An overweight primary school teacher has lost almost eight stone after she was hypnotised into believing doctors had fitted her with a gastric band.

Kim Robinshaw, 31, whose weight had spiralled to 21 stone was sent into a trance by a slimming expert after other dieting attempts failed to work.

When she woke up Kim believed she had undergone surgery to have the band fitted and she started shedding the pounds. Virtual gastric band: Kim Robinshaw, of Lancashire, was hypnotised into thinking she had the surgery and has lost almost 8 stone since

Before the weight loss: Kim on holiday in Egypt in 2009, when she was a size 24 dress

She dropped from a size 24 to a svelte 14-16 in nine months due to her