‘My 600-Lb Life’ Behind-the-Scenes Stories From Patients About Their Weight Loss Journeys

Filming Is Hard Work

Although each episode focuses on the difficulties of everyday life for an overweight person, for some participants the hardest part is being on a production schedule that records everything.

“Is it exhausting? Yes. Very,” former participant Steven Assanti revealed in a now-deleted Facebook video. “So exhausting to the point that there are days that I don’t even want to film. And I try to avoid being filmed, but the camera crew — especially one of them in particular — is so persistent that he will continue to knock on the door, and knock on the door, and knock on the door until you can’t stand it anymore … It’s just a lot of work.”

Steven’s brother, Justin Assanti, went as far to say that the show is the product of heavy-handed editing, replying to a thread on Reddit that he was not given an honest cut on My 600-Lb Life.

Some Participants Have Jobs

One of the major questions fans have about participants on the show is how they make money. Some fans speculate that most people featured on the show are being supported by family, but many of them actually make money via side jobs.

According to her niece, season 2 star Penny Saeger makes jewelry on the side and helps a family friend run a business. Other past participants like Zsalynn Whitworth and Pauline Potter have made cash by modeling for “fat fetish” sites, which is where Zsalynn met her ex-husband.

Yep, Steven Really Is Like That in Real Life

When twin brothers Steven and Justin appeared together in a special episode of My 600-Lb Life, many fans didn’t have a positive view of Steve, who they found attention-seeking. After the show, Steven started uploading videos on his Facebook of himself naked and singing on the toilet. When Reddit fans asked Justin if Steven was OK, the brother confirmed that Steven wasn’t exaggerating for the cameras. “He is truly like that,” he claimed.

Participants Are Allegedly Paid Extra for Shower Scenes

Although fans have criticized TLC for showing scenes of patients taking showers, according to a Reddit user, participants are paid extra for those shots. “One of the patients mentioned it on Facebook,” they wrote. Such allegations have not been confirmed elsewhere.

Participants Are Harassed Outside the Show

Justin has spoken out on Reddit about the downsides of My 600-lb Life. In addition to coping with the hardships of losing an extreme amount of weight, participants also have to “sign their lives away” and some end up being ridiculed by internet users.

“I would rather seek out options before signing away the rights to my name, my life, etc.,” he wrote on Reddit. “I went from no one knowing I existed to being harassed all day on social media, my business and phone calls. I wouldn’t do it again.” 

Further telling fans that he’s recognized at work, Justin tends to keep a low profile.

Dr. Now Has Been Sued by Former Patients

In 2012, Dr. Now was sued for malpractice when he reportedly left a “6.69-inch piece of tubing” inside a patient during a gastric sleeve operation.

“The tube punctured Mrs. Park’s colon … ” the lawsuit alleged, “requiring the surgical removal of a part of her colon.” However, in 2013, the suit was dismissed, and Dr. Nowzaradan defended himself by saying he wasn’t the one who left the tube.

Past Participants Have Died Since the Show

Although the surgery the patients on the show undergo is considered risky, many of them come out of it just fine in the end. However, there have been unfortunate cases where people have died after having the surgery. One of them was season 1’s Henry Foots, who passed a year after his episode from a medical complication not related to his weight loss, and season 6’s Robert Buchel, who died of a heart attack before his show even aired.

Patients Don’t Always Lose Weight

Although many participants of the show appear in their Where Are They Now? specials looking like completely different people, some patients — even with surgery — still don’t end up losing the weight they had hoped to lose. Penny is probably the most infamous example. She refused to follow Dr. Now’s rules and, at least according to her niece, only lost about 35 pounds after the show.

“Severe obesity is a complex physical and psychological condition with many components,” Dr. Now explained to People about why some patients fail. “Not realizing how much of their struggle is psychological and not just physical can be the biggest obstacle for change with patients. Many refuse to admit they have any emotional compulsions or compulsive psychological disorders driving them to overeat.”