This woman lost 158kg but strangers still body-shamed her

Over the past three years, Jacqueline Adan has totally changed her life.

In March 2012, she weighed more than 225kg. Thanks to a healthy diet and exercise, by March 2016 she had lost more than 158kg.

Finally confident enough to go on a beach holiday to Mexico a few weeks ago, she was initially shaken when strangers body-shamed her, despite all her hard work.  

"It was the first time I had worn a bathing suit in a long time," Jacqueline, who is a pre-school teacher in San Francisco, wrote on Instagram. "I was nervous to take my cover up off."

But that was when the strangers saw her. "A couple sitting by the pool started laughing and pointing at me and making fun of me as soon as I took my cover up off."

Her impressive weight loss has left her with loose skin, and it was this that the strangers had noticed.

Such a public shaming would be enough to humiliate most people, but Jacqueline is made of stronger stuff. "I took a deep breath, smiled and walked into the pool. That was a huge moment for me. I had changed."

"It does not matter what others say or if they try to doubt you or try to bring you down. What matters is how you react to it. How you feel about yourself."

She's delighted that the post, which has more than 27,000 likes, has inspired others.

She told PEOPLE, "Knowing that it has reached so many people, and that I am getting so many comments and messages of people telling me how much this post has helped them truly means the world to me." 

“I want people to know that if I can feel confident and beautiful in my body, with lots of loose skin, even after losing 350 lbs, then I hope they can focus on who they are and forget everyone else who tries to bring them down!"