If you watch TLC’s My 600 Lb. Life, you know that the show features a variety of people in difficult situations, many of whom have suffered from trauma and tragedy that have since led them to overeat.
The latest episode of the show covers Joyce Del Viscovo, a 44-year-old woman who begins the show weighs 758 pounds. Joyce hopes that Dr. Younan Nowzaradan, often called Dr. Now, will be able to help her through extreme weight loss so she can become mobile again.
Joyce’s story appears in season 8, episode 7 and is simply called “Joyce’s Story.” It has been years since Joyce was able to leave her house, and she requires 24/7 care provided by others. Joyce helps that a visit to Dr. Now’s office in Houston will help her lose weight and become healthy once again.
Of course, every story featured on the show is deeper than it appears. Many of those who appear on the show have deep trauma. Where did her story begin?
Dr. Now has harsh words for Joyce! Will she be able to make a change? #My600lbLife starts now. pic.twitter.com/pCgCw5g1sF
— TLC Network (@TLC) February 13, 2020
TLC has posted some clips from Joyce’s episode on Twitter. In one clip, Joyce can be heard saying that she wants the people taking care of her to “shut up” and just bring her food. She does not want to hear their judgements about how much she is eating in a single meal. At the same time, she alleges that the people who are supposed to take care of keep giving her access to so much food.
Joyce also discusses feeling judgment from her mother. If anything is clear, it is the fact that family dynamics are going to play a big role in this episode.
"Shut up and give me the food!" While Joyce and her caretakers know it's time to start eating healthier, they struggle with changing old habits. Follow the journey tonight at 8/7c on #My600lbLife. pic.twitter.com/ALc7VaXeI6
— TLC Network (@TLC) February 12, 2020
As with so many other cases on My 600 Lb. Life, Joyce’s weight gain began when she was a child. She developed food addiction early in life. It seemingly began after her parents divorced and Joyce and her mother forced her to live with her grandmother. Joyce claimed that this grandmother encouraged her to use food as a way to appease her feelings.
On the other end of the spectrum, Joyce’s mother would put the young girl on strict diets to revert the effects. For this reason, Joyce would often sneak food.
Ultimately, Joyce ended up dropping out of her weight loss program before a year passed. She lost nearly 150 pounds but gained back more than one-third of that. On her final weigh-in, she came in at 611 pounds.
Why wasn’t Joyce able to lose much more weight? Once, she claimed the scale was not working right. Another time, she told Dr. Now that his diet was simply not reasonable. She maintained that it was the program that was bad, not her fight.
