Shaughna Phillips opened up about her lipoedema removal surgery as she caught up with her followers on Instagram on Wednesday.
The Love Island star, 30, who appeared on the first winter series of the ITV dating show in 2020, faced years of cruel bullying over the size of her legs, which left her feeling self-conscious and insecure.
However, after her stint in the villa, Shaughna was diagnosed with lipoedema, a chronic condition that causes abnormal fat accumulation in the legs, hips, and sometimes the arms.
In a Q&A session with her 1.4 million Instagram followers, Shaughna shared a photo of herself after her first surgery, revealing that she has undergone two lipoedema removal procedures.
When one fan asked: ‘How many lipoedema surgeries did you have? How are your symptoms.’
Shaughna responded: ‘I had 2 lipoedema removal surgeries. One surgery for my lower legs and one for my thighs.’
Shaughna Phillips opened up about the lasting effects of her two rounds of lipoedema removal surgery in an Instagram Q&A on Wednesday (right, in 2020 before the surgery)
In a Q&A session with her 1.4 million Instagram followers, Shaughna shared a photo of herself after her first surgery, revealing that she has undergone two lipoedema removal procedures
‘Painful but BEST thing I’ve ever done. Completely changed my legs and my confidence.’
She continued: ‘I have loose skin of course, I was advised I would have that from my surgeon but that is no issue for me! I think people think I have loose skin on my legs from my weight loss but it’s actually from my surgeries.’
Addressing how it affects her life now, she added: ‘My symptoms are manageable, I still have some nerve pain if I jump or run which is why I stopped running because it did get quite painful.’
‘I also still bruise extremely easily and anything with a high salt contents/ sugar/ alcohol will inflame my legs.’
She concluded: ‘I can definitely manage it better now I’m aware of it though.’
In response to another fan who asked, ‘How did you discover you had lipoedema? I think I may have it too!’ Shaughna shared a glamorous throwback snap from 2019 and candidly revealed: ‘Honestly, going on Love Island was how I discovered it (laughing emoji)’
She explained: ‘I always knew my legs were different, and it used to baffle me but I never knew there was a name for it.’
‘This picture was from 2019, I weighed 9st and was a size 6 top and a size 14 bottom. Looking back it seems so obvious something wasn’t right, but lipoedema has / had little to no awareness.’
Shaughna also shared a glamorous throwback snap from 2019 with her followers, candidly revealing that appearing on Love Island helped her discover the condition
‘Getting the diagnosis from my surgeon changed my life and took away so much guilt I felt about my legs being my “fault”.’
Shaughna underwent liposuction on her legs in September 2020 after discovering that she suffered with lipoedema.
Lipoedema surgery, also known as Lipedema Reduction Surgery (LRS), is a non-cosmetic procedure that removes fat to treat lipoedema. It can help with pain, swelling, and mobility.
Shaughna, who worked for Lambeth Council in London before finding fame on the ITV2 dating show, previously revealed to The Sun that she would go the gym six times a week.
She told the publication: ‘My legs had been my biggest body hang up since I can remember. It has been the one thing I have always said I would want to change about myself.’
‘I’d be going to the gym six times a week, and even though I got down to 9st 6lb and a size six on the top half, my legs would stay at a size 14.’
She also admitted that when she appeared on Love Island, she ‘spent lots of time crying to the therapist’ as she was surrounded by ‘lovely looking girls’ and felt like the show’s ‘box-ticking fat girl’.
Shaughna revealed that after leaving the villa, she received messages from followers asking if she had been diagnosed with lipoedema, a condition she wasn’t aware of at the time. She described it as a ‘breakthrough’ for her.
