A YOUNG woman who got stuck on a water slide when she was at her heaviest has gone on to lose almost half her body weight and reverse the effects of liver disease.

Isabelle Kennedy has been revealed as slimmer of the year after managing to shed more than nine stone.

The 18-year-old was 15 when she was diagnosed with liver disease and weighed 20st 11lbs at the time.

She had started gaining weight when she was four.

Her mum Su consulted the family GP and dietitians about her increasing size.

Unfortunately, nothing they tried seemed to work and Isabelle gained more and more weight.

She would snack on chocolate and crisps for comfort-eating and her weight led to several embarrassing incidents, including getting stuck on the water slide.

Doctors offered the teenager weight loss surgery but instead she decided to slim down on her own.

Isabelle was inspired to join Slimming World in 2014 by her mother, who also planned to lose weight and had started going to a local group.

Isabelle, from Bexhill, followed the organisation’s plan for 11 to 15-year-olds.

In less than three years Isabelle lost 9st 8lbs, dropped six dress sizes and was discharged from hospital with the effects of her liver disease reversed.

She is now a size 10/12 instead of 22/24 and weighs 11st 3lbs.

Isabelle said: “My mum’s lost 5st now too - so we’ve lost more than 14st between us.”

As part of her weight loss, Isabelle swapped her unhealthy snacks for fat-free yoghurt and fruit.

She said: “The biggest thing for me to overcome was stopping the emotional eating, which meant finding other ways of coping.

“Now I find going for a long walk with my dog Millie or a run after college is a great way to relax after a stressful day.

“It’s crazy as I used to dread any kind of activity because I’d worry what I looked like and got out of breath, but not anymore.

“I hit my target weight in February this year and I’ve maintained my weight loss for five months now, even during my exams.

“I’m definitely confident I’ve discovered healthy habits that will stay with me for the rest of my life.”

The teenager has now been dubbed Slimming World’s young slimmer of the year 2017.

Isabelle hopes to attend university in October to study psychology.

She said: “I used to feel self-conscious about talking to people because I thought they’d be secretly judging me for being so big.

“After losing the weight and being discharged from hospital, I feel full of self-confidence.”