Southampton woman raises money with charity skydive after incredible weight loss

Krystal Paterson’s younger brother, Jamie, was born with Down’s syndrome and two holes in his heart, but to Krystal he was perfect.

She described Jamie as “a Disney film-loving, football playing, tickle monster”.

Jamie died from cancer aged just 10, when Krystal was aged 13.

Credit: Karen Wyatt

Jamie was cared for by Rose Road, a Southampton charity that cares for young people with disabilities.

Krystal said “Jamie adored his time at Rose Road. It gave my mum and I some precious time together too.

“He would be excited to go there and have so many stories to tell us when he came home.”

After Jamie’s death Krystal put on a lot of weight as she struggled to deal with the emotional fallout.

“I ate everything in sight instead of dealing with my feelings. By 21 I was a size 26.

Credit: Karen Wyatt

“As an adult I would see these things on TV that other people were doing and I would be in awe.

“Marathons! Skydives! The idea to me was up there with flying into space. All incredible and equally out of my reach.

“I struggled to lace up my shoes, walk a flight of stairs, I couldn’t get on the rides at Paulton’s Park because the safety bar couldn’t fit over my stomach. I envied people in boots. Oh, to be able to get boots over my calves.”

Krystal went from a size 26 to a size 12 with Slimming World and now she has jumped out of a plane, raising hundreds of pounds for Rose Road. Krystal said Rose Road was “a place that saw my brother as an individual, a place that saw his capabilities rather than his disabilities”.

Krystal Paterson went on a charity skydive to raise money for the charity that cared for her late brother Jamie, after she achieved incredible weight loss. (Credit: Karen Wyatt)

After her weight loss, Krystal said she feels that she “has the confidence to do all the things I’ve ever dreamed and to reach the greatest heights”.