1000-lb Sisters: Season 4, Episode 7 Recap: ‘Proof is in the Pudding’

After struggling for years (and three seasons of the show), Tammy Slaton ended last week’s episode of 1000-lb Sisters with good news: she was finally approved to have her weight loss surgery, but this week’s episode shows that things were not as straightforward as expected. As for Amy, who dealt with the stress of raising her newborn son while morbidly obese, will meet with Dr. Procter to continue her health and fitness journey.

“Welcome to your new life,” Chris congratulates Tammy after her approval. Tammy’s hard work has finally paid off — and it’s all due to her new attitude following the series premiere found her fighting for her life. “We’re going to get you a string bikini, sis!” Misty jokes.

While it’s only been seven weeks for the show, Tammy reveals it’s been eight months since her brush with death, and that eight month journey has lead her to finally getting approval for the surgery to change her life. Tammy will have her surgery as soon as possible, and then spend a week in Lexington so that her team of doctors can monitor her for any possible complications, considering how high-risk she is — though, as last week’s episode stated, she’s at even more risk of death if she doesn’t get the surgery.

If all goes well right after surgery and the week following, Tammy will head back to rehab for an additional month and then be back home — or rather, in a new home considering her apartment was robbed while she was in rehab.

Tammy also fears ‘Dumping Syndrome’ or the “condition in which food moves from your stomach into your small bowel too quickly after you eat,” something common after surgeries like this.

Meanwhile, Amy, happy for Tammy’s success, plans to head to Lexington to be there for Tammy, but first she stops by and visits Darlene (her and Tammy’s mother.) Amy tries to convince Darlene to go to Lexington with her to be there and support Tammy — but Darlene is too worried about her dogs needing fed for the day or so while they would be out of town, making Amy frustrated at her mother’s lack of support in this important moment for Tammy.

“It’s just in God’s hands,” Darlene says, after remarking she hopes she doesn’t get a call that Tammy died.

5:30 a.m. and Tammy is up and ready for surgery — too nervous to sleep properly. She also brags about sticking to the all-liquid diet before surgery (making a remark that she’s ‘not Amy.’) The family waits outside the hospital with party horns and confetti to celebrate, along with a poster full of handwritten messages celebrating Tammy’s success.

“When I get home, I’m babysitting,” Tammy says. Before surgery, she holds Glenn, citing Amy’s kids as the reason she keeps on going. These heartfelt and tender moments from Tammy are new this season, and such a breath of fresh air that makes it so easy to root for her. The belligerent, grumpy Tammy of past seasons struggled to meet her goals and struggled to garner any sympathy for her stubbornness. The new Tammy proved the naysayers wrong, and did it with a positive outlook.

With COVID restrictions, only Chris and Misty will be allowed with Tammy inside the hospital. The rest of the family will wait nearby at the doctor’s offices. The surgery (shown in graphic detail) is not without its risks, and if everything were to go perfectly, Dr. Smith says it should take around 90 minutes.

Chris’s surgery removed 30% of his stomach and was considered a drastic change — and Tammy will have 80% of her’s removed, as well as 30% of her small intestine. This extreme version of the surgery makes tensions rise among the family in the waiting room. Two hours later, Chris and Misty begin to worry.

Dr. Smith soon arrives to let the family know the surgery went smoothly, giving the family a huge wave of relief. Dr. Smith explained that Tammy’s anatomy around her small bowel and colon presented some small issues that made them take their time to ensure everything was correct before proceeding, adding to the extra time.

Tammy is understandably exhausted after surgery, and the next 14 days will be crucial in her success. Hopefully with her family and other support systems, she’ll be able to have continued success on her new journey.

After Tammy’s surgery, Amy heads back home for a video call with her doctor to discuss her goals to reach 150 lbs despite setbacks during her pregnancy. Amy cites Glenn as a reason her diet isn’t the best, with the newborn’s needs limiting her available time to prepare and eat properly.

Dr. Procter is happily surprised to hear of Tammy’s success, and is eager to get Amy back on track as well. Amy’s weight was holding at around 275, and after having Glenn, she’s weighing in at 281. Procter is content that she only gained 6 pounds through two pregnancies, but is adamant that Amy can take more steps to further her success — cutting out dairy, wheat and carbs (to Amy’s chagrin: “I gotta have my cheese!”) “It’s time to buckle down,” Dr. Procter says, aiming to have Amy down to 260 in 6 weeks.

After surgery, Tammy is ready to be discharged from the hospital and stay in Lexington for monitoring for the next week. She remains in good spirits though, looking forward to doing things like traveling, flying, getting married and maybe even having children, being inspired by Amy’s success. “I don’t even know if I can have kids,” Tammy says, throwing around the idea of a mini-Tammy running around.  “Keep having babies,” Amanda jokes, “and I can keep spoiling them.”

Tammy has sutures and her trach to deal with, so the next week is precarious as Tammy stays at a local hotel for monitoring. In an odd turn, the family decides to leave Tammy alone at the hospital. Granted, she’ll have the show’s team with her, but it feels weird that the family wouldn’t stay by her side for the initial week before she heads back to rehab — especially when they all give confessionals about how they worry about Tammy remaining compliant with her recovery plan.

“I know that they’re going to be there when I get home,” Tammy says, continuing to remain positive.

Next week’s episode finds Amanda and Amy going for a spa day to de-stress, while Tammy starts to show signs of her old ways, battles a trach infection and finds a new boyfriend much to her family’s dismay…

Watch 1000-lb Sisters on TLC and streaming on Discovery+.