My 600-Lb Life Stories That Didn't End Well

There are plenty of reality shows on television that document weight loss in a variety of different settings. But My 600-lb Life stands out from many of the rest, as it focuses on the real lives of real people in their everyday world — as opposed to a specialized environment crafted to melt off pounds ASAP. Additionally, the medical interventions offered on the show are scientifically proven to help patients keep a significant weight off in the long-term, according to the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery. That's a heartening statistic!

Unfortunately, not all of the patients on My 600-lb Life are able to maintain a successful weight loss, and, in some cases, never manage to lose much weight at all. Additionally, complications can arise for patients 600 pounds or more, as has been shown on the series and afterward the cameras stop rolling — sometimes with tragic results. Worst of all, some of the patients on the program have passed away either during or after filming, which is as devastating and heartbreaking as you might expect. Bearing that in mind, here are some of the stories from My 600-lb Life that didn't end well.

Robert Buchel's situation on his episode of My 600-lb Life was dire from the outset. It didn't take long for Dr. Now to discover that he not only weighed nearly 850 pounds, but that he also had an addiction to painkillers like Dilaudid — pretty serious stuff. But after a rocky start, Buchel was able to finally get some control over his compulsive overeating habits. The Forked River, NJ resident had a lot of love on his side, including that of his mother and his fiancée, Kathryn. With that support and a whole lot of work, Buchel managed to lose a significant amount of weight under Dr. Now's watchful care — almost 350 pounds, if you include the surgical removal of a lymphedema mass. That's impressive!

Unfortunately, the removal of the mass rendered Buchel depressed and longing for painkillers again. He even tore his stitches hoping to get more of them. Before the episode ended, Buchel passed away from a heart attack in November of 2017. Dr. Now was not shy about expressing his frustration at the medical system for its complicity in Buchel's addiction, which ultimately killed him. He also hailed him for being a fighter.

Sean Milliken seemed like he was moving in the right direction after a rocky start to his weight loss journey. After initially weighing in at nearly 900 pounds and being mostly immobile, Milliken was finally able to turn things around and get weight loss surgery. That, in turn, helped him drop hundreds of pounds and regain his ability to walk, according to his follow-up episode of My 600-lb Life: Where Are They Now? It was evident that he was putting in the work.

But in 2018, tragedy struck, and Milliken's mother passed away from renal failure, according to a follow-up video released by TLC (via TMZ). Understandably he was devastated, as he and his mother were extremely close. Additionally, since she was his supporter, he had to move out of his Houston apartment. He was clearly thrust into a very difficult situation, in more ways than one.

In another sorrowful turn of events, Milliken himself passed away in the hospital from complications from an infection in February of 2019. "He was having problems with his breathing," his father wrote on Facebook (via TMZ). "They were able to resuscitate him and a short time later his heart stopped." He was only 29 years old.

Dr. Now is known for giving patients the hope that they need to turn their lives around and the tools to help them on their journey. That's what Kelly Mason was looking for when she made the long and arduous trip to Houston to meet with the famous surgeon. And when she arrived, viewers learned that she had a host of health issues that she was contending with: high blood pressure, a blood clot in her leg, type 2 diabetes, arthritis, thyroid problems, and heart problems. It was clear that she needed help ASAP.

Things started looking up for Mason when Dr. Now admitted her to the hospital, where she was able to lose over 200 pounds. She then had weight loss surgery, and dropped another 100 — quite the accomplishment! Upon discharge, she was hopeful, and was committed to sticking to her diet and exercise regimen. 

Sadly, Mason's heart had already been through too much, despite her best efforts. She passed away during filming in her sleep of a heart attack in February of 2019, according to Inquisitr. Dr. Now did point out, however, that she hadn't returned to her old habits — she went down fighting.

When James "LB" Bonner's episode of My 600-lb Life premiered, he quickly became a Season 6 fan favorite. After struggling with food and alcohol addiction — and losing his a foot after an ATV crash — Bonner's weight ballooned to 650 pounds. Unable to care for himself and living with his parents, Bonner decided to seek help from Dr. Now, determined to make a change. 

By the end of the show, it was clear that Bonner was a success story. He went from 650 pounds to less than half of that, and was sticking to his diet and exercise regimen. Additionally, he had become a burgeoning social media star, with more than 8,000 Facebook followers, according to Starcasm. He was doing so well and losing so much weight that TLC put the quash on his photo and video sharing, which might have spoiled any follow-up episodes, or given too much away.

But sadly, no follow-up episode would ever air. That's because, tragically, Bonner committed suicide in the summer of 2018 at age 30, according to People magazine. The cause of death was a single, self-inflicted gunshot to the head. His motivation for ending his life is not known to the public, though his family came forward to share some of the battles he faced before his death. 

Some of the most heartbreaking episodes of My 600-lb Life are those you see long after their original air date, once you know the person didn't survive. It's especially sad when they've put in the blood, sweat, and tears needed in order to lose weight and reclaim their lives, as Henry Foots did in Season 1, but never got the chance to turn it all around.

As one of the first stars of the show, Foots endeared himself to viewers with his kind disposition and sincere desire to show up to his high school reunion looking his best. Thanks to his hard work and determination, Foots went from 750 pounds to 275 pounds, an absolutely amazing accomplishment. He was literally less than half of the man that he used to be, poised to put his past behind him.

In a heartbreaking twist, however, Foots passed away in 2013, several months after having a medical episode while driving a bus, according to Starcasm. While his precise cause of death remains unknown, his passing is indeed an unfortunate reality. Foots' obituary is available here. 

One of the most awful things ever shown on My 600-lb Life happened during Lisa Fleming's episode, when her daughter discovered that there were literal maggots living in the folds of her skin. It seemed like that would be the wake-up call that got Fleming motivated enough to stick to the diet that Dr. Now had prescribed her, especially weighing over 700 pounds. That was also on top of needing a team of paramedics to get her out of her house.

Although Fleming did lose some weight while under supervision, she gained the weight again once she was back at home. As the show went on, Fleming's manipulative tactics became apparent, arguably some of the worst in the show's history. By the end of her episode, Dr. Now was clearly frustrated with Fleming's unwillingness to change, and dismissed her from his program.

Not a year after Fleming appeared on My 600-lb Life, she passed away at her home at age 50, according to Page Six — a heartbreaking end to a truly tragic story. 

Ever since she was a child, Gina Krasley turned to food for comfort and pleasure, even if she had to argue with and manipulate her mother to get it. But it was the abuse that Krasley suffered at the hands of her violent father that truly caused her weight to spiral out of control, causing her to overeat until she weighed over 600 pounds. With her marriage in trouble and her life on the line, Krasley turned to Dr. Now for help.

But despite Krasley's best efforts, on the eve of her weight loss surgery, Dr. Now called the procedure off, as Krasley had regained some of the 64 pounds that she'd lost. By the end of the My 600-lb Life episode, Krasley had an ultimatum on her hands: lose 75 pounds in three months or Dr. Now would no longer work with her.

While Krasley's episode didn't end well, a follow-up episode seemed imminent given the way things left off. However, it's not likely that we'll see one anytime soon as Krasley is one of the  cast members who have filed suit against the show's production company, Megalomedia, according to Starcasm.

Some of the stars of My 600-lb Life are more adversarial than others, which is arguably the case when it comes to Angela Johns. At 643 pounds, she didn't accept much of Dr. Now's help and largely didn't do the work that he asked of her. She appeared to also be abusive toward her family, resorting to verbal putdowns when they didn't do what she asked of them.

Much of this behavior was likely due, in part, to John's past traumas, which are especially harrowing. A survivor of sexual abuse, Johns was raised by a parent with serious substance abuse issues. She also had to give away the baby that she had when she was barely a teenager, which was as a result of statutory rape.

Struggling with these traumas seemed to prove too much for Johns, who only managed to lose about 50 pounds by the end of her episode (via Starcasm). That coupled with her toxicology reports that found she tested positive for narcotics and her refusal to go to rehab resulted in her dismissal from Dr. Now's program.

Leneatha Reed was the last person to appear on My 600-lb Life before filming was suspended in 2020. Previously, the pharmacy technician had gone viral on the internet after vowing to lose 451 pounds, according to Good Morning America. The reason? Reed wanted to be more active and involved in both her daughter's life as well as her own.

However, in spite of her initial motivation and genuine desire to turn her life around, Reed found Dr. Now's diet too difficult to follow. To that end, she started missing appointments, until it was clear that she wasn't losing the weight she needed to in order to qualify for weight-loss surgery. By the conclusion of her episode, which didn't end well, Reed had left the program altogether.

It's not all doom and gloom, though, as Dr. Now said that Reed would be welcomed back into the program — if she puts in the effort to show she's serious.