Coronation Street actress Channique Sterling-Brown revealed the unexpected downside of weight loss earlier this year and explained why she became riddled with anxiety
Channique Sterling-Brown reveals she auditioned for Emmerdale
A Coronation Street star shared an empowering message when she lost seven stone after she unexpectedly experienced anxiety.
Channique Sterling-Brown, 27, who is known for her role as Dee-Dee Bailey on the ITV drama, revealed her dramatic transformation online. And while she received dozens of praise for her weight loss, she confessed it took years of battling with her body image.
The soap actress explained that she once relied on “diets, shakes and tablets”. But after finally incorporating exercise and healthy eating into her day-to-day life, the work paid off.
However, Channique revealed that she was initially taken aback by the positive response and said being complimented on her weight made her feel awkward. She added that she’d rather receive praise for her university degree and because people had noticed she was skinnier.
She announced that she was stepping back from social media to protect her mental well-being, and candidly spoke about how “uncomfortable comments” had been a challenging part of her weight loss experience. The TV star opened up to her 16,000 followers with a striking before and after photo, detailing her journey out of self-loathing.
She shared on Instagram: “Couple of years ago it got really bad, I was losing control. Hating yourself is a s**t way to live. I came off socials for over a month and when I came back, I unfollowed all the pages full of beautiful, unrealistic bodies,” as reported by the Daily Star.
She confessed that the constant exposure to such images used to send her into a downward spiral, saying: “Consuming those images daily used to send me spiralling. Comparison’s a killer. Instead, I follow women who represented me more, in terms of shape, skills and skin colour.”
In a move towards self-acceptance, she began following women who more closely resembled her in terms of body shape, skills, and skin colour, which marked the beginning of her wellness journey. Embracing a new approach to fitness, she revealed, “I stopped seeing the gym as punishment for being fat and started focusing on fitness.
“For the first time ever I started enjoying working out, my high school PE teacher would be shook.” Her weight loss revelation came unexpectedly when she noticed her clothes fitting loosely. She expressed her delight, stating: “I didn’t notice my weight loss until my clothes were a bit big. So then there’s this excitement of feeling fitter, new wardrobe (cos a b**ch loves to shop).”
However, as she started to lose weight, she was taken aback by the amount of praise she received about her figure rather than her achievements. “But then came the compliments,” she shared, adding: “Which weirdly made me so uncomfortable. Awkwardly smiling, when people gushed over me being thinner, not my 1st class degree.
“Then bare anxiety, ‘If I put on weight is everyone gonna notice? ‘. It was like confirmation that all my toxic thoughts had been in the back of everyone else’s head all along. When people compliment weight loss I know they mean no harm, but when it becomes the main focus of your achievements, it’s disheartening.
“Now I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t proud of myself, but that’s linked to being two years veggie, being healthier and my head being a happier place to be. Not always of course, I still have my moments, things I’d change. But I’ve learnt to keep it moving, don’t let those negative thoughts fester or they will take control.”
The actress shared her newfound belief about modern beauty standards and explained how she has grown from this experience. Channique stated: “Changing how I see myself and unlearning the toxic beauty standards society feeds us, is the real glow-up.
“I now realise the gal on the left is just as much of a bad b**ch as the gal on the right. Let’s build each other up for more than just our dress size/ I always want to be known for my love, laughter and loudness, not the body they live in.”
