EXCLUSIVELove Island’s Shaughna Phillips reacts to trolls accusing her of taking drug Ozempic and says suffering from ‘body dysmorphia’ means she’s unable to appreciate her recent weight loss

Shaughna Phillips has denied taking Ozempic after cruel trolls accused her of using the drug to lose weight.

The former Love Island star, 30, told MailOnline of how she became determined to get in shape after doctors warned she was ‘obese’ and for the sake of her 13-month daughter, Lucia, she needed to make some life changes.

After months of improving her unhealthy eating habits and going on regular walks, a huge step for Shaughna who became increasingly anxious to leave her house, she proudly posted a photo on Instagram, displaying to her 1.4million followers her slimmed down figure.

But the mother-of-one says the picture sparked Ozempic rumours while other internet trolls claimed after all her hard work, she ‘looked no different.’

In an exclusive interview, the reality personality admits acknowledging her own weight loss achievements can be impossible because she suffers from ‘body dysmorphia’ and being picked apart online for her appearance only makes it worse.

She told MailOnline: ‘I posted a side-by-side picture, I wouldn’t even call it a before and after, people were saying, ‘how have you done this?’ but the thing is I have been documenting it the entire time.

‘It was the first time I posted two images next to each other, so people thought it happened overnight and it was this huge secret when it really isn’t.

‘I felt so uncomfortable in my own body… it wasn’t even post baby… I was eating terribly because it was bringing me happiness. I wasn’t doing anything else. I started getting out a little bit more and making better choices.

‘The hardest part mentally as someone with a big following on social media is you can take a picture and think you have done really well and share it… but some people have accused me of taking Ozempic, some say the photos are edited or I’m still big, there are so many different opinions… when you have body dysmorphia yourself, oh my God it is such a minefield… sometimes I regret even sharing.

‘It is still hard to acknowledge those changes, if I didn’t take photos, I really wouldn’t see it. Even when friends and family say, ‘you look amazing’ I’m like, ‘really?’ It is such a catch 22 because my clothes do fit me differently and I feel healthier but looking at myself in the mirror, it’s so hard to notice.’

Shaughna starred on the winter series of Love Island in 2020 where she fell for Callum Jones until he returned from the Casa Amor loyalty test with Molly Smith.

Last April, she gave birth to her first baby, daughter Lucia, whose father Billy Webb is currently serving a nine-year prison sentence for drug offences.

As a result, she is raising Lucia as a single mother, and says she didn’t want to put further ‘pressure’ on herself to lose weight amid the struggles of being a new parent.

She said: ‘Lucia was born in April last year but I didn’t weigh myself until July, only because I wanted to avoid putting too much pressure on myself.

‘I had just given birth and I’m doing it on my own, I didn’t really have any time to sort myself out. I went on holiday and then I started focusing on myself and my mental health around September/October.

‘I am probably where I was before I had the baby but even then, I was overweight when I got pregnant. I just want to be as healthy as possible for her. I don’t ever want to be in a position where I am too unhealthy to enjoy her and go to the park, and it was getting that way.

‘I was literally not leaving the house. But then I thought I don’t want to live like that, it’s her childhood as much as it’s my life. I needed to sort it out.’

Three years have passed since she scolded former fling Callum, telling him ‘Congrats hun’ when he chose to couple up with his now ex-girlfriend Molly, instead of remaining faithful.

The former Islander says her Love Island days feel like a distant memory but jokes she would be willing to sign up to a future All Stars series if she could find six-weeks’ worth of childcare for her daughter.

She said: ‘It doesn’t even feel like me… it feels like a fever dream. Even the thought of my daughter watching my show one day makes me want to die inside. I just don’t know how I’m going to explain it to her… I don’t think she would even recognise me.

‘I would go back on the show if I can get childcare!… I don’t know, I never say never in life, but I highly doubt it. The thought of my daughter watching me do a dirty dancing challenge, I couldn’t think of anything worse… torture me first. I have to think about one day she’s going to go to school, it’s bad enough it happened before she was born…’

Shaughna lost her father Eddie in 2016 but says she has told Lucia all about her grandfather, who was a huge Arsenal fan.

As a way of commemorating his memory, Shaughna purchased her own personalised plaque dedicated to Eddie at the Emirates Stadium, which will be there for a decade.

She plans to visit the plaque on Celebration Day this coming Bank Holiday Monday, which is a time to remember the special people we have lost.

Celebration Day began three years ago and is an annual remembrance for the loved ones in our lives who have passed away, with Shaughna planning to continue the tradition for years to come.

She said: ‘This is the third year of Celebration Day… it is a legacy really and a day to celebrate people that are longer here with us and the memories… and to try and not make it a somber event. People ask me ‘are you comfortable with talking about your dad?’ I’m like, ‘of course, it’s not a sad thing… it’s only sad if I stopped talking about him.

‘Me and my dad were huge Arsenal fans so when I came out of Love Island, I bought my dad a plaque at the Arsenal stadium and it’s going to be there for at least 10 years and it’s something I know he would absolutely love.

‘It’s somewhere I go to remember him and now, I get to take my daughter there, which is even more special. On Monday, we are going there to see it. I’m sure he is hanging around there as much as he can.’

• Celebration Day is an annual celebration of past lives, that takes place each year on the last Bank Holiday of May. For more information: celebrationday.com