1000-lb Sisters: Season 4, Episode 8 Recap: ‘Forbidden Fruit’

Following last week’s episode featuring Tammy’s successful weight loss surgery, this week’s 1000-lb Sisters deals with the aftermath — involving Tammy wanting to come home, but a major blowup between her and the family occurs when a new man enters Tammy’s life.

As Tammy prepares to leave rehab one year after arriving there and experiencing a brush with death, she has to deal with the fact that while in rehab, her apartment was robbed — and all of her possessions are now gone. Amanda has the idea for Tammy to rent her old apartment, which Tammy is excited for, considering she’s familiar with Amanda’s old apartment but will still be able to enjoy a fresh start.

Amy sets time aside with Gage and Glenn to help the kids paint a picture to give to Tammy in celebration of her return home. Despite the show doing its best to find drama in Amy’s life, there’s (thankfully) not much to be found.

Earlier in this season, it seemed like Amy was taking her pregnancy cravings too far, eating plenty of junk food — but she quickly turned that around. The show also attempted to foreshadow marital issues between Amy and Michael following Glenn’s birth as Amy struggled with the newborn while Michael watched, but even that seems to have resolved itself as the couple appears together happily in new scenes.

Arts and crafts and finger-painting is the perfect showcase of how successful Amy’s journey on the show has been so far (and hopefully Tammy will follow in her footsteps.) During the arts and crafts, though, the outside drama makes its way into the scene — with Chris pulled over on the side of the road and calling Amy to let her know Tammy has developed a trach infection and must take antibiotics for ten days, under supervision at the facility.

The family is frustrated and angry about Tammy’s infection, but it’s really what is best for Tammy and her health, especially so soon after the risky surgery. None of the family is qualified to take care of Tammy especially with her trach. The family decides to have a gathering to see what is the best way to take care of Tammy and her specific needs when she is able to come home.

Amanda drops the bomb that Tammy will essentially be coming home on a ventilator and life support, and the training required to take care of her will involve a week’s long course at a hospital. Amanda can’t afford to miss work for so long, and Amy (who also planned to be one of Tammy’s caregivers) can’t be away from her children for so long, either.

Chris explains that in an ideal world, Tammy would be ready to have her trach removed in about 21 days. Amanda points out that, even with trained medical professionals, she developed an infection — even in the facility. It’s a difficult decision, but they decide that it’s in Tammy’s best interests to stay at the facility until she can have the trach taken out, where trained professionals can help take care of it and keep her in good health around the clock.

When they confront Tammy with this news, she is outraged. “Either you’re going to come and get me at the end of next week, or I’m leaving,” she demands. After getting her way and having the surgery, Tammy seems to have made a quick snap back to her old, selfish habits of throwing temper tantrums when things aren’t going smoothly.

“Amanda and Amy played me,” Tammy says, speaking about how the two promised to receive the training to help care for Tammy and her trach after her surgery. In Tammy’s eyes, she’s definitely been deceived — and Amanda and Amy both did her wrong when they agreed to the training without being fully aware of all that it entailed. However, as Amanda pointed out, Tammy also needs to be more understanding that both she and Amy have other things going on in their lives that makes an intensive, week’s long medical training very difficult to accomplish.

“If my family wanna be a part of my life, they have to listen to me. I want respect. I deserve respect,” Tammy cries. Isolated in rehab hours from the rest of the family, she’s definitely reacting strongly to the news of her continued isolation, but after all she’s been through, it’s understandable — especially when Tammy is by herself and sad, while Amy and Amanda spend a spa day together.

It’s nice that Amanda and Amy have time to de-stress and unwind at a spa, though the juxtaposition of the spa day scene following Tammy’s heartfelt crying over feeling disrespected is pretty diabolical.

The show fast forwards to a month after Tammy and the family’s falling out, and Tammy has developed bonds and friendships at the rehab facility. One of these friends is Caleb, who attributes Tammy’s help to saving his life when he was running out of oxygen. Caleb also admits to looking at Tammy’s social media and it being one of the attributing factors to him entering the facility. “I don’t stalk…I do research,” he says.

“Sparks are flying,” another resident observes about Tammy and Caleb’s relationship.

The family later finds out through social media that Tammy and Caleb are now dating — and finding out through social media frustrates Amy, on top of the fact that she wants Tammy to be free to experience this new part of her life and focus on her health properly without distractions.

Chris finds it strange that Tammy found love in the facility right as she’s getting ready to leave it. Amy also worries about Tammy’s mental health, citing how previous relationships have dragged Tammy’s mental health down.

This episode is definitely full of shady editing cuts — just after Amy, Amanda and Chris talk as a group about Tammy’s new boyfriend and just how the relationship may work, making crude sexual jokes, the show cuts to Caleb preparing a sweet date for Tammy and her professing “I’ve never felt this way about anybody.”

Over lunch, the two discuss their mutual interest in each other — with Caleb acknowledging Tammy’s prior statements that she’d never date someone that was big like her, but going on to say he knows she will make a great mother and wife.

Caleb is, of course, saying everything that Tammy (who just last episode after surgery spoke about wanting to get married and have kids) wants to hear. The two are very much in a puppy love phase of their relationship, and Tammy attributes her family not allowing her to come home with her trach infection to being the fate that led her to Caleb.

It’s hard to say how much of this may be a show for the cameras — the show is heavily featuring Caleb and Tammy’s closeness on screen, where as the rest of the cast have had their relationships develop off screen. Tammy’s dating life has always been one of the points of interest that 1000-lb Sisters explores, and Tammy’s track record hasn’t been very promising.

Which is why it’s no surprise that in such a short amount of time, Caleb takes Tammy out to the romantic scenic parking lot of the facility, stands up out of his wheelchair, and asks Tammy to marry him. Despite only dating for three weeks, Tammy accepts. I think it’s safe to say that Tammy might be talking with her therapist down the road about issues of family abandonment and how those issues may lead her to make rash decisions…if Tammy still pursues therapy, considering it was a requirement for her surgery approval.

“I’m not sure how they’re going to take it. I want their approval,” Tammy says, about her decision to wait a few days to let the family know of the engagement. “If I don’t get it, I’m still going to marry him,” she adds.

Next episode teases Tammy breaking the news to the family — as well as her planning to rush the wedding and have it in just two weeks. The family also makes a group visit to the facility to meet Chris and question him and Tammy’s relationship. Watch 1000-lb Sisters on TLC and streaming on Discovery+.