‘It’s the hardest thing I’ve gone through’: Bake Off’s Laura Adlington reveals she was told to lose 14st to have a child – and has now decided not to start a family
Laura Adlington has revealed she was told she would have to lose 14st to become pregnant and has now decided she will not have children.
The Great British Bake Off star, 33, tried to conceive for three years with her husband Matt before doctors said her only chance was to try IVF and she would have to lose weight first to qualify.
Speaking to Fabulous magazine, she said: ‘Unless you’ve gone through infertility and that heartache of really wanting it and it not happening . . . it’s the hardest thing I’ve ever gone through.’
Candid: Laura Adlington has revealed she was told she would have to lose 14st to become pregnant and has now decided she will not have children
Laura also said she struggled with her mental health during this period and not being able to conceive was made worse by many of her friends welcoming babies.
The star, who appeared on the 2020 series of the Channel 4 show, told how she had always wanted to be a mother and thought, ‘what’s the point?’ if she couldn’t have a child.
She said: ‘I’ve never thought, “I want to take my own life”, but I definitely have had thoughts that I didn’t want to be here any more. And I have phoned Samaritans on a few occasions and really benefitted from it.’
Laura said she tried to lose weight after speaking to her doctors and even considered bariatric surgery before deciding it wasn’t for her.
Couple: The Great British Bake Off star, 33, tried to conceive for three years with her husband Matt before doctors said her only chance was to try IVF and she would have to lose the weight first to qualify
The star, who has struggled with her weight since she was eight, found it difficult to lose so much to have the IVF.
She said: ‘It was such a lot to lose — about 14st and I just struggled to do that. I wonder if that will always play on my mind, particularly as I get older.’
Laura credits taking part in Bake Off and reaching the finals with helping her through this difficult period.
However, since she left the show, Laura has been faced with cruel comments from internet trolls.
Laura said: ‘Unless you’ve gone through infertility and that heartache of really wanting it and it not happening . . . it’s the hardest thing I’ve ever gone through’
Bake Off judge Paul Hollywood previously defended her against the cruel jibes, writing on Instagram: ‘I’ve heard of some sad people trolling Laura, it’s disgusting behaviour.’
The baker said she thinks more needs to be done to ‘protect’ people online and thinks it’s too easy for internet users to contact people they don’t know.
Laura said she prefers the time child-free to ‘childless’ and feels there are some positives to not having children, including that her time and her money are her own.
For help call Samaritans for free on 116 123 or visit www.samaritans.org
Heartbreaking: Laura also said she struggled with her mental health during this period and not being able to conceive was made worse by many of her friends welcoming babies
Source: Read Full Article