'My 600-lb Life': Food was Leneatha's shelter from abuse and it helped her forget breast reduction surgery scars

Tonight’s episode of ‘My 600-lb Life’ follows Leneatha Reed, a 40-year-old single mother who weighs over 600 pounds. 

At the beginning of the episode, she says how she wishes to go back to sleep after waking up every morning as she dreads the thought of facing reality. Not only does her enormous frame cause immense pain, but also limits her from taking a few steps as she soon runs out of breath. 

She’s afraid to go to the toilet as she feels her weight would break the toilet seat and prays to God she doesn’t smell as bathing is a tedious task for her to indulge in every day. 

She lives in fear every day and is also stressed about working and taking care of her daughter, who suffers from asthma and needs constant assistance and medication. 

Although she’s grateful that she has a job that provides for her livelihood, she feels her body will soon give up. She feels she’s falling apart with each passing day as eating is her only solace. The only time she isn’t stressed is when she’s eating. 

Meanwhile, recollecting her childhood Leneatha shared that she was the youngest of her siblings and how her parents always took good care of them. Love was often displayed through food and it never bothered Leneatha much as she weighed as much as any other child when she was young. 

She gained a little weight in high school and by the time she graduated, she was over 180 pounds. She started working at the age of 18 but things started going wrong when she turned 24. 

She started experiencing a pinching pain in her back owing to heavy breasts. She was recommended to get breast reduction surgery to fit her body. But her lungs collapsed during the surgery and the rest of the days followed intense care and multiple visits to the hospital. 

When she ran out of money to buy medications, she substituted it with food. She found light at the end of the tunnel at 29 when she found a man who liked her for who she was and never complained about her enormous frame. 

They got married and thought they were happy until he started showing his true colors. He was verbally and emotionally abusive. When things would get really bad, she resorted to eating sweets to make herself feel better. They eventually divorced when he cheated on her. 

Three years later, she met her daughter’s father. She was over 500 pounds when she had her daughter. Without revealing his identity, Leneatha said his character suddenly “flipped” and he walked out of the relationship soon after her daughter’s first birthday. 

Leneatha is now living on her own and is determined to lead a healthy life to be able to take care of her daughter and not leave her alone. However, she gives in to her desires each time she tastes food. 

She admits she’s addicted to food and doesn’t know how long she can be around her daughter. Leneatha is now determined to lose weight for her daughter so that she can be around to see her accomplishments when she grows up.