight loss surgery For many people who are overweight or obese, they may feel they have exhausted options for weight loss and want to try something more drastic. Weight loss surgery may be available to them on the NHS if they have a BMI over 40 and have a condition that may be improved with weight loss, such as diabetes. But the availability of these procedures largely depends on where you live in the UK. People can also pay privately. Weight loss surgery is a common and safe procedure. However, as with any operation, there are risks, such as a blood clot, a band slipping out of place, a stomach infection, gallstones and excessive skin from weight loss that in most cases, won't be removed on the NHS. In all of the following options, the space in the stomach is reduced, therefore a person feels fuller after eating less food. They lose weight as a result. However, it is necessary for them to also learn good eating habits and have a healthy balanced diet, too. Gastric bypass The stomach is divided into two using a staple. The smaller part is connected to the intestines, effectively cutting how much space there is in the stomach by half. The operation takes around two hours. Gastric band A band is tied around the top of the stomach and inflated so that it tightens. The operation takes three to four hours. Gastric balloon Patients swallow an empty balloon which is attached to a tube. The balloon is filled with water via the tube, taking around 20 minutes, so that it fills around two-thirds of the stomach space. Sleeve gastrectomy Around 80 per cent of the stomach is removed in surgery to make it much smaller and a sleeve shape. The operation takes between one and three hours. 'But I pictured my brand-new body as everything turned black. 'When I woke up, I looked down and there, under bandages, were my new perky 34G boobs. 'They were mountains compared to what I was used to and while I couldn't see my flat tum, I could certainly feel it.' Thrilled but battered and bruised, Melissa recovered at the clinic with Will by her side before she was eventually sent home. A week later, Melissa's drains were removed from her chest and with the help of Steph and her mum within another week she was on the mend. 'My bandages were off and, like magic, I was a whole new woman,' Melissa says. With a new found confidence, Melissa bought brand-new outfits to accentuate her size 14 curves. 'When I pulled on a body-con dress with a huge cut-out over the midriff, I gasped,' she admits. 'Will took me out to a bar to celebrate, six weeks after my surgery. 'I felt spectacular and when I nipped to the ladies, even people I didn't know were full of lovely comments. 'I didn't care what blokes thought but all those gorgeous girls fawning over my figure was the cherry on top of the cake.' With my new-found confidence, it's Christmas every day for Will in the bedroom now too Melissa Jolly Seven months on from surgery, Melissa says her kids are reaping the rewards of her new positive outlook. 'I'm full of beans, taking them on day trips and even swimming,' she says. 'We'd never gone to the pool together before. 'And on the school run, I'll be in little co-ords, proudly showing my shape.' And it's not just the kids who are benefiting. 'With my new-found confidence, it's Christmas every day for Will in the bedroom now too,' says Melissa. 'This summer, I'll be proudly wearing bikinis by the pool. 'We need to ditch the stigma around 'mummy makeovers'. 'It's OK to want to get your groove back after having children. 'I feel sexy and empowered – you can't put a price on that.' 7 Melissa has loved being able to shop for stylish new looks Credit: Bauer 7 Melissa says that her sex life with Will has greatly improved since her makeover Credit: Bauer Media
The Spinoff
01-07-2025
- Health
- The Spinoff
The odds of the new suicide prevention action plan succeeding are slim to none
To truly reduce suicide rates in Aotearoa, we need to think beyond rehashed policies and one-size-fits-all prevention tactics, writes counsellor Anna Sophia. This post contains discussion of suicide: please take care. For a list of resources that can help if you or someone you know is feeling suicidal, see below. When someone close to you dies by suicide, the space-time continuum cracks open. One moment, you're living your ordinary life; the next, you've been sucked into a vortex. You replay the graphic details of their death over and over. You tell yourself that if you cycle through it one more time you might discover a glitch in the chaotic world system that could bring them back. Soon enough the painful reality sinks in. They made a choice and they are not returning. In Aotearoa, a dark cloud descends and takes away more people each year than car accidents. Psychiatrist and author Kay Redfield Jamison, in Night Falls Fast (1999), describes suicidal despair as a complete loss of hope accompanied by overwhelming psychological pain. People in this state believe that nothing will ever improve. They feel trapped, alone and unable to see any other options. The aftermath of losing someone by suicide is fraught with flashbacks and self-questioning. It blows apart the layered veneers of your life. While you do eventually rebuild, one fragile piece at a time, you always carry with you two unanswerable questions: 1) Why did they do it? 2) Was there anything I could have done to stop it? Over the course of my six decades of life, I have experienced more than my share of this aftermath personally and professionally. In 1990, when my father was 56 years old, he killed himself. It was a cold, wet night in early June. He didn't leave a note, just a couple of TAB tickets with 'good tickets' scrawled on the back. (Yes we checked them. They were not winners.) My father was a heavy drinker and a gambling man, a New Zealand Navy veteran who had joined up as a teenager just in time for dispatch to the Korean War. When he wasn't drinking, even on blue sky days he lay morosely on the couch in a darkened room, chain smoking Pall Mall filters and not speaking. Thirty-five years ago, men like my father did not talk about their feelings, let alone seek counselling. In many parts of Aotearoa, not much has changed. When I was nine years old we lived in Te Awamutu and I attended the Catholic school there. (The Finn brothers did too but they are older than me.) That year two of my class mates lost their fathers to suicide. In the 1990s a university friend died in a mental health ward shortly after her baby was born. Later that decade my former university lecturer, a person of immense talent took her own life, and two years ago my long-time friend Paula died in a suspected suicide. As a counsellor, I have listened to many stories from people who have lost loved ones to suicide and from others who had either attempted to take their own life or seriously considered it. Last week, the latest suicide prevention action plan was published. It looks similar to its predecessors with a few extra embellishments. My father loved horse racing so I'll use his language: it's a rank outsider, the odds of winning are slim to none, and I'm not betting my money on it. In 2008, MP Jim Anderton, whose daughter died by suicide, said: 'We are already fortunate in New Zealand to have people with a range of expertise who are committed to suicide prevention. And we have a variety of initiatives happening right now and contributing to suicide prevention across the country.' Seventeen years later nothing has changed and suicide remains one of our most complex health and social issues. Suicide is an emotive subject and it remains difficult to have open and transparent conversations about it. Media restrictions, a historical residue of whakama and sheer discomfort means bereaved people are often met with silence. I think the silence is the inability of many people to hold the horror and complexity of this kind of death. Alongside shock, grief and overwhelming sadness, there can also be anger and sometimes feelings of relief. In the year ended June 30, 2024, just over 600 people died by suicide. If each had 50 people in their circle – whānau, friends, colleagues, classmates – then 30,000 people this year are carrying that loss and asking the same questions I did. Why did they do it? Was there anything I could have done to stop it? If we want to reduce suicide rates in Aotearoa, we need to think beyond rehashed policies that paper over the cracks in our socioeconomic system. Community initiatives often flicker into life then burn out due to underfunding or exhaustion. In the 2000s, Rick Stevenson biked around the country as a part of his organisation Project Hope, launched after his son Mike's suicide. He wanted mental health education to be mandatory in all secondary schools. I knew Mike. When I dropped out of high school and worked as a cook in a weed-spraying gang, Mike was part of the crew. He and I stayed up late drinking and dreaming up future selves. He was contemplative and intelligent, and his death cut short a future filled with possibilities. If I gathered everyone I know who has died by suicide into a room, the only thing they'd have in common would be their self-inflicted death. One-size-fits-all prevention tactics won't work. A deeper, more nuanced approach is required. Late last year I wrote about the community counselling centre in Marton, in the Southern Rangitīkei district where I work as a manager and counsellor. Oranga Tamariki, with which we had previously enjoyed a long relationship, responded to a mandate from government to cut its spending, and our funding – along with that of similar organisations – was slashed. While the Counselling Centre is unlikely to be on the receiving end of funding from the new suicide prevention initiatives, there is no doubt that in our corner of rural Aotearoa we are stopping people taking their own lives. We've been keeping accurate statistics for 26 years. Most of our clients are depressed. Over 50% are referred from local GP clinics and often the referral notes will say, 'Has suicidal thoughts but no plan to action.' We have on hand evaluations stating the counselling they received made a difference to their lives. Although our organisation is small, it reflects the broader population of Aotearoa. Similar community-based initiatives exist across the country, doing critical preventative work in the mental health realm. After my article was published, local National MP Suze Redmayne visited the centre. We drank coffee and talked and she appeared impressed by our service. She said she would chat with mental health minister Matt Doocey and maybe organise for him to visit us. To date, I haven't heard from either of them. Repeated emails to Oranga Tamariki asking them to restore our funding have also gone unanswered. Our service is still running thanks to philanthropic community support but we have had to reduce our availability from five days a week to four. The Auditor General's report released last month sharply criticised Oranga Tamariki's cuts, noting poor documentation, late decisions and inadequate understanding of the impact of the cuts on children and whanau. How can we have faith in a government that on one hand takes away proven preventative mental healthcare funding and on the other claims it can reduce something as complex as suicide rates? While I strongly back therapeutic support, especially free counselling, I also take a broader sociological view of improving overall mental health and wellbeing. Suicide prevention isn't just a matter of services or slogans. It demands that we reckon with how we live – as individuals and as a society. John Weaver's Sorrows of a Century: Interpreting Suicide in New Zealand (2014) is a powerful exploration of 12,000 coroners' reports from 1900–2000. He concludes that suicide must be understood within wider social forces: economic insecurity, war, illness, trauma. He advocates for 'deep prevention': long-term investment in meaningful employment, cradle-to-grave healthcare, and far-reaching education. He describes these ideas as 'utopian' but necessary, and emphasises extensive social action to improve lives before they slump into despair about the future. Since the book's publication, new stressors have emerged: a devastating pandemic, runaway technology, climate crises, and the psychological burden of constant global violence. In Aotearoa, the cost of living has risen dramatically. The cost of renting even substandard accommodation is taking a huge portion of household income. Every day I walk past long lines of hungry people queueing for food at a local food rescue. The government's suicide prevention plan also doesn't reflect on deeper holistic considerations – like our relationship to Papatūānuku. Contemporary capitalist society has severed us from the whenua and desensitised us from knowing the deeper parts of ourselves which then impacts our relationships with each other. Many people I meet – not just clients – struggle to name what they are truly feeling or to even locate that feeling within their own body. Capitalism demands our compliance and silence. Even our bereavement policy – three days' leave – suggests a culture that minimises death and grief. How can you return to your workplace bereaved by any death, and especially suicide, after just three days? To work with solutions for just an individual is pointless, and no plan, however well-meaning, will reduce suicide numbers if we are blind to the stresses of the socioeconomic and ecological environments where despair festers. As sociologist Alison Pugh writes, 'we are living through a crisis not just of loneliness but of human invisibility'. I haven't lost hope. Not because of any single plan, but because of the people I meet each day doing their best to heal and create fulfilling lives for themselves and their whanau. This is where suicide prevention truly lives – not in glossy plans, policies and shallow governmental rhetoric, but in community, care and the slow, quiet work of rebuilding what we've lost. TAUTOKO Suicide Crisis Helpline – 0508 828 865
Daily Mirror
14-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Tanya Bardsley horrified as '20-year-old filler scraped out' during face lift
EXCLUSIVE: Tanya Bardsley has revealed that while under the knife for a cosmetic procedure, her surgeon dragged out two-decade-old filler from her face, leaving her with a new look Tanya Bardsley had 20 year old filler scraped out from her face during a surgical procedure. The former model and reality star has never shied away from discussing her surgical enhancements and believes people in the public eye should be more open about work they've had done. Last year, Tanya had a mid-face lift after noticing her "jowls just dropped" while dealing with perimenopause symptoms and had initially planned to have a full facelift. But her surgeon warned her against this and stated she only needed minor work done. In the past, Tanya, 44, has had filler injected into her face, but had no idea that it lay dormant in the areas it was injected. "I started looking like a bulldog," she said of her face before going under the knife. Speaking exclusively to the Mirror, Tanya added: "I just thought 'I'm not having this anymore, I feel terrible and I can't control it, but I can control these chops' I'd heard great things about Mr Rao – I didn't have the full face lift. "I went in saying I wanted the full and he said I needed the mid. There's only so much filler, I was starting to look a bit Hey Arnold-y, so he did the mid facelift and he just sewed muscles back to where they were, so I had actual cheekbones and not just filler ones. "He was dragging out 20-year-old filler, scraping it out which was amazing. It's just like starting again – you can't keep pumping it full of filler and Mr Rao is just amazing, he did all these pre-videos and everything. I was deciding for a good year because I'm impulsive. I have to tell myself I need to wait a year now." Mr Rao at Pall Mall Medical, where Tanya had her procedure, informed her afterwards that her two-decade-old filler was "like concrete". Speaking of her perimenopausal symptoms, Tanya explained: "The skin changes, everything drops, your soul drops, your personality drops, and the jowls drop. "I was trying to control the others with hormones and stuff, but I could control lifting the face a little bit, which did lift my spirits." The model admits she was "over the moon" with the results after the treatment from Pall Mal. "You have to have your expectations, which Pall Mall are really good at." Her daughter, Gabriella, 23, had also visited Pall Mall for a breast lift but decided against it after being told the "realistic" options for the procedure. "The surgeon talked her out of it," Tanya said, adding: "Her expectations could never be achieved without certain scars." But with the rise of more people going under the knife, Tanya said: "If I want it, I'm going to have it, and if someone doesn't want it, that's fine, it's up to them. I think women should support women. I'm always 100 per cent open about everything that I have done. I'm not a gatekeeper, and I don't want girls thinking, 'Why's her face like that and mine's not?' I want to be open – I've had it lifted and a bit chopped off." Away from surgery, despite appearing on The Real Housewives of Cheshire, Tanya and her family recently starred in their own ITV reality show, The Bardo Bunch, which has been commissioned by Hayu to be streamed across the globe. "I'm so grateful," she said of the news. She added: "I did a happy dance. It's just gone down a storm, I was panicking, I knew everyone would love my family as much as I do but I thought 'What if everyone hates it? What if everyone hates my family? What if everyone hates me?' Then I thought 'Are my kids going to hate me? Are they gonna get trolled?' but everyone loves it. "Every single comment, I've not had one bad comment. I can't even tell you what it means to me and the family." Although it's on the same platform as The Kardashians, Tanya admits her family are quite different to the Los Angeles natives. Her husband, Macclesfield FC assistant manager Phil Bardsley, would "never" film with Tanya on Housewives. "It took a long time to get him on it, and he still cringes when he watches himself. I think he's really good," she said, adding that Phil became more relaxed during filming. "I think there's plenty more for Phil to come."
The Sun
14-06-2025
- Climate
- The Sun
Royal fans brave the rain as early birds line Pall Mall for Trooping the Colour with Princess Kate & kids to arrive
SOGGY royal fans are already lining the Pall Mall to watch this year's Trooping the Colour celebration for the King's birthday. Many braved the early morning rain to queue for a good view - bedecked in Union Jack flags and crowns. 8 8 8 8 8 Fans came prepared with umbrellas and rain coats after the Met Office issued storm warnings, as the UK is lashed by floods, thunder and lightning. There will be an incredible ceremony at the Horse Guard Parade and an airshow by the Red Arrows. King Charles and Queen Camilla will soon arrive and wave to the crowds from a carriage. Following them will be the horse-riding trio Princess Anne, Prince Edward and Prince William. Kate Middleton and the kids - Prince George, 11, Princess Charlotte, nine, and naughty Prince Louis, six - are yet to arrive. The Coldstream Guards are on display for the world to see, dressed in full military regalia, alongside a huge number of supporting staff. Over 1,400 officers and soldiers, 400 musicians, 200 horses and 10 bands are taking part in the Trooping the Colour event. King Charles asked royals to wear black armbands in remembrance of those killed in the Air India plane tragedy. Those wearing the bands will be the Prince of Wales, Colonel of the Welsh Guards, the Princess Royal, Colonel Blues and Royals, and the Duke of Edinburgh, Colonel Scots Guards. A spokesperson said this is "a mark of respect for the lives lost, the families in mourning and all the communities affected by this awful tragedy". There will also be a minute's silence at the event following Thursday's devastating crash which killed at least 241 people. The parade today is almost five months before King Charles' actual birthday. Charles was born on November 14, though the reigning British monarch has two birthdays. The sovereign's birthday, which is celebrated through the Trooping the Colour, usually falls in the summer months. Notably, the King's youngest son and his family are not present. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were not invited last year either. The late Queen used to invite the extended Royal Family onto the balcony, but this was later changed so that only working royals are allowed. Trooping the Colour dates back to the 17th Century, when it was first held by King Charles II. The ceremony takes its name from each regiment showing off their battle colours, which made them easier to identify when at war. Fans can either stream the event or attend live, though Central London is expected to be extremely busy. 8 8 8
North Wales Chronicle
03-06-2025
- Business
- North Wales Chronicle
Demand for oral nicotine pouches growing fast, British American Tobacco says
The Velo brand is growing the fastest within its so-called 'new category', which includes non-tobacco products like vapes, the business said. The pouches come in a variety of flavours and strengths and are designed to be placed between the gum and lip so nicotine can be absorbed through the mouth. Tadeu Marroco, BAT's chief executive, said he was 'excited' by the launch of loyalty scheme Velo Plus in the US. 'Globally, Velo continues to gain volume share in this fast-growing category, driven by the US and our continued leadership position in AME (Americas & Europe),' he said, highlighting a strong performance in the UK, Scandinavia and Poland. BAT said it was expecting full-year revenues to grow between 1% and 2% following a stronger-than-expected half-year performance. It had previously forecast growth of 1%. The company continues to make the bulk of its sales from traditional cigarettes, which include the Pall Mall and Camel brands. It said the segment remained 'under pressure' with the volume of sales about 9% lower across the industry over the year to date, but that it was gaining market share for brands including Lucky Strike. Mr Marroco said BAT's vape sales were being affected by 'illicit' products in the US and Canada, which were driving down sales of legal devices. BAT has previously warned that customers turning to illegal disposable vapes was hurting sales of its own vape product, Vuse, and urged a government crackdown on the market.
