I went from performing on stage to sitting for hours doing papers — and it took a toll. I developed this thing… every time I was working on my papers, I was on Jammie Dodgers. And so of course, I turned into a Jammie Dodger.
My clothes didn’t fit. I just felt rubbish. Really rubbish. Later I found a trainer. He looked good himself, but he wasn’t trained. Even if I started to look good, I ended up with issues in my joints. I trained with someone else — she was lovely — but she never held me accountable. I trained, then baked her a chocolate cake. I’d eat all day with my desk buddy. It was chocolate, biscuits, cakes. There was very little movement. Then my knees started hurting.
One day I went to a conference and put on a pair of trousers — and I couldn’t breathe. The whole day I couldn’t sit down. I stood there pretending everything was fine. I knew I had to do something. I didn’t like how I looked anymore, my self esteem was at its lowest and I was suffocating with misery.