Aged 37, she was grossly obese, popping 29 pills a day just to survive. She wore size 30 clothing. Ms O’Brien could barely move from the couch. 

She had type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, hypertension, retained fluid, fatty liver and high cholesterol. All linked to her weight.

“By now my parents should’ve buried me.”

In 2013 she had a transient ischaemic attack stroke, meaning blood supply was cut to the brain for a short time. This was the wake up call she needed.

Fast-forward to today and Ms O’Brien weighs 80.1kg and wears a size 12. Her pill count has dropped from 29 a day to one.

She's shed 158.9kg, the weight of two average sized men.

With the Riverina declared the state’s fattest region by the Heart Foundation, Ms O’Brien wants to inspire other obese people to act – before it’s too late.

“I couldn’t fit in an MRI machine.”

By March 2014 Ms O’Brien had lost 53kg from a weight loss shake, bringing her down to 186kg – a safe weight for gastric bypass surgery.

“People think it’s the easy way out – but it’s not - it reduces your stomach intake by 80 per cent, but you can use it to help you or you can gain weight after surgery.”

At her heaviest Ms O’Brien was guzzling 500 gram blocks of chocolate, washed down with sugar laden drinks.

“McDonald’s was my middle name, frozen coke was my best friend.

“The worst thing was in my mind I thought I was losing weight. I’d tried every fad...I’d go home and be depressed.

“When you weigh 239kg there’s not much you want to do.” 

Ms O’Brien now works out six days a week with mentor Commando Steve and follows a stringent paleo diet.

“He says it’s 70 per cent what you eat, 30  per cent movement. I want to get out there and help people.”

Her dramatic weight loss has given her an appetite for life that immense amounts of food could never fill. 

Ms O’Brien is enrolled in a dietetics course and hopes to inspire other people to eat healthily.

“I love life and I just want to get out there and help people.” 

Daily Advertiser, Wagga