A former drug and alcohol addict had a wake-up call during lockdown when his binge eating and addiction to alcohol spiraled out of control. Three years later, he has lost a massive 220 pounds and turned his life around.
Stephen Rocks of Blantyre, Scotland, had always struggled with addiction.
In early 2020 he accidentally overdosed on painkillers that he'd been prescribed for chronic pain, a complication of his obesity. Doctors placed him in an induced coma, and when he woke, he made a promise to himself.
“I said to myself I wasn’t going to take any drugs again, that was it,” Mr. Rocks, 51, told The Epoch Times. “I stopped it, then lockdown happened two weeks later.”
However, soon after, Mr. Rocks began to drink.
“You couldn’t go to the gym, you couldn’t do nothing when the country was on full lockdown, so I started drinking and eating rubbish,” Mr. Rocks said. “When you drink alcohol, you get hungry, and when you get hungry ... you get takeaways. Basically, at night I was drinking, buying takeaways, and that was a constant thing.”
At his largest, Mr. Rocks weighed 413 pounds, and this affected his life considerably. Not only was he painfully shy and embarrassed to leave the house, but he couldn’t climb stairs without being short of breath.
“I felt ashamed. I felt as if people were looking at me and judging me,” Mr. Rocks said. “I just became basically a recluse.”
In November 2020, Mr. Rocks was triggered when he could no longer find clothes to fit. He feared he was “going to have a heart attack,” and realized he wanted his life back.
“To put it simply, I just didn’t want to die,” he said. “I decided just to do it right there, right then. I stopped drinking, went on a very strict diet, and I’m still doing it to this day.”
Mr. Rocks had previously lost 35 pounds back in 2012, but shortly thereafter he went through a battle with prostate cancer and gained the weight back. This time around, he was determined that replacing his unhealthy diet with healthy alternatives would stick.
“What I did was, I made a list of all the things that are bad in my life,” he said. “Alcohol was obviously number one, and I would give it up completely for a month. Then after that month is up, I‘d give up another thing to eat: chocolate. Every month I would give up one thing after another until I’d been through my entire list.”
In the first months, the cravings were “really, really bad,” but Mr. Rocks used sheer determination to ride the wave. He also had to contend with ongoing gym closures, so he started working out at home and taking long, 10-mile walks in the middle of the night.
Other people noticed the weight loss before he did.
“When you’re that heavy, you don’t really see it,” Mr. Rocks said. “I think my very first week I lost about 15 pounds. Obviously, on a diet, you'll lose weight fast at the start of your diet, then as the weeks go on, or the months go on, that kind of comes down ... maybe losing 2 pounds a week.”
Over three years, Mr. Rocks has lost an incredible 220 pounds through maintaining his healthy diet and exercise. He now attends the gym every day. His weight has plateaued since he is now building muscle mass, but he’s playing the long game and wants to lose another 30 pounds slowly, bringing it down to his goal weight of 180 pounds.
Mr. Rocks, who does not work because of residual health issues from prostate cancer, said his chronic pain “subsided greatly” as he shed weight. There have also been other profound changes in his life.
“The feeling of going into a normal clothes shop and actually buying smaller clothes is amazing,” he said. “I actually took something back not that long ago as it was too big! I’ve never experienced that before.
“I was extremely, extremely shy. I think it was due to how I looked, but my confidence is [now] really, really high. I’ve done public speaking in different areas and spoke a bit about my journey. I’m quite happy to look at somebody, looking people in the eye and talking about my journey. It’s amazing.”
A recovery group Mr. Rocks joined during his addiction provided a solid support system for him as he lost weight.
“My friends and recovery have been my rock ... if I go back to the way I was, they will kill me!” he said, adding, “A compliment goes a long way.” Being told he’s looking good will keep him feeling buoyant all day long.
Friends and family are “very, very proud” of Mr. Rocks for his second successful weight loss journey, and so is his following on social media, where he has shared his progress.
Mr. Rocks acknowledges that what he has achieved has been incredibly difficult; he had to give up alcohol and go on a strict diet at a time when he was struggling with his mental health.
“[B]ut I’ve overcome everything, and I’ve never felt so good,” he said. “I’ve got my life back, and that’s the best feeling in the world.”
For those who are looking to lose weight, Mr. Rocks hopes they won’t need to go through a massive health scare like his to spur them on their journey.
“My advice is, get your head sorted first because if you’re not in the right headspace, you’re going to fail. ... I don’t believe in willpower,” he said. “You need to want it that bad that you’re going to do anything to do it!”
