The love lives of My 600-lb Life stars are almost as complicated as their weight loss
journeys. Besides profiling the day-to-day realities of the morbidly obese, the hit TLC
reality show also shines a light on its stars' tricky romances. Think you've already heard
all the juicy drama? We're going inside the love lives of these 600-lb Life stars.
Those who have never seen My 600-lb Life might suspect that none of its stars have ever had
a relationship, ever. And that could be due to pervasive fat phobia, which perpetuates
the myth that overweight people are unattractive or undesirable. But in real life, those ideas
have been proven untrue. And frankly, for some, appearances just aren't as important
as they are to others. For them, it's what's on the inside that counts.
"We were like Bonnie and Clyde."
The majority of the show's stars appear to be already enjoying meaningful partnerships
when they make the decision to sign up for Dr. Now's weight-loss program. Bettie Jo had
her husband Josh, Nicole had her fiancé Charlie, Lupe had her husband Gilbert, and Amber had
her boyfriend Rowdy, just to name a few. If you were thinking any of these stars have
a hard time getting lucky in love, you'd be wrong.
"I get fast food anywhere from one to two times a day, sometimes three. I'm conflicted
by buying this food. I give in because I don't want a fuss."
As Dr. Now has often said on the show, most of his patients have enablers who bring them
unhealthy foods, despite the fact that it's literally killing them. Oftentimes, the enablers
are family members, and that, of course, can extend to the patients' romantic partners.
Lupe's husband, Gilbert, brought her all of the food she wanted, including a large box
of doughnuts, even though she was bedridden, diabetic, and on oxygen. And then there was
Christina's husband, Zach, who admitted point-blank that if Christina wants something he gets
it, because he didn't want her to be angry with him.
"If she wants something, I'll go get it. Because I love her and she asked me to."
He even said that despite the fact that he claimed he was scared to lose her. And then
we met Amber, who was shuttled to and from the grocery store by her boyfriend Rowdy,
who said he felt guilty about enabling her, but also admitted that it was too hard to
stop.
"I shouldn't eat all this."
"But, I mean, what else do you do when you love somebody, right?"
Each of the men professed their love and devotion to their partners, but they may have also
had psychological issues of their own to contend with.
All of the 600-lb Life stars exhibit varying degrees of functionality, depending on their
weight, health conditions, age, and physical decline. Whereas some patients are relatively
mobile and can get themselves the unhealthy foods that they crave, like Randy, others
are in a much more dire situation, like Marla who couldn't even stand up when she was first
introduced on the show.
"I'm glad to see that you're trying. I'm proud of you, giving it a shot."
"I didn't think I could get up."
But many of the stars rely on at least one other person to do everything for them, which
quite often will be their romantic partners. That includes buying and preparing their food,
bathing them, dressing them, transporting them, and even helping them use the restroom.
Since Lupe was confined to her bed and unable to leave it, Gilbert had to both help her
bathe and use the bathroom, all from her bed. That kind of relentless physical toll could
certainly put a damper on any romance.
"I need to be taken care of 24/7 because I can't do anything for myself."
You might think that when the stars lose weight, become more active, and get their lives back
together that their romantic relationships would also improve. Especially since, in many
cases, their partners have become their primary caretakers, sacrificing much of their time
and energy to look after them.
But in more than one instance, their partners aren't on board with the changes that significant
weight loss can usher in. They may feel intimidated by their significant other's newfound independence
and concerned that they're no longer needed. When Laura shed hundreds of pounds and began
to do things for herself, her husband, Joey, became extremely unhappy. He didn't want Laura
to be independent and resented her for aspiring to go back to school and get a job.
"Maybe we're not meant for each other. He thinks that I'm the one that's changed, but
I haven't. It's just that he looks at me different because I look different."
Their relationship became so stressed that the couple ended up splitting, for good. Laura
eventually found herself a new man, which she celebrated in a since-deleted Facebook
post. Whether or not the two are still together, we wish her all the best.
Just as you might be tempted to think it's hard for these stars to find romance, you
might also suspect that if their relationship crashes and burns, they'll have a tough time
finding someone new.
But for some of these stars, finding love is the least of their worries. Once they split
up or get a divorce from their partners, they have no problem finding someone new. That's
what happened for Tanisha, whose husband Troy walked out on her because he wasn't willing
to support her on her weight loss journey. And while that nearly derailed her progress
altogether, she was eventually able to move on. Tanisha even had a new boyfriend before
her episode was halfway over.
"Because I'm happy now, I have a new man in my life. His name is David. Thank you. We've
been best friends for over 12 years."
Clearly, this star was able to find new love at the drop of a hat. And with that added
spark, she also found the motivation to continue her weight loss journey.
It shouldn't be too surprising that some of the 600lb Life stars link up with partners
who definitely have a thing for extremely large women. While of course there's no shame
in being attracted to larger people, reducing them to an object because of their size is
where it becomes problematic. If the 600-lb Life stars ever want to make changes to improve
their lifestyle and literal well-being, that often creates real problems for their partners.
"You're costing me my weight loss surgery, and you're ruining everything!"
That was definitely the case for Zsalynn, whose husband Gareth was very clear about
the fact that he only likes large women. And he made sure to mention it many times throughout
the episode.
"I've always liked bigger women. You know. Why settle for the hot dog when you can have
a steak?"
The couple met on a fetish site, where Zsalynn posted scantily-clad pictures of herself in
little more than underwear.
"She looked so big and comfy and soft and squishy. You know, I like big women and she
was, she was the queen at the time."
Eventually the two got married and had a child, but when Zsalynn chose to do something about
her increasingly dangerous size, Gareth wasn't having any of it. He was so unsupportive of
her weight loss journey that they eventually divorced. And it turned out, that was the
best thing for Zsalynn.
"He didn't want me to lose the weight. And I didn't deserve to feel bad about choosing
my health."
She was putting herself first and focusing on her health.
For longtime fans of the show, there's a glimmer of hope in the fact that many of the featured
stars actually find healthier romantic relationships once they've turned their lives around. It
makes sense, since a person surely has more to bring to the table when they're feeling
good about themselves.
"You're the answer to every prayer that I've ever prayed, and I love you with all my heart."
Just a couple of years after Zsalynn divorced Gareth and lost a significant amount of weight,
she posted a photo on her Facebook page with a new man. By the looks of it, Zsalynn had
found happiness with a new boyfriend, who is hopefully way more supportive of her health
than her ex was. And in other happy news, Lupe was able to find a new boyfriend after
her time on the show, according to a very cozy post with her guy, Andrew, on Facebook.
Easily one of the most controversial stars on the entire 600-lb Life series is Steven
Assanti, whose double episode with his brother Justin debuted at the end of Season 5. Steven
was a horrifying bully to his dad, his brother, and everyone around him. Fans will remember
him famously spilling a jar of urine at the hospital, stealing his brother's painkillers,
and attempting to manipulate Dr. Now into giving him pain pills he didn't need. He's
also posted some seriously bizarre videos on YouTube.
"I feel free."
But all of his wild antics seem to be behind him now that he married a massage therapist
from Iowa. While some people might think it's some kind of catfishing scam, Steven's wife,
Stephanie, has publicly professed her love for him. She shared with Starcasm,
"His face, his eyes and hair, I think he's beautiful. [Steven is] nothing like how he
was perceived on the TV show at all, or on his YouTube videos. He's a gentleman and a
fantastic lover and lover of life in general."
The couple even has matching tattoos. Sounds like a match made in reality TV heaven!
Despite the fact that many of the existing romantic partnerships on My 600-lb Life dissolve
once the patient stops compulsively overeating and self-destructing, there are some couples
that are solid enough to weather the storm. In fact, they can come out even stronger on
the other side, having both worked together to better their lives.
One particularly successful relationship can be found in Nicole and her fiancé, Charlie.
While Charlie was her primary caretaker and enabler, Nicole was determined to be successful
on Dr. Now's program. So she changed her diet and exercise habits. Although Charlie struggled
a little bit when he had to give up his favorite foods, he was generally supportive. The couple
celebrated six years together in August of 2019, according to a since-deleted Facebook
post.
And it looks like Bettie Jo and Josh are also still together. They're even parents now,
too, according to Starcasm.
"Being together, with both of us struggling with food, has not been a good thing. Because
we've just been gaining."
Some of the romantic partners of these stars are also overweight themselves. Several of
the spouses and partners struggle with their own eating issues, with some of them even
qualifying for weight loss surgery.
One particular instance of this scenario was with Nissa, who was Chuck's wife. Although
Chuck got off to a bit of a rocky start, he did eventually manage to shed enough pounds
to qualify for weight loss surgery. But Chuck wasn't the only one to go under the knife.
His wife Nissa also had weight loss surgery, hoping to get a better handle on her health.
"Just give me a chance, let's work this out. I've lost weight and I'm doing good."
"And nothing's changed. I'm miserable."
Sadly, Chuck and Nissa ended up divorcing, according to a post on his Facebook page where
he wrote just one word: "single." But that doesn't come as a surprise for anyone who
saw their episode, where Nissa often looked like she was at the end of her rope.
"We don't have an intimate relationship. I just feel like a servant."
Chuck later went on to marry his new wife, Erica, and he seems to be staying on track
with his health. Here's hoping both Chuck and Nissa are both much better off.
"I'd never guess in a million years I'd get a second chance like this."
The vast majority of My 600-lb Life stars have endured trauma in one form or another,
including abuse from the family members who were supposed to love and protect them. Still,
that hasn't stopped some of them from perpetuating that abuse and hurting their romantic partners.
Of all of the participants featured on the series, Lee stood out as especially cruel.
He was both verbally and physically abusive to his girlfriend Rena, something that Dr.
Now acknowledged as a real problem. That persisted into their follow-up episode, despite the
fact that Lee made a solid effort to control his anger.
"The only time you are ever nice to me or talk to me like a human is when you need or
want something."
"Yeah."
But it's not just the stars who are abusive to their partners. Sometimes the abuse goes
the other way. On top of telling his own daughter he wished she had never been born, Gareth
once blatantly insulted Zsalynn, while their daughter watched, when she simply asked for
a salad.
"I'd rather have a salad. I'm not buying you a salad. If you wanna eat grass, you can go
in the garden and graze."
Season 2's Christina also eventually split from her ex-husband Zach, calling him out
on his abusive behavior in her follow-up episode.
Infidelity can be deadly in any relationship. It just so happens to affect 50 percent of
partnerships, according to Psychology Today. And that statistic also applies to the stars
of My 600-lb Life, some of whom have either cheated on their partners or have been cheated
on, themselves.
Lee drew the ire of My 600-lb Life fans when Rena shared in a since-deleted Facebook post
that he had an affair. She called an unnamed person a cheater in the post, tagging Lee,
and said she was now free of what she called, quote, "excess baggage." After that, Lee updated
his relationship status in another now-deleted post, indicating that he was in a relationship
with another woman, who was rumored to be married. Oddly, Lee and Rena appear to have
reconciled since, according to Rena's Facebook page, but it's unclear what the future holds
for them.
"Sometimes I feel like I'm out looking for affection sometimes, 'cause I don't get it
from you."
And yes, sometimes the cheating plays out in the opposite direction. This was the case
with Lupe, who discovered that Gilbert was cheating on her during her follow-up episode.
"The more I'm away from Gilbert, the more I see how he was holding me back. The new
Lupe's coming out."
It looks like all the real world drama and heartbreak of any relationship also touches
the lives of the 600-lb Life stars, too. Here's hoping they can all find their own happiness.
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