Obese grandma Amanda Smith, 44, sheds 19st in 2 years

And one 44-year-old grandmother-of-four from Swadlincote, Derbyshire, was left with three whole feet of it, after shrinking from 31 stone to just 12.

But Amanda Smith, a full-time carer who has six children, has now undergone pioneering surgery to remove the 10lbs of saggy skin so she can wear a Christmas party dress for the first time – and is now confident enough to undress in front of her partner Barry, who had never before seen her naked.

Ms Smith tipped the scales at 31-stone by feasting on takeaways, chips and cream cakes after the birth of her son 11 years ago.

She paid £7,000 for a gastric band in 2009 and shed an incredible 19 stone in two years, but was left with large flaps of skin – which weighed 10lbs – all over her body.

She underwent a nine-hour operation to have the skin removed on the NHS in January, and now weighs 12 stone. She has also dropped 11 dress sizes to a size 12.

‘I took one look at myself in the mirror once and it was just disgusting to me. I was too ashamed to show my body when I was fat but even when I lost all the weight it was just as disgusting.’

Amanda admitted she has never owned a swimming costume or a bikini in her life, and that even when she was a child she would ask her mother to write notes as excuses so she didn’t have to do swimming at school.

She added: ‘And I would always keep a towel around my body in the changing rooms for PE. But this summer just gone I went to Crete with my partner and it was the first time I had worn a bikini ever.

‘It felt so nice but I was still a bit self-conscious because I have a few scars from the operation.

‘After the operation you have to wear a sports bra and tight fitting pants for three or four months which I did. But after that I could wear a slim fitting dress for the first time.’

The dress was a gift from her partner, Brian Minchin, who bought it for her to celebrate her dramatic weight-loss.

She said: ‘It is black and lacy with cream underneath, and I have still got it now. I remember thinking "that will never fit me", but it did. I’m going to wear it for Christmas parties as well. I love it.

‘It is still unreal to me. I still go into shops and think that there’s no way something will fit me.

‘I had never worn a pair of jeans in my life because I was so fat or because of the rolls of skin but now I can.’

Amanda, who has six children and four grandchildren, lives with her engineer partner Brian Minchin, 42.

She added: ‘I’ve always been very overweight from when I was a toddler all the way through to adult life. And every time I had a child it got even worse.

‘One day I sat and thought I want to see my grand kids grow up. I didn’t have a medical condition but I was out of breath just walking up the stairs.

‘I knew I needed to do it. My BMI was 57, I was morbidly obese, I was a heart attack waiting to happen.’

Initially, Amanda dieted on her own and lost six stone – but she then struggled to lose any more for six months.

But since recovering from the operation she says she is a ‘changed woman’, and can finally undress for her partner – who had never seen her naked before.

She added: ‘My partner Brian had never seen me without any clothes at all. I’d never strip off in front of him because of my body.

‘It completely changed my mentality about things. Now I’m comfortable enough to take my top off in front of him whereas before I would go into the bathroom and look the door.’