Woman Shares How She Dropped from a Dress Size 20 to 8 to Save Her Husband's Life

Sam Cadwallader had tried many diets, but none work. A life-threatening situation forced her to take stock of her life and lose the weight to save her husband.

Her husband Paul was diagnosed with kidney failure and needed a transplant as a matter of urgency. However, none of the donors was a match.

Doctor's informed Sam that she was a match to donate a kidney, but she had to lose weight first. And so she did.

The 35-year-old mother-of-four dropped more than 40 kilograms, explaining later that all she lacked was the motivation to stick to a diet.

Pauls condition and the prospect of saving his life provided her with all the information she needed, saying that her "life fell apart" when she learned of his diagnosis:

"While it was a terrifying time for the family, it gave me the kick-start I needed to really change — and now I’m slimmer, healthier and have my husband still here with me."

Before going on a diet, Sam would head four slices of peanut butter on toast for breakfast, followed by a ham sandwich, crips and two bars of chocolate for lunch.

Dinner consisted of chicken pieces, baked and chips, and she would snack on at least ten biscuits per day, plus extra crisps and chocolate.

All that changed after Paul's diagnosis. Sam switched to yogurt and fruit for breakfast, followed by a tuna salad for lunch.

Dinner consisted of salmon with mixed vegetables and when in the mood for a snack, Sam would reach for the Slimming World Hi-Fi bars instead of chocolate and crisps.

If Sam didn't lose the weight, Paul would have had to go on dialysis again and settle in for the long wait for a donor from the transplant list.

Sam knew she could drop the weight and signed up at Slimming world the same day. At that time, she weighed 118 kilograms. She admits that it wasn't easy:

"It wasn’t an easy ride. I developed an infection afterward, and it was painful for us both, but the main thing was that Paul recovered well. I lost another stone and a half, and I’m still going. I’m now a size 12 and feel amazing."

In a similar case, Joan McComas saved her husband's of 43 years' life when she donated her kidney. Her husband Bill joked:

"I look at it this way: She owed me the kidney because 42 years ago, I gave her my heart."

Joan said she would do it again in a heartbeat. Not only does she now get to spend her retirement years with Bill, but as aspected, his health improved drastically:

“[After the transplant] the change in him was like night and day. I finally got my husband back.”