Nikki’s weight made simple tasks like getting out of bed or washing up almost impossible. Her story airs on the February 28 episode of My 600lb Life.
She said her health was failing and she finally realized food had become a deadly addiction. With her father Terry, she spent eight hours traveling from Little Rock to Houston to meet Dr. Younan Nauzaradan, who told her she needed to lose about 22 to 23 kilograms before he could approve gastric bypass surgery.
She hit that goal in three months and was cleared for the procedure. After surgery, she lost about 90 kilograms in a year. She also worked with a therapist, which led to emotional conversations with her mother, Llewellyn, and her sister, Courtney. Before her progress, Courtney had not allowed her kids to see Nikki because she feared her appearance would scare them.
Nikki plans to lose another 200 pounds over the next year or so and is the opening story of season four. During filming, she had already lost 28.5 kilograms in a single month. She admitted she doubted she could meet the requirements and later learned she had pulmonary hypertension caused by her weight, which made surgery risky. Still, she pushed through and succeeded.
She has long acknowledged her food addiction. She said she could not stop eating or spending money on food, even when she knew it threatened her life. Now in her forties, she still lives with her parents, who often enabled her by sending food upstairs and cooking anything she asked for.
The show follows people who travel to Houston to meet Dr. Nauzaradan in hopes of qualifying for gastric bypass surgery.