1000-lb Sisters star Tammy Slaton has been a polarizing figure, but many wonder how she’s gone from the villain of her own story to the hero.

1000-lb Sisters star Tammy Slaton has been a polarizing figure throughout the years, and while many used to categorize her as the villain of the series, she seems to be coming out as the hero. Over the course of her time on her TLC series, Tammy has received a fair amount of criticism for her attitude and behavior. She seems to have changed for the better over the course of the last year, with her outlook getting more positive as she has healed from her past.

Earlier in her journey to finding her healthiest self, 1000-lb Sisters’ Tammy Slaton found it difficult to keep up, and threatened to quit time and time again. Working alongside her sister Amy Slaton-Halterman, who initially had less weight to lose than Tammy, was meant to give both sisters a support system, as they changed their long-time habits and turned their lives around. Tammy’s self-destructive behavior was a focal point of the series, while Amy was more successful with her initial attempt at weight loss. She got to a point where she was able to have bariatric surgery and ultimately get pregnant with her first son, Gage. Tammy, on the other hand, took much more time to forge her own path, with a slew of complications along the way.

What Obstacles Stood In Tammy Slaton’s Way?

While Amy had an easier start on her health journey, Tammy found it a bit more difficult to get started. The Slaton sisters had a difficult childhood. Amy and Tammy were raised by their grandmother while their mother was absent, and when their grandmother passed away, Tammy took it the hardest. Their eating habits were not healthy to begin with, but after their grandmother’s passing and some other traumatic events, Tammy began eating to cope with her grief and found herself at an unmanageable weight at over 700 pounds. The 1000-lb Sisters star was wheelchair bound and angry. Though she accepted an offer to do the TLC docuseries with her sister, she seemed uninterested in trying to lose weight or heal herself in any capacity.

How Has Tammy Overcome The Adversity She Faced?

After several seasons of watching Tammy push back against treatment and continue to stay stagnant, even gaining weight some years, viewers became frustrated with 1000-lb Sisters. It felt difficult to watch someone who did not want to be helped, and Tammy’s family seemed to share the sentiment, even holding an intervention and putting her into rehab. It was once she was in treatment that things began to get grave for Tammy, who suffered a medical emergency and stopped breathing for some time. She was rushed to a hospital and treated, then brought back to rehab where things began to change for her. Tammy’s attitude turned around, with her near-death experience changing her life.

Things have been looking up for Tammy, now that she is taking her health more seriously. As time has gone on, she has reached her goal weight and even lost more than her doctors required. With her life-saving bariatric surgery on the horizon, Tammy is looking more like the hero of her own story each and every day. 1000-lb Sisters season 4 has shown an all-new Tammy, one who is invested in her health and wants to change for the better.