What Happened To Paula Jones From My 600-Lb Life?
You wouldn't know it to look at her today, but Paula Jones appeared on season two of TLC's My 600-lb Life in 2014, weighing 542 pounds. On the show, Jones revealed her struggles with overeating began early on, after she was molested at age six (via Metro). Her wake-up call came when her husband, who also struggled with obesity, passed away at the age of 33 from weight-related complications, per Woman's World. Jones feared her four children would be left without a parent if she didn't change her ways.
Jones eventually sought the help of bariatric surgeon Dr. Younan Nowzaradan, aka Dr. Now. In order to receive the gastric bypass surgery she needed, Jones moved her family from Georgia to Texas to be closer to Dr. Now and undertook an all-liquid diet to accomplish the initial weight loss required before going under the knife.
Once her surgery was complete, Jones continued to drop weight with the help of counseling and a personal trainer. Viewers know her journey was not easy and old habits die hard; Jones followed up her first post-surgery visit to the gym with a trip through the drive-thru for a burrito (via YouTube). But she persevered, and by 2015, she'd lost 273 pounds and was ready for skin-tightening surgery, which was captured on My 600-lb Life: Where Are They Now? Today, Jones continues to share her story of positive change with the world.
Paula Jones works to share her message of positivity
Jones celebrated the anniversary of her weight-loss surgery in 2016 with a social media post that really summed up her progress so far. The photo showed images of her before surgery and one of her transformed figure three years later; it was captioned "From 600lbs to 200lbs!" (via Instagram).
A 400-pound weight loss is certainly something to be proud of, but Jones takes her accomplishments a step further by lending her support to events like the Southeast Bariatric Weight Loss Surgery Conference (via Starcasm). Plus, for several years in a row, on her birthday, she has brought awareness to the obesity epidemic in America by sharing a post of a purple candle and asking others to help spread the message of living a healthy lifestyle (via Instagram).
All the while, she continues to maintain her slimmed-down status, even with the COVID-19 pandemic. In March, she posted a photo during a set of crunches with the hashtags #fitforlife and #my200poundlife (per Instagram). Her weight-loss journey certainly has been incredible, and it doesn't look like she's slowing down anytime soon. And remembering the heartbreaking motivation that prompted her to get fit in the first place, we're anxious to know what's going on in this young widow's personal life today.
Paula Jones has a new man and a new granddaughter
Much of Jones' activity on social media focuses on her inspiring weight-loss story, but occasionally she alludes to having found a partner on her journey. In 2017, she revealed that she'd been dating a "wonderful man" for an entire year, adding, "He is kind, funny, compassionate, loving, understanding, affectionate, honest, thoughtful, stable, helpful, responsible, reliable, hard working, God fearing, protective, health conscious, and sexy!" (via Facebook). Unfortunately for us, the mystery man is too private to indulge in a selfie for social media. So, his identity remains a secret for now, but we hope it's the same man who gifted Jones a sparkly diamond ring in 2018, per Facebook.
One thing that's not secret is a new little bundle of joy in the family — Jones' first grandchild. According to Starcasm, Jones welcomed her first granddaughter, Laylani Saior Lisaula, on June 12. A few days later, on National Gorgeous Grandma Day, she posted on Facebook in celebration of her new grandparent status, saying, "Today is National Gorgeous Grandma Day ... I am not [too] young to be a grandma, and it took many years to believe that I am gorgeous!! So today is Paula Day! Yep, I said it!! LOL!" She sure has come a long way from a 600-pound life and she has the confidence to match.