'I lost 46lbs and 5 dress sizes with weight loss jabs but there's one drawback no one tells you'
"Counting calories wrecked my mental health."
A young mum has shared an honest account of her weight loss journey after her health took a frightening turn while surviving on just 900 calories a day.
Miranda Edmonds found herself in a dark place - the 30-year-old who battled with low self-esteem began hiding in oversized clothes, and avoiding social situations. However, it wasn't until her health started to deteriorate that she realised how serious it was. “I was pre-diabetic, constantly exhausted, and inflamed. My doctor warned me I was on the path to fatty liver disease,” Miranda said.
“As a mum, that was terrifying. I knew I had to change - for me, and for my family.” Weighing 15st (95kg), Miranda began researching GLP-1 medications, a new class of injectable drugs that suppress appetite and help regulate blood sugar. After exhausting every other option, she decided to give them a try.
“I was nervous,” she admits. “It was expensive, and I wasn’t sure it would work. But I was desperate. I’d tried everything - counting calories, gym memberships, restrictive diets—and nothing lasted.”
Initially, it seemed like a miracle. Her portions were tiny, the weight was falling off, and she felt satisfied. But soon, she began experiencing some unexpected symptoms.
“I started feeling weak and irritable,” Miranda says. “I was nauseous, drained, and in bed by 7pm every night. My hair began thinning. I knew something wasn’t right.”
The real shock came when she filmed a “What I Eat in a Day” TikTok and tallied up her intake. “I was eating about 900 calories a day—less than my toddlers,” she says. “I felt full, but my body was starving. I’m an active mum, constantly on my feet. I couldn’t survive like that.”
She realized there was little conversation around the dangers of undereating on GLP-1s. So she began sharing her journey—honestly and openly.
“I talk about everything now—the progress, the setbacks, the hard days, because I know someone out there needs to hear it.” To heal, Miranda reintroduced structured, protein-rich meals and snacks.
“Protein is my foundation,” she says. “I drink a shake in the morning, eat beef sticks, bars—anything to fuel my body, even when I’m not hungry. I set reminders to eat, not out of obsession, but necessity.”
Although she's made progress, she no longer tracks every calorie. “Counting calories wrecked my mental health,” she explained. “I’d panic if I didn’t know the macros of a restaurant meal. I’d lose 10lbs and gain it all back. I just couldn’t live that way anymore.”
Now, seven months into her journey, Miranda has lost 46lbs (20.8kg), dropping from 15st to 11st 7lb (74kg), and down from a US size 18 to a size 8. But her transformation is more than skin-deep.
“Mentally, I’m the healthiest I’ve ever been,” she says. “I love working out, I’m building muscle, and for the first time in my life—I actually love my body.”
She embraces the stretch marks and loose skin, viewing them as symbols of her strength. “This body grew two children,” she says proudly. “It’s strong. It’s powerful. And now, it’s finally nourished.”
Through her candid posts, Miranda has built a supportive online community of people on similar paths. But not all responses have been kind.
“Some say using a GLP-1 is cheating, that I didn’t earn it,” she shares. “But there’s nothing easy about this. The medication is just one tool—it’s not a magic wand. I still had to do the work.”
Her motivation remains rooted in her family—her husband Caleb and their two sons, aged 7 and 5. “I have a goal weight, but more than that, I want freedom. To eat without guilt. To go places with my kids without worrying if I’ll fit in the seat or hate every photo. I just want to live without my weight hanging over everything.”
And to the woman she used to be, the one who cried in changing rooms and dreaded shopping, Miranda has a message: “It wasn’t your fault. You weren’t lazy or weak. You just needed help. And there’s no shame in that.”