I was 16 stone and miserable then weight loss jab shed 10 inches from my waist

When Steve Scully was diagnosed with prostate cancer, his doctors warned him to slim down to give him the best chance of fighting the disease.

But at 16 stone, and with a history of over-eating and secret junk food binges, he felt helpless, fearing that he wouldn’t be able to conquer his unhealthy food habits.

Then in December 2023, Steve, from Waterlooville Hampshire, discovered the NHS-backed Second Nature service, which offers a healthy eating plan alongside the weight-loss drugs Mounjaro and Wegovy to treat type 2 diabetes and obesity.

He admits he went on the Wegovy plan out of “desperation” but to his astonishment his incessant desire to eat vanished overnight and within weeks he’d lost weight.

“It’s been life changing,” says Steve. “I feel the healthiest I’ve ever been. The morning after I did my first injection, the cravings went. Now I don’t feel like eating that much, and I no longer feel the need to binge on junk food.”

It is a transformation that Steve, a retired teacher, never dared to hope for after years of addictive behaviour. He spent his early adult years struggling with drinking too much alcohol. He went teetotal in 1998 and quit smoking three years later, but he says his obsession with food followed the “same addictive patterns of hiding and lying.”

“I couldn’t control it. On my way home from work, I’d grab a tub of ice cream and wolf down the whole thing, along with biscuits, before cooking tea for myself and my wife when she came home.

“Snack food was my go-to as it was easy to sneak into the house and I’d have a secret supply somewhere. When my wife went to bed at night, I would stay up watching TV, and tuck into my snacks – biscuits, chocolate, you name it, even if I’d had a burger and chips for dinner. I’d eat until I felt sick.

“Although I haven’t had an alcoholic drink for 26 years, and I quit smoking 24 years ago, there was something very familiar about my eating patterns as there was to smoking and drinking.

“The feeling that, ‘if I don’t talk about this, then nobody will know about it’ was similar. I was very much of the mindset that if I can pretend it’s not there, then it’s not a problem. It was shaming, frustrating and angering.”

By the age of 55, Steve had tried numerous diets only to find himself trapped in a cycle of yo-yo weight loss and gain. After seeking help from his GP, he joined a slimming programme and in eight months lost more than three stone.

“But then I got a bad cold,” Steve says. “I missed a couple of sessions, and even though I was trying to eat the same, I just piled on the weight again and was back to 15st before I realised. The programme hadn’t really changed my default eating habits, so I gave up.”

He felt desperate. “I was even contemplating applying for Bear Grylls’ The Island survival programme, as it looked like another way I could lose weight!”

Then in 2020, after undergoing tests, Steve was diagnosed with stage 2 prostate cancer. He was told by doctors that it would be beneficial to improve his fitness levels and lose weight.

Despite repeated attempts at dieting, Steve was unable to drop below 15st. Instead, his health was monitored and he decided to have high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) treatment, which uses powerful sound waves to heat and destroy cancer cells.

After recovering in 2021, and determined to focus on his health, Steve took up jogging only to experience severe burning pains in his wrists. He was diagnosed with ischaemic heart disease, caused by a build-up of fatty substances in his arteries, and had surgery to have a stent fitted.

Yet Steve still felt helpless against the force of his cravings and even though he tried various diet plans, nothing stuck.

“I felt worried about taking weight-loss medication, but I needed to try something,” he says. “After researching Second Nature, I knew I would be in good hands – they are trusted by the NHS, and offer a support programme which was important to me.”

Potential users have to complete a strict test online to see whether they’re eligible for the medication (secondnature.io/get-plan). Steve signed up and began the Wegovy-assisted programme, which had been approved in the NHS via prescription in September 2024.

Wegovy, the brand name for the drug semaglutide, which is injected using pre-filled pens into the upper arm, thigh or stomach, works as an appetite suppressant by mimicking a hormone, GLP-1, that makes people feel full after eating.

But as well as the weight-loss jabs, Steve’s Second Nature plan used behavioural science to “rewire” eating habits and encouraged members to exercise.

“I had all this binge food in the house,” he says. “The moment I injected myself, I ate it all. But the next morning, something was different. I didn’t want to eat. It was like a switch had flipped.

“I felt like not eating. I didn’t feel sick or anything. I just didn’t feel like eating much of anything. And when it came to the evening, I had no cravings to binge late at night.

“When I did eat, I no longer wanted a big portion. I didn’t need to reach for a snack afterwards. I didn’t crave all of the binge food that I’d been so desperate to eat, even just the night before. For the first time in years, I felt as though I was in control of my eating habits.”

Since following the healthy eating plan’s ethos, which includes eating home-cooked, protein-focused meals, Steve says his mindset around food has changed.

He now weighs 12 stone and has a 32-inch waist, down from 42 inches, and says his goal is to be able to eat in moderation and start to reduce his medication.

“My wife and I have been doing a lot more cooking from scratch, and moving away from pre-prepared, processed foods.

“I am pleased I’ve been able to get to where I am because I’m 63 and I’d like to be healthy enough that I can enjoy my retirement as my wife comes up to start her retirement this year.

“I want to be around for a good length of time, and I want to be healthy while I’m doing it to enjoy life with my wife. That’s what’s important about all of this to me.

“My goal is to be 11st 7lbs, so I’ll keep going but my bathroom scales – which give me an estimated metabolic age – have gone from 69 to 64! So I’m pretty proud of myself too!”

Wegovy, the brand name for the drug semaglutide, which is injected using pre-filled pens into the upper arm, thigh or stomach, works as an appetite suppressant by mimicking a hormone, GLP-1, that makes people feel full after eating.

But as well as the weight-loss jabs, Steve’s Second Nature plan used behavioural science to “rewire” eating habits and encouraged members to exercise.

“I had all this binge food in the house,” he says. “The moment I injected myself, I ate it all. But the next morning, something was different. I didn’t want to eat. It was like a switch had flipped.

“I felt like not eating. I didn’t feel sick or anything. I just didn’t feel like eating much of anything. And when it came to the evening, I had no cravings to binge late at night.

“When I did eat, I no longer wanted a big portion. I didn’t need to reach for a snack afterwards. I didn’t crave all of the binge food that I’d been so desperate to eat, even just the night before. For the first time in years, I felt as though I was in control of my eating habits.”

Since following the healthy eating plan’s ethos, which includes eating home-cooked, protein-focused meals, Steve says his mindset around food has changed.

He now weighs 12 stone and has a 32-inch waist, down from 42 inches, and says his goal is to be able to eat in moderation and start to reduce his medication.

“My wife and I have been doing a lot more cooking from scratch, and moving away from pre-prepared, processed foods.

“I am pleased I’ve been able to get to where I am because I’m 63 and I’d like to be healthy enough that I can enjoy my retirement as my wife comes up to start her retirement this year.

“I want to be around for a good length of time, and I want to be healthy while I’m doing it to enjoy life with my wife. That’s what’s important about all of this to me.

“My goal is to be 11st 7lbs, so I’ll keep going but my bathroom scales – which give me an estimated metabolic age – have gone from 69 to 64! So I’m pretty proud of myself too!”

For more information about Second Nature visit secondnature.io