A slimmer who shed eight stone to qualify for an NHS breast reduction says she was better off fat after being refused the treatment despite her weightloss.

Marie Pickstock, 44, from Lancing, West Sussex, begged medics to reduce her 44M boobs because they were so big she could barely walk.

But the 22-stone mother was told if she wanted to qualify for taxpayer funded surgery she had to lose weight.

Letdown: Marie Pickstock, 44, shed eight stone to qualify for a life-changing breast reduction but was then refused the treatment

As she was: Marie begged medics to reduce her 44M boobs because they were so big she couldn’t even walk

However, after shedding 8st 6lb she was told she couldn’t have the breast reduction after all because her case wasn’t extreme enough.

As a result, she says she was better off when she was overweight – as at least she had her large stomach to rest her boobs on, and take the weight off her back.

She said: ‘I have no confidence. I don’t like showing myself to anyone and I refuse to undress in front of my husband.

‘I should be super confident and proud of my new slim body, but instead I feel horrible.

Diet: At 22-stone, the mother was told if she wanted to qualify for taxpayer funded surgery she had to lose some weight

Slimming down: Over the next two years Marie cut out takeaways and shed 8st 6lb

‘My boobs are so big I feel like I am going to topple forwards. At least when I was bigger the fat balanced me out and I could actually walk better.’

But the mother says she struggles most with the abuse she receives from strangers in the street, who shout comments such as, ‘you wouldn’t need an anchor to make you sink’.

She said she feels ‘let-down’ by the NHS who refuse to help her.

The full-time mother said: ‘The doctor said I had to help myself first, which I have done. So why won’t they give me a breast reduction? I feel really let down by the NHS because I stuck to my side of the bargain.

‘I have saved the tax payer thousands by losing weight through dieting and not asking for a gastric band. I’m not asking the NHS for this operation for cosmetic reasons. My breasts are ruining my life.’

Marie has suffered with large breasts since she was a schoolgirl.

She was a DD before her school friends even started wearing bras then shot up to a 44M when she became obese.

Her weight increased when she started comfort eating. She would consume a burger or sausage with chips every day and regularly ordered takeaway pizzas with a kebab on top.

After years of debilitating back pain and reduced mobility, Marie approached medics about a breast reduction in 2011.

They told her under strict NHS guidelines she would only be entitled to the £7,000 procedure if she lost a considerable amount of weight first.

Marie drafted in the support of her overweight husband and two daughters. By cutting out the unhealthy foods that had been their staple diet, between the four of them they shed more than 30 stone.

Read more: Daily Mail