Original subtitles

Food has, just like, grasp on me.

I think I lean on food more than I did substances because

when I eat food, I don't think about the substances.

[woman] Somewhere in me is this little glimmer of hope.

I just wanna be a normal person.

[breathing heavily]

[man] You can't do it and then I just get mad.

[woman 2] If I don't make a change now,

I'm scared it's gonna be too late.

[groaning] It hurts.

[woman 3] I refuse to stop fighting.

I have to do this for my children.

Can't even get my leg in.

[grunts]

[panting]

[bleep] I hate this car.

[Ryan] The life that I am living at the size that I am right now, is...

It's something that no one should ever experience.

It's not really a life.

Because I can't do anything anymore, really.

I'm too big.

I haven't slept on a bed, a real bed, in probably,

uh, eight years.

It's just too hard to get in one.

So I sit in this chair all day long and try not to get up.

But if I do, all the pain that's pulling on me

is excruciating.

So I try not to get up unless I have to.

Usually I only do it to use the bathroom.

I still have some hardened lymphedema on my leg

that pulls on me

and swings when I walk.

It makes the pain ten times worse.

On some days, I can manage.

Other days, it's horrible. It hurts... significantly.

And, uh,

it's getting harder and harder

to stay mobile and to get around as I need.

I can't even fit in normal doorways anymore.

I have to turn sideways to get through the bathroom door.

Once I make it to the bathroom, I can't

take too long. Or I'll get too tired.

And by the time I finish,

I'm so exhausted.

I get winded and out of breath.

I just feel like I'm gasping and sucking for air constantly.

And I'm gonna have to take my time getting back.

Because I'm too weak to walk fast without falling.

So I have to be careful making it back to my recliner.

But even when I get there,

at my size, it's just not as simple as sitting back down.

Because my knees can't hold my weight bending down like that.

So I come down hard on it each time.

And I know at some point the recliner has to give.

And if that happens,

I'm scared I'm gonna get seriously hurt.

But this is the only way I can manage.

I can't lie down,

or use a normal chair.

So this is where I stay just about all day.

I even have to clean myself here.

Because I can't stand long enough in the bathroom.

Basically, all I can do

is wipe down as best as I can.

And my mom or Leroy,

my mom's boyfriend,

bring me some water to help me do it.

Most of the time, it's Leroy.

Hey, Leroy, can you please bring down my towel, please?

- Yeah. - Thank you.

I let Leroy know that I'm ready

for my bath water, and he'll bring it down to me.

There you go.

- Thank you. - You're welcome.

Then him and my mom, if she's home,

will wait upstairs to give me some privacy.

But I hate the whole process of cleaning myself.

Bathing myself, um,

it's just difficult because it's hard to reach all the places.

I just can't reach around my whole body anymore.

It's not possible, so I'm limited in what I can do.

Something that should take three to five minutes,

you know, takes 15 to 20 at times just because

my physical health.

And, I always have to stop before I finish.

So I know that I could be a lot cleaner than I am.

But I just do the best I can for as long as I can.

Then I have to be done no matter if I'm fully clean or not.

Then after my bath, it's my favorite part of the day.

Because I get to start doing what I love best.

So I re-clothe myself and then

I let them know that it's safe to come down.

And once I get situated again, it's time to eat.

So my mom will usually start breakfast for me,

and Leroy will get my drink.

Can you guys... Leroy, can you come down and help me?

[Leroy] Yeah.

Can you put some soda in there, please?

Sure.

I don't usually eat a big breakfast,

so my drink is what I really want most.

That's one of the most important things to me

is to have my cup filled with what I like.

The soda I like.

And I nurse that all day long even when I'm not eating.

But I can't get all that myself,

so Leroy helps me a lot.

He's almost the same age as me.

He's just a little older.

So I like hanging out with him when we can.

He and my mom are basically my whole world now.

Because all I do is sit here and eat all day.

But as long as I'm eating and I have my drink, I'm happy.

- How are you? - Good morning, Mom.

What would you like for breakfast, darling?

Uh, couple of breakfast burritos,

some sausage and bacon and a bagel.

- Sausage and bacon? - Yeah.

- Bagel with cream cheese? - Please.

- Thank you. - You're welcome.

Eating my favorite foods make me feel great.

It makes it to where I don't

think about all the other things that are going on.

Bub, do you want your meat in your eggs?

Yes, please.

When I'm eating food, there's a lot of comfort that I get from eating.

I just... don't think about anything else

and that's also, like-- So it's mind-numbing.

And that's-- that's what I need.

So when I eat, I never wanna stop.

And I never feel like I have to.

Because I've never really felt... like I was full.

That's a feeling I never get.

So I only stop when I run out.

But if I didn't, then...

I could keep eating, and eating and eating.

By the time I finish the meal that I'm eating,

I'm already thinking about the next meal.

Like, when I'm eating breakfast, I ask my mom what we're having for lunch.

I need to know what's in line, and what's next.

Because I already can't wait to eat again,

even though I just did.

So, my whole day basically revolves around me eating and drinking

and how I'm gonna get more of it, and that's what drives me.

And that's what consumes my thoughts

and what I do all day and everyday.

Eating is basically my life.

And honestly, it's been that way for me for a long time.

My life has always been a struggle.

I never met my birth father.

And as far as I'm concerned,

all he was was a sperm donor.

And he just didn't care to stick around.

But for most of my childhood, I thought that my stepdad,

Jeff, was my biological father.

And so, I didn't understand growing up

why he never seemed to like me.

I was always seeking attention from him.

Trying to get him to wanna do things with me.

But he never wanted to and never treated me like he cared.

He only cared about my sister and my mom.

I knew my sister was his biological child.

Because she was born when I was three.

But I didn't know I wasn't Jeff's real son until later on.

He always made me feel like I was this

burden or problem he wanted gone.

And then my choice from that was to turn to food.

Because it always made me feel better, you know.

You feel bad you, you eat a doughnut.

And that's how I coped with a lot of things.

Turned to food to get the comfort that I was looking for.

And it filled that void, so food became my best friend.

So I started to eat a lot and I started gaining from that.

At first, it was slow.

It just seemed like I was a little overweight.

When I was 10 years old,

I broke the 100-pound mark.

And the difference in my size

started to get hard to ignore.

And I knew it was because of how I ate, but I didn't care.

Things got worse with my stepdad.

And I became the fat stepchild.

The ultimate solution was to get rid of me.

So, as I was going into middle school,

I moved to be with my grandparents.

But I didn't mind because I felt like they cared for me.

When I lived at my grandparents' house,

my weight was pretty steady.

Because I wasn't

seeking attention, you know, I was getting attention at that time.

My grandfather did stuff with me and stuff like that.

And for the first time in my life, I felt like I actually had a father,

my grandfather. I was happy.

And things were good for about a year.

But a year into living with them is when I found

my dad wasn't my real dad.

My real dad passed away.

My grandparents showed me the obituary.

He had cancer, he was dead.

And that's when I ultimately knew that

I would never have that relationship that I was seeking as a child.

So, I turned back to food

to deal with that, because it flipped my world to find that out.

But then my grandpa got sick.

As I started middle school, he went to the doctor.

That was on my 13th birthday.

It happened so fast.

He had cancer in his foot and he was dead.

It wasn't fair.

From the day that they said

he was terminal, he lived six days.

And it was over like that.

And that's...

when everything changed.

I was devastated.

I felt alone again.

And what made it worse

is that I had to go back to living with my parents

and sister and be around Jeff again.

So I just started eating a lot again and I put on weight fast.

I knew I did because, later that year, I wanted to join the football team.

I had to take a physical for football

and I weighed in at 185.

But on top of that, I wanted to be a running back.

I wanted that position but I couldn't run the ball.

They told me, "You're a lineman."

And that stuck throughout all my football years.

But being labeled that

mentally destroyed me.

So that started me on a downward spiral

where I didn't really wanna be around people.

And all I did was go home and eat.

When I started partying, drugs and alcohol with my friends,

freshman and sophomore year, I partied pretty hard.

I smoked a lot, I drank

more than any parent knows I did.

I was still eating all the time, also.

And that just got worse and spiraled more out of control.

By the time I was 17,

I was already up to 300 pounds.

But that was a bad year for me.

Because that was my junior year,

and I got caught with a gram of marijuana at school.

And that led to me getting kicked off the football team.

And that was the icing on the cake.

So that led me to just keep spiraling.

Where I just ate and got high all the time.

That's all I cared about, so...

My weight continued to get worse

and I continued using

cocaine, other pills, and opiates.

And then at that time is was when I realized I

really had a problem, so I got clean

and stopped using.

I was 18 then.

And I knew things were getting out of hand.

So, I was headed in a very bad direction.

That's when I made the huge choice to...

To help change my environment...

So when I was 18, I quit school and

went to Job Corps in Yachats, Oregon, to be a welder,

and I excelled there.

I got clean, 100%.

And, I ended up being the dorm captain

which was the highest ranked student that you could be in the dorm.

I was shop foreman for the welding class.

I was somebody there.

And that felt great, amazing.

But I was still eating a lot and gaining a lot.

That was the one thing that never slowed down.

So I was good until I graduated the Job Corps

and started looking for a welding job.

Because once I did, I realized

there were already too many unemployed wilders.

And I just couldn't get work to take care of myself then.

I was 21 then,

over 500 pounds,

and I didn't wanna be in that house with my stepfather.

So every chance I could,

I'd get out and get high,

or go party.

And I was more out of control than ever.

It was bad.

Bad enough to where a friend from high school, Jeremy,

who lived in Montana,

he'd see it over social media, exactly what was going on.

And he gave me a phone call

and said, "Hey, man, I can get you a job and I got a room for you.

Get over here." And that's what we did.

Because I knew if I stayed,

it could get even worse.

And it gave me a chance to get away from my stepfather.

So I just told my mom that I was moving to Montana.

Got on a train, headed there

to live with Jeremy and his wife.

And Jeremy was good to his word.

So he got me a job at a call center.

And I was good at it.

Being part of that team felt great.

And I felt good about myself again.

Like I did when I was at Job Corps.

And it was like that for a few years.

I was even able to save up

and get a place on my own.

And I felt independent again.

So I was happy.

But after a while,

it just got to the point to where they expected so much out of us,

that we all got so stressed out and overwhelmed.

And that led me to eating more again.

So I gained even more weight.

And when I was 25,

I got to over 600 pounds.

And I started to struggle getting around.

When one day, I was at work and my boss came to me.

And told me, I was too fat to work for him

and I couldn't come back to work

until I got my weight back closer

to where it was when I started, and...

I felt like I had just got punched in the guts.

I was shocked because all my hard work

and all I had done for that store meant nothing now.

I mean, I felt like I lost. I lost the battle.

So what I did was

I just stayed in my place for a while

and used all the money I had saved up for food and rent.

And just sat constantly for a couple of years.

So by the time I was around 28,

I was over 700 pounds.

And that is when I started to become immobile.

So my everyday life was changed drastically.

From, you know, going outside and

enjoying the outdoors to now sitting in a chair and that's all I do.

So I had gotten to a point where

I couldn't take care of myself anymore and I needed help.

And I was also really worried about my mom around then, too,

because she finally got the courage to leave Jeff.

I was proud of her for doing that.

But I know it wasn't easy for my mom to leave Jeff.

But everything came together when she met Leroy.

Because he was able to help provide for her,

and in the end, me too.

Because I was telling her I didn't know what I was gonna do.

And how I was gonna take care of myself because of my size.

And she said that she and Leroy would move to Montana.

So they moved up here,

and I moved in with them so they could help take care of me.

And I've been here living with my mom and Leroy

for the past couple of years now.

[melancholy music playing]

[Tammy mumbling indistinctly]

- Leroy, food's here. - [Leroy] Okay.

But it still does depress me at times.

The fact that I'm 31 and living with my mom. That's...

a pretty defeating feeling.

It's just like I failed.

So I just eat to forget about it and not think about it.

But that's what's killing me,

because I'm over 700 pounds.

I had to go to the hospital a couple months ago.

And they told me

I was 740 pounds.

And I never thought I'd be of that weight ever.

I could barely get around and I'm just getting worse.

So I'm just stuck in this downward spiral

because of my love for food.

And how I can't give it up.

The relationship that I have with food is

kind of similar to the same relationship I had with substances.

It's a way to escape, it's a way to feel good for a moment.

And it's an addiction like other substances, but it's worse,

because you can't completely give up this addiction.

No matter what, you still have to eat.

So, this addiction is harder to deal with, in my eyes.

Food has, just like, grasp on me.

And I think I lean on food more than I did substances,

because when I eat food, I don't think about the substances.

So, my food addiction helps me resist other addictions.

So, it's one of those addictions that I don't think

I can just let go.

So, right now, I eat all day so I can stay happy.

Sour candy, jerky, soda, chips,

cookies...

I probably eat anywhere from 5,000 to 10,000 calories a day.

There's a lot of snacking that happens,

so I can keep eating.

But I know that I'm at a point

where I have to find a way to cut back

and get more control of how I eat,

because it's getting so bad.

So I know that something's gotta give

and that I have to stop this somehow.

I have to break the cycle

because my addiction to food is killing me.

Everyday I have more pain

and I struggle more.

And I'm scared soon it's gonna lead to me dying in my sleep.

That's how I think I'm gonna go.

And I worry most nights that I go to sleep

that this could be the night,

and my mom or Leroy will find me dead.

Because I let my weight destroy my body.

Or because of my heart giving out

or something else that my size led to.

Because I lost my war on food.

So I have to do something to stop that before it's too late.

[solemn instrumental music playing]

I'm doing a call with Dr. Now today to see if he'll help me

and if I can go to Houston to do his program.

And I'm hoping that he let's me because

I don't have any other options to lose weight.

So getting his help is the only chance I can see

to change anything and save my life.

[Skype ringtone ringing]

Hello.

Hi.

Hey, Ryan, how are you doing?

I'm good, Doc, how are you?

I'm doing well.

So, you tried to contact us, uh...

because you need some help?

Yes, that's correct.

All right, how old are you, Ryan?

I'm 31.

Okay.

And how much do you weigh?

Uh, last time, I weighed about 740 pounds.

And that was how long ago?

Roughly, two months ago.

And do you think you gained since that time, or no?

I think I'm probably somewhere about in the same ballpark.

How tall are you?

I'm six... 5'11" and three quarters on paper.

Okay.

Hmm, so,

if all that information you gave me is accurate,

then your BMI is 103.

Which is extremely high and it means

your body has a lot of strain on it.

And that it is a very dangerous place for you to be.

So how long have you been overweight?

I've always been a bigger kid my entire life,

but when I turned 13--

Was a day that a very tragic

incident happened in my life and

from 13 years old to now is when

weight significantly gotten worse.

You said something tragic happened.

Have you seen a therapist for that?

Yeah, I have gotten help for it.

So, what seems to be issue at this point?

I just think that

moving to Montana was one of the big things is

I moved here and

I don't have any friends here.

Everything I've ever had was in Oregon.

My mom lives here now,

so I'm just not nearly as active as I once was.

I used to go hunting and fishing.

And at least be out and about.

You know, moving and Montana,

you know, you have snow on the ground

five months out of the year.

So there's that issues from the fall factor

and, uh, the last year prior before reaching out to you,

I just wasn't taking care of myself

and I let it get to where it got out of hand

and now I can't seem to get it back under control by myself.

So long have you been in Montana?

Five years.

So what brought you to Montana?

Uh, the friends that I was hanging out with in Oregon

decided to go down a nasty dark path

and I had the opportunity to move over here

with one of my friends

that did here at the time.

Um, so I wouldn't try to follow them down that path.

And so that's what I did. I up and left Oregon,

so I didn't make the bad life decisions

that my friends at the time were making and came here.

So you moved to Montana for friends?

But now after five years, you have no friends?

And it snows a lot and you overeat because of that?

I wouldn't say it like that.

However you say it, that's what you're telling me.

So it's concerning

if you think those are actual excuses.

My life's a lot harder than you'd understand.

I heard that a lot of times. But that's not the issue.

The issue is whether you're going to keep making excuses

and blaming everything else for your situation,

or if you're ready to wake up and get your life together.

I'm ready to do what I need to get healthy, Dr. Now.

All right. So if food is destroying your life,

then what's seems to be issues with your eating habit?

My eating habits now is, just, I like pastas.

It's a big-- Like, I say kryptonite,

I guess I would say.

I guess something I have trouble with.

I'm trying to wean off of it and, uh, I eat late.

So, I don't have a real schedule

due to not being able to go out.

So sometimes I eat at six o'clock at night,

sometimes I eat at midnight.

And I know that's a big part of it.

So what do you do all day?

Uh, usually I talk to friends at home

or play video games as of now.

Okay, and do you have any

goal in your life?

Absolutely. I want to get my life back.

I want to loose weight and be successful.

Not have to rely on my mom that I do now at 31 years old.

And eventually, start my own family and be independent.

All right. So do you work?

As of now, no.

I've been on disability. But prior to that, I did work.

What did you do?

I was a wireless sales consultant for cellphones.

And that was getting out of the house

and doing things or was it online?

No, that was out of the house. Eight hours a day.

So now you don't get out

of the house and you're on disability.

Yes.

So you are on disability because of your weight

or high blood pressure or what?

I'm on disability because of my weight

and being on high blood pressure, yes.

I can't stand for those long periods of time anymore.

Okay. You sit at home all day now?

Yes.

So who else is in the house besides you?

There's me, my mom, and my mom's boyfriend.

Okay, so is your mom working?

No, my mom is--

She's always been a stay-at-home mom,

and her boyfriend is also on disability.

So you all live off of disability?

My mom is supported by her ex-husband for alimony.

Okay, let's get back to the goal in your life.

You said you want to get your life back and all that.

Those are figure of speech.

But what exactly you want to do

or see yourself doing 10 years down the road?

Um, if I lost--

Actually, I'm not going to say "if."

After, 'cause I'm committed to this, I'll loose the weight

and get back to a healthy number.

I want to be a fire fighter.

So you want to be a fire fighter?

Yeah. That's my ultimate dream, my overall goal.

[sighs softly]

Okay. Well, that's a good goal.

But you obviously have to get in shape for that.

I know. [sighs]

So for that, you're going to have to do the hard work.

You know that, right?

I do know that. Yes, Dr. Now.

But still, what are willing to do to get to that point?

I am as of now, I am willing to do anything I have to do to get to that point.

- I know... - Okay.

what's right around the corner for me if I don't change my ways.

And I-- That's-- I'm not willing to die at my age

so I'm willing to do anything I can.

So you are committed to make the changes

to help your weight and your health.

- Absolutely. - Okay.

So what have you tried so far that hasn't working?

Uh, I tried water aerobics at one time to like--

You know, for the exercise aspect.

And, um, that didn't work--

I think what my biggest problem is

is I'm a very goal-orientated person.

So if I have someone telling me

"Hey, Ryan, you need to loose 10 pounds,

you know, or this."

But I've never had the structure.

I've always-- It's always been like go do it on your own.

I've never had a doctor tell me,

"Hey Ryan, you need to do this."

I had a doctor here one time

tell me that "Wow, you're actually that big?

Oh, you don't look that big. I'm surprised."

But that's no help.

So, I just...

I need to be accountable. I just need to do it.

Okay. Well, Ryan you need

to be under 200

and you are over 500 pounds.

And this extra 500 pounds,

uh, is going to put a lot of strain on your system.

And most people at your weight,

they don't survive too long.

So can you tell me

why haven't you done anything

about it up to this point?

Well, I put myself on a diet

that I'm on right now

to loose weight.

So you're dieting right now?

Yes.

Okay. Is it working?

Yeah. It actually has been working.

I don't snack nearly as much as I used to.

Well, if it is working and you think you're losing weight,

why did tell me you think you're same weight

as you were a couple of months ago?

I'm just not sure how much I lost.

Okay.

So in a typical day, what do you eat?

[Ryan exhales]

Um, it really varies.

Some days, I'll personally order food

like pizza or sandwiches and have it delivered.

And then other days,

you know, my mom cooks.

So eggs and sausages is a big one for me.

I like breakfast burritos,

so I'll put eggs in it, sausage in it, cheese in it.

And I'll usually have

two of those.

And then dinner is chili,

enchiladas, spaghetti, like a lot of pastas, tacos.

All right. So, do you snack?

Uh, I do still snack.

Not nearly as much as I was but I definitely snack.

But you cut back on the snacking

because you're on a diet you made up.

Yeah.

What do you snack on?

Crackers, uh, string cheese

Any kind of popcorn. It can be

cheddar popcorn, buttered, caramel.

Anything like that.

I chew on a lot of ice. Like ice chips.

Which isn't-- I'm sure that's okay but--

You can have all the ice you want

but what else do you eat?

Um, some candy.

I'm like-- I'm a sour guy.

I like sour stuff so like sometimes sour gummy bears,

sour gummy worms, or sour peak candy.

Okay.

So you eat whatever whenever, right?

Yeah.

Well, if you eat that,

pretty soon you're gonna hit 800 pounds.

So with your stash, who buys you those?

Uh, my mom and Leroy her boyfriend go to the store for me.

So you give them the order to buy what you want?

Yes, I do.

Okay. So can you inform them

that there'll be no snacking from this point on?

Yes, I will definitely do that.

All right. Do you have any brother or sister

or anything like that?

I have a sister. She still lives in Oregon.

Does she have any weight problem?

No, she does not have a weight issue.

Her and I have different dads.

My-- [exhales sharply]

I don't want to make any excuse.

A lot of my weight might be--

My real dad when he died at 40 years old,

uh, was like over 800 pounds.

So you had one parent that he was overweight.

- Yeah. - Right?

Yeah, and he had a heart attack due to his health,

like his being overweight.

And then he also had a drug problem.

So those two went hand in hand and he died at a young age.

How old was he when he deceased?

Uh, like, I think at 41. Somewhere in there, 40-41.

So you're not too far away from that, huh?

No. I'm not.

Okay, Ryan.

If you want to make any positive change,

you're gonna have to change your eating habit.

You think you can do that?

I-- I definitely think I can do that, Doc, yes.

Okay. All right, but let me make something clear to you right now, Ryan.

I can't magically make you lose weight.

You're gonna have to do the hard work

and change your eating habits.

Because whatever you are doing right now,

clearly isn't working.

So you think you can do that?

Absolutely.

All right. You need to also understand

that if you want to do my program,

you'll also need to move out to Houston

for at least a year.

Um, I am 100% willing to transition. That's--

Just to be honest with you right now, that's a little bit--

[exhales]

Like I need a couple months to tie up my loose ends here in Montana,

but, uh, my family is on board with me, as in my mom and her boyfriend.

Um, we are ready to this. They're more--

They're 100% supportive of me getting this help.

So whatever has to happen, I'm willing to do it.

Okay. Well, before you come down here,

I need to get a current weight on you

and get some tests done

to see how your health is doing

before you drive from Montana.

So I will set up for you to go a local clinic

and let you know when that will be.

So we can do all that

and then I'm gonna go ahead and give you some instructions

to start you on a diet and exercise plan.

We're gonna email you some dietary instructions.

So the first rule we're gonna follow is

that there'll be no snacking, okay?

Okay.

So snacking is out.

The second rule I'm gonna follow is

that you eat only three times a day.

Okay.

And those three times, 400 calories per meal.

Okay.

There'll be no carb on your diet.

All is going to be vegetable and protein.

- Okay? - Okay.

Do you do any exercise?

Uh, no but I'm going to start.

All right.

You think you can do that?

Yes, I do.

All right. So we're going to email you all the stuff

that you need, and from this point,

everything is going to be up to you.

And if you are motivated to change your life,

you're going to be able to do this.

But everything is going to be up to you

to make the changes

and this is something you need to understand.

That you're in very dangerous situation

and your body's not going to tolerate that.

- Okay? - Okay.

If you're not able to do that,

there is nothing we can do for you.

- Okay? - Okay.

I don't know how much you weigh

but if you're about 700 pounds,

if you stick with the 1,200 calorie diet

that we're going to send you,

you're going to be able to lose at least

seventy pounds in one month.

- Okay? - Okay. Okay.

So, at this point, the starting point

is going to be totally up to you

to change your eating habit, okay?

Okay.

So we'll set up somewhere to get some tests done

and check your weight

and you can give me a call and let me know how much you weigh.

And then we're going to decide

what will be the best option for you.

- Okay? - Okay.

All right, do you have any questions?

No, that's-- No questions at this time.

I'm just ready.

I'm so ready to be able to

walk and everything. [sighs]

Okay, well, what on earth that happens

is going to be all up to you.

You got that?

Absolutely.

All right, Ryan, it was nice talking to you

and if you need anything

before then, give me a call.

All right. Thank you so much, Dr. Now.

You're welcome. All right, bye now.

Bye-bye.

[computer clicks]

[mellow music playing]

[Ryan] Dr. Now said a lot of stuff,

so I'm taking it all in right now.

I'm processing it.

But I'm ready to do this.

More than ready.

Because I want to get my life back.

So no matter what it takes, I'll move to Houston

and show Dr. Now what he needs so I can get on this program

and change my life before it's too late.

Hey, Leroy.

[Leroy] Yeah.

You about ready to go?

Yup.

I going to get my shoes on,

but will you go warm up the car,

'cause it looks Arctic fresh out there.

Yeah.

And then I'll just meet you out there.

[exhales]

[sniffs]

[breathing heavily]

All right, I'll just go around the--

[panting]

[coughing]

[straining]

Damn it!

[exhales heavily]

I can't even get my leg in.

[clears throat]

[grunting]

[panting heavily]

[bleep]

[sighs]

[whimpering]

[bleep] I hate this car!

[breathing heavily]

[engine starts]

[indistinct conversation]

[Ryan] A couple of days ago, I had a call with Dr. Now,

and he wanted me to go to a clinic here in Montana...

[indistinct conversation]

so I could get a current weight

and to have some tests run.

So he set that up.

And Leroy's driving me there now to go do all that.

Is there any way that you can put that heat on the floor, please,

'cause I cannot feel my feet.

Yeah.

- Should I go around this way? - Go right, yeah.

'Cause there's a handicap spot right in front of the clinic.

Okay.

[indistinct conversation]

I have to be really careful walking outside in the snow.

[grunts]

[clears throat]

I never go out in it, because if I fall, it'll be really bad.

So I'm really nervous, having to do this.

[panting]

- Good morning. - Good morning. How are you?

I'm good. How are you?

Good. I have an appointment for Ryan.

Okay. Let's get you checked in.

[Ryan clears throat]

Perfect.

I've got you checked in if you want to have a seat over there.

- All right. Thank you. - We'll get you called back.

[clears throat]

[coughs]

Okay. Ryan, are you ready?

- Yeah. - We're ready for you.

- Perfect. - I'm gonna have you come on back.

- We're gonna get your weight. - Thank you.

- How are you today? - Good. How are you?

I am great.

I think the diet I put myself on before talking to Dr. Now

is gonna pay off with the weight drop today,

because I was at 740 pounds a couple of months ago.

[nurse] Let me turn this on.

But I think I'm less than that now.

Go ahead and step up for me.

Perfect.

Oh, I'm sorry, but it won't read your weight today.

I going to have you come in here

and have a seat in these chairs.

All right. Thank you.

[Ryan clears throat]

If you want to have a seat

and I will be back in a couple of minutes

and get your vital signs. Okay?

- Okay. Thank you. - You're welcome.

[line ringing]

Hello, Dr. Now.

Hi, Ryan. How are you?

I'm good. How are you?

I'm doing okay.

So what's going on with you and your weight?

Um, their scale cannot read my weight.

The weight meter in the scale they have seems to be 660 pounds.

What we got is of your exact weight.

I'm gonna give you the same goal.

In two months, I want you to get down to 650 pounds.

You think you can do that?

Yeah, I think I can do that.

And if you stick with a healthy you can

lose that and easily get under 650 in less than a month.

- Okay. - Okay?

But if you still getting it wrong, then you're likely in the low 700s.

You are looking at weight loss going off

at around 60 to 70 pounds over the next two months.

You get to 650 and then we can check your weight.

So stick with the healthy eating habit

and do a diet and exercise.

The diet and exercise

three times a day, no snacking.

And three times a day would be about 400 calorie per meal.

And we have protein, no carb.

- Okay? - Okay.

And do some exercises

an hour in the morning, an hour in the afternoon

and see if we can keep your weight down

as soon as possible to 650.

And if you do that and get to where your body

can handle the trip to over here to Houston,

we'll set you on my program.

- Okay? - Okay.

All right, Ryan, they're going to try something new before you go,

so we can see where you're at with something and then you'll be done.

But at this point, we need to get your weight down,

at least down to 650 pound.

All right. That sounds good.

All right, Ryan, if you need anything, give me a call.

And start working hard on your exercise and your diet.

And see what kind of progress you make in two months, okay?

All right, Dr. Now. Thank you so much.

- All right. Bye now. - Bye-bye.

[Ryan] That's a big amount to lose.

So I feel like Dr. Now is asking a lot from me,

but I know I need this help

and I have to change now.

So I'm going to do it.

Whatever it takes, I know I have to do this and I can't fail.

Because without this chance, I have no hope at all.

So I'll do what I have to do to get it

before my body gives up

and something really bad happens to me

and I don't make it.

Or I know something bad is going to happen, too,

and it's going to happen soon.

[mellow piano playing]

It's been a week since I talked to Dr. Now the first time

and started his diet and exercise plan.

[coughing]

And I've been able to start to make some of the changes

to my diet, to eat healthier.

But to say that there's a lot of requirements

and rules in what Dr. Now sent

would be an understatement.

Because basically it's like I can't eat anything anymore.

Except meat, chicken, fish and vegetables.

And none of it can be made with any thing that makes it taste good.

No, butter or salt or anything.

So basically I'm eating like a rabbit.

That's the diet.

So that's not a simple change for anyone.

I think even someone who's in perfect shape

and always eats healthy, they would

have a hard time with a diet like this.

So I'm not doing it perfectly right now,

and I think that's to be expected

with something as drastic as this.

But I've made a lot of changes

to how I eat that I'm proud of.

Because even those have taken a lot of will power to do.

But that's how committed I am to doing this.

And I'm not backing down from it,

even though it's extreme.

So I'm working on it and I'm making progress.

It's only been a week, but I'm already feeling a little better.

Like I have some more energy when I get up.

But I'm still not able to be very active, yet.

That's not my choice, though.

That's because of the weather and how much it has been snowing.

And how that's iced over the walkways and driveway.

It's way too dangerous for someone my size,

to even attempt to try to walk in these conditions.

It could kill me because if I slipped, it could take me out.

And that'd be it for me.

So I'm having to be safe and wait to do the exercises

until the weather improves.

Because there's no room to do it all, in here.

The best I can do right now is

I can manage to get on my own feet, most of the time.

So, I have to get up and get some exercise then.

[clears throat]

[coughs]

And I'm checking outside to see

if the ice and snow has gotten better.

Because the second I am able to safely walk outside, I'm doing it.

But I feel here, how much I am already doing on the roll.

And my progress I'm making because of that,

even in just the first week.

So, I have no doubt at all that,

over the next couple of months,

I'm gonna be able to get to Dr. Now's goal on time.

Even though it's a big one.

So, me and my family are making plans

to move to Houston in a few months.

Because by then, I know Dr. Now will have approved me.

To go to Houston, and get weight loss surgery, and do his program.

I'm looking forward to that and all the positive changes coming to me.

Because I'm on a mission to get my life back.

And I'm not gonna back down and rest until I do that,

and succeed.

[Ryan] It's been a month, since I started Dr. Now's diet plan.

Doing all that stuff that he sent,

to make progress, and help me get to my goal.

And I feel I've been doing really well at it

because I have made a lot of changes,

but my mom disagreed.

Ready for dinner?

Yeah, can we have, like, chicken and veggies, tonight?

Yes, I can do it. Are you gonna help?

Yeah, I'll help you. Okay.

[Ryan] She thinks I'm not doing enough.

She told me that she thinks I should be doing more,

and I wasn't eating healthy enough.

So, she says that she's taking control over some of my meals.

So, I have healthier options.

And she's making me help her, so I have to get up to get some activity in.

But most of what she's prepared, hasn't been that great.

So, I'm not really liking it,

but I haven't complained because I know this is what I have to do.

No matter how bad the food tastes.

If I have to pick,

I'd say that the grilled chicken and vegetables

as the meal I hate the least.

It's not great but it's not terrible.

I can use some of the seasoning salt, right, a little bit?

Instead of real salt?

- [Ryan] Yeah. - Okay.

Okay, you got it.

[Ryan] My time on my feet is still limited,

because I still haven't been able to do much of any exercising

to build up my abilities.

Even though it's not snowing, it's hard, it's really cold outside.

So, I still have to be safe and careful about going out.

So, I know I'm behind with all that.

And I still have to take breaks from it,

just to help with pain and to catch my breath.

But I can go for longer and I think it's because I'm feeling lighter.

What I had done before my mom got involved,

was I'd cut back from my eating significantly.

And then focused on things like salads and stuff.

I went through all the to-go menus online.

I made a list of all the healthy options, so I could order.

And I was the one getting those meals

for every meal, everyday of the week.

Except for Sunday.

I was letting Sunday be my cheat day,

and I was researching how to deal with all the drastic changes.

And one of the articles that I found, that was really helpful,

suggested doing a cheat day, because it helps to get over all your cravings.

And stick to your diet, like, the other 90% of the time.

And I think, that has helped me a lot,

because I was completely sticking to the diet the rest of the week.

Without a single slip-up, and I was making good progress.

But I think my mom was just focusing on what I was doing for my cheat day,

and made a bunch of assumptions that aren't right about how I'm doing,

instead of understanding how much I have cut back to change my diet

and how well I've been doing because of that.

[Tammy] Is there anything else you want, love?

No, that should be all right. Thank you.

[Ryan] I can feel the progress I've been making

and I'm getting better

so I know how I was doing it is working.

And that cheat day actually helping.

But she doesn't get that.

And I know it's only because she wants me to do good with all of this.

So, I can do it my mom's way for at least the next month.

And I'm actually okay with cutting back even more

until my next weigh-in.

Because I wanna make as much progress as I can by then.

So, I'm dealing with it all, I'm doing what I need, to lose as much weight as I can.

So, I figure, that's positive,

because it shows I'm making progress.

- Need a napkin or anything? - No, this should be all right.

- All right. - Thank you.

If you need anything, holler at me.

[Ryan] So, I think if I keep this up over the next month,

I'll be ready to go show Dr. Now my weight loss progress.

And that I made it to my goal in time,

I know I'm on track to do that.

So I'm feeling really good.

And I'm fully confident about how well I'm doing.

I can feel it.

So, there's no way I'm gonna go back to the next appointment,

and not have the result I need.

That's not gonna be me.

So, I'm actually looking forward to next month

and getting on the scale again

to see all my hard work pay off.

Because once Dr. Now sees where I'm at,

I'm gonna be able to take a big step forward,

to continue living toward my goal.

And make it to where I wanna be.

I'm at the clinic again, here in Montana,

where Dr. Now has me going to do my weight check.

[grunting]

The last couple of months, got a little crazy for me.

[grunting] All right.

I have a friend, back in Oregon, who's not doing well.

And that's messed with my vitality.

It made me struggle a lot.

[woman] Hi, Ryan, how are you today?

- Good. How are you? - We are good.

- You're here for an appointment? - Yes ma'am.

Okay, I'll get you checked in.

You wanna have a seat over there, and we'll get you called back.

All right. Thank you.

[Ryan] I know I've taken a little longer to do my follow up.

But it was hard for me to justify focusing on me,

when I have a friend, who could be dying.

But I've been trying and working hard as much as I can.

And I'm proud of myself for doing that,

despite what I've had to face in my life, recently.

I took something hard, and didn't let it stop me.

And I've even used it to motivate myself even more.

Because I wanna lose weight, more than ever,

so I can be there for them other people I care about.

- Hi, Ryan. How are you doing? - Hi. How are you?

- I'm good. Things have been going good? - Yeah.

-You wanna come back with me? We'll get you back here. -Absolutely.

- Get your weight updated. - [groans]

[Ryan] And I think that alone shows,

how committed I'm to this

because it's been a really hard time for me.

And I've had to juggle a lot.

But I'm still sticking with it no matter how hard it's been,

to resist the temptation,

to just go to food for solace.

So, I've done well, I'm just hoping it all pays off now

for the weight loss I need.

So, I can keep moving forward, and get my life back.

I'm at a clinic here in Montana,

to find out if I have lost what Dr. Now wanted me to lose,

to get to my goal.

In my last appointment, the scale couldn't read my weight

because it has a 660-pound limit.

Dr. Now thinks I was in the low 700's,

because of how I can get around still,

but he gave me a goal, to get down the 650.

To make it safer for me to travel to Houston.

And so that the scale can start to read my weight.

And I think, I've not only done that,

but that I might even be much lower than that today.

[woman] We are going to go right in this room here,

and then let you have a seat.

[gasps]

Take your time.

[clears throat]

[breathing heavily]

[exhales]

[Ryan] I don't understand that.

I think the scale is malfunctioning.

It has to be,

because I know I've lost a lot of weight.

So, that's not right.

It can't be.

But I don't know how Dr. Now is gonna view this,

and if he's gonna understand how hard I worked.

And how this can't be right.

[line ringing]

Hello, Dr. Now.

[Dr. Now] Hey, Ryan, how you doing?

I'm good. How are you?

I'm good. Thank you.

So, how's your weight going today?

I'm not sure.

The scale's malfunctioning, it won't give me a weight.

[Now] Is it malfunctioning

or you are still over the weight limit of the scale.

I know I made it to the goal, Dr. Now.

I worked hard. So, I'm at least under 650 pounds right now.

So, you believe you're under 650 pounds?

- That's correct. - All right.

[Now] We will agree to disagree then,

because you don't know that you have lost much weight since our last call.

So, I think the issue is

that you're still over the 660 pounds limit for the scale

to be able to get your weight.

So, whatever progress you made,

it wasn't a lot.

So, that's not good.

But the test we ran on you last time

showed that it is safe for you to travel.

So, you can make the trip to Houston.

So, just go ahead and...

See if you can come down here soon and visit me here.

We can check your weight with our scale.

Okay. I can do that.

But it is still gonna be too much for your body to go back and forth.

So, if you come here, you need to commit yourself

to move down to Houston. Okay?

Yeah, I'm ready to move to Houston, doc.

Okay. And you need to also realize that,

if you haven't lost the weight by then,

then we won't be moving ahead with you.

You understand that?

Completely, Dr. Now.

All right, we're still gonna set appointments for you for two months,

and you need to lose another 60 pounds,

to get under 600.

Okay. that sounds good.

So, you realize if you haven't lost the weight like you think,

that's gonna be a lot of weight for you to lose by then.

I understand, Dr. Now. And I'm gonna do it.

All right. See you then, okay.

All right. That sounds good. Thank you so much.

And you may...

I think, between your diet and exercises,

we're gonna get some updated testing before you go,

to make sure nothing has changed in the past few months.

Okay.

And then let me know,

when you plan to come to Houston, okay?

I will, Dr. Now.

Don't take too long, because if you do,

then we're gonna need to do another appointment,

to do a self-testing, to make sure

you can still handle the trip.

So, don't take too much time, if you want to do this.

I won't, Dr. Now.

I'm coming as soon as I can.

Me and my family have already been working on doing that

so it won't be too hard to figure out moving there soon.

Okay, so check your eating habits

and work hard

and I'll see you when you come down to Houston, okay?

That sounds good. Thank you so much, Dr. Now.

All right. Stick with your exercise and your diet, okay?

All right.

All right. We'll see you then.

All right. Thank you so much. Bye-bye.

Bye bye.

[Ryan] I was a little worried before the call

because I didn't know how Dr. Now was gonna react.

Or if he was gonna understand how hard I've worked

with the scale not showing it.

So, I'm glad that he knows I'm ready to go to Houston.

Because I'm ready to take some big steps

to get closer to a better life.

- Hi. - Hi.

We're gonna get your vitals here.

Okay.

[Ryan] And I think, once I get there to Houston,

I'll be able to show Dr. Now even more progress.

So, I'm very excited and I'm ready to do this.

Any changes in your overall health? Any chest pain?

- Nothing like that. No. - Okay.

[Ryan] The new goal he gave me is a lot.

Bit I know I can rise that challenge

because I have so far.

So, my plan is to keep doing, what I'm doing,

and make my progress.

And me and my family's gonna work

on getting ready to move to Houston as soon as possible.

So, I can keep this journey going.

And lose even more weight and get to where I wanna be.

And I'm excited about that.

- Take care. - You too.

[exhales]

[doorbell ringing]

[Ryan] After my appointment yesterday,

I came home and told my mom and Leroy the good news,

that Dr. Now says, I'm ready to go to Houston.

That we need to figure out our move down there.

Because I want to go as soon as possible.

So, we need to start getting ready for that.

[man] Hey, how are you?

Good. Thank you.

[Ryan] They said, they were proud of me.

And excited that I'm gonna be able to get the help I need.

So, it was a good day and it felt really great too.

I don't always see all my hard work pay off,

but tonight my mom and Leroy were proud of me.

So, the next step for me,

is to decide one of the apartment options

in Houston, so that we can move there.

And to keep working hard to lose the next goal amount

that Dr. Now gave me.

So, when I get there, I'm down to 590.

But now that I made it to this point,

I need to go back to how I was doing the diet,

before my mom intervened,

where I had my cheat days.

Because that got me through the first month of doing this.

And not being able to have that,

made the last couple of months way too hard.

I invited myself to go back to my way,

and enjoy one day of week with whatever I want.

I just wanna enjoy something

that tastes good and makes me feel good.

And that'll get me through the rest of the week.

I keep doing the diet and stay on track,

like I need to get to my next goal.

[Leroy] Honey, better come and see this.

[Leroy] Right.

[Ryan] I didn't tell my mom because I knew she wasn't gonna agree with me.

And I didn't wanna argue.

So, I waited until she and Leroy told me they were taking a nap,

and they wouldn't hear the door. But, I guess, they weren't.

Ryan cheating?

- What are you doing? - I was just...

- Eating some chicken. - I'm making dinner!

[exhales] Okay.

So, the dogs will have chicken for their dinner.

This is not on your diet.

[Ryan] Snitch.

[Ryan] I'm a little frustrated.

Because I don't think that I'm doing anything wrong.

I know what I'm doing, and I'm doing good.

My mom and Leroy think they're helping.

But they don't understand how this works.

And how I need to do this in a way I can maintain for the rest of my life.

Because cutting out everything isn't sustainable.

So, I have to find a balance.

I don't know what we're gonna do about this.

What can I do to help you?

You know...

If you do need help, it's okay.

I know.

I appreciate it.

Every step back's like, you gotta take five more steps forward,

than you had to take before.

I get it.

Makes me worry about you more.

I know, if I'm worried,

you know, your mom's falling apart.

I get that.

It's a waste of time to argue, so I don't waste my breath.

But I'm committed to losing the weight and getting healthy,

so, I'll figure out how to do this,

in a way I can maintain, so I can keep going.

With how good I feel,

I know I've made a lot of progress already.

And I'm not gonna mess it up.

The salad is good.

But it's not a chicken strip.

I understand your cravings, but...

We have a goal here.

And we need to stick to it.

[Ryan] With how good I feel,

I know I've made a lot of progress already.

And I'm not gonna mess it up.

That's what they don't get,

is that I'm not gonna do anything

to go back in the wrong direction,

and start gaining again.

I'm proud of how I'm doing and I wanna keep going

to lose even more and make it to my next goal,

by the time we all move to Houston.

So, I'm just gonna focus on doing that, the best I can.

I will help you however I can.

I need to lock stuff or whatever,

I will do that.

Okay.

And if I find some time to get a cheat meal in, I will.

Although as I'll do my best to do it how my mom wants,

only because I know, she's just trying to help me.

This is actually really good, Mom, thank you.

You are very welcome.

[Ryan] We have more important things to focus on,

like our move to Houston.

That's gonna take a while for us to do.

Because I have to pick a place for us to live there.

Then we have to pack all of our stuff and move down there.

So, I'm just gonna put my energy towards doing all that,

so I can keep moving forward.

Do Dr. Now's program and get weight loss surgery.

Now, we take it one day at a time.

Yeah. And we will beat this thing.

We will be in Cancun... [mumbles]

I sure hope so.

[Ryan] So, I'm gonna keep working my hardest,

and get over how frustrated I feel.

Because my priority is on getting healthy and starting a new life.

[exhales]

[grunts]

[Ryan] And doing whatever I have to do to make it happen.

My mom caught me trying to eat another cheat meal.

It wasn't even a whole cheat day.

It was just one meal, and she got upset

and we sort of went at it for a bit.

Because I don't think any of this is fair.

I told her I need to do this diet in a way

that works for me to be successful.

But she doesn't care.

So, now she's decided the best thing to do,

is throw out anything in the house,

with carbs and sugar or anything that's not on Dr. Now's diet.

That's basically everything in the house,

and she's throwing it all away.

It's gonna be a lot of food.

I hope this helps you, bub.

There's a lot of stuff in here.

[Ryan] So, I'm frustrated right now, because I don't think any of this is helpful.

I know my mom thinks it is, but she's wrong.

It's gonna make this harder for me.

I guess I just have to deal with it

because I don't have any other option right now.

[Tammy] None of this stuff is mine.

[Ryan] But it's hard for me to even watch.

Holy smokes, that's a lot of food.

I know.

[Ryan] Despite being forced to doing this in a way,

that makes it harder than it should be,

I'm sticking with it.

I'm not going to argue with her.

I'll just do it her way, for now.

But so far, I know I've made some really good progress.

And I know I'm gonna make a lot more.

So, I feel like I'm gonna be able to get to my next goal

by the time I go see Dr. Now in Houston.

My mom, Leroy and I are working on moving our whole lives

down to Houston, in the next couple months.

I wanted to do it sooner, but it's just not feasible

with everything that we have to figure out.

With getting everything wrapped up here and then finding a place,

and packing everything up and taking it all to Houston,

it's a lot.

So, it's unrealistic of me to think we could do that quickly.

Because it's been tough, even figuring out where we're gonna live.

I've narrowed it down to the three different apartments we can afford.

But honestly, none of them are my favorite.

They seem to be crammed and I'm worried about having enough space

to get around in them.

And I'm holding out a little longer

to see if we can find something better for me.

It'll just make it easier on me in the end.

I got all the food wrapped.

There you go.

- Donate it. - [Tammy] Yeah.

Hopefully, now you can start buying,

like, better stuff for me.

Will Dr. Now give you a list?

- I'm hoping. - Of something you can eat.

Yeah. I'm hoping.

Can we support that?

I know that I can't snack or anything. So, it's just gonna...

Be chicken and veggies.

So, I don't-- Really don't see why the stuff won't go on the shelf from here on out

In the end, it'll be good.

Get you anything tonight?

- You got water? - Nothing else.

Okay.

[Ryan] But overall, we're making progress and we'll get it done.

Because I'm determined to keep moving forward,

and my family wants me to get this help,

so I wanna get this all figured out too.

Okay, if you need me, just scream.

- No. Thank you. - Come on, baby girl.

Zee, come.

[Ryan] I just wish while we're doing all this, working out what we need,

I didn't have to deal with this stuff from my mom,

which is making it even harder for me.

But I'm not gonna let that discourage me

or slow me down.

I'm gonna keep working hard.

And do what I have to do, to make it to my goals

and get to where I need.

Because I'm dedicated to this process, and doing whatever it takes,

to lose the weight and have a better life.

No matter how hard it gets.

I feel like the past months have been really productive for me.

Because I'm doing well with my diet,

and started exercising a lot more.

It's still a little too cold outside to risk walking,

so my mom and I came up with the idea

of doing chores around the house,

to get a lot of activity I need, in.

So, I'm getting up everyday to do that and help out

Mostly with stuff like the laundry.

I'm doing some sweeping and vacuuming too.

But that still takes a lot out of me.

So, helping with the laundry,

is what I like to focus on for my exercising.

Because I can do some of it sitting down and rest when I need to.

Make sure I don't push myself too hard.

But I can already feel my stamina and energy levels getting better,

just from doing this the past month.

So, I'm feeling really good.

And I feeling like I'm getting a lot stronger too.

Because I'm doing my upper body exercising everyday, as well.

I was really sore at first,

but now doing all of this doesn't even faze me.

And I'm feeling muscle in my arms I didn't even know I had.

So, I know I'm building muscle mass

and improving my body like that.

And I'm excited to keep doing it

and getting even stronger.

I'm even thinking about joining a gym.

I'm also sticking to my diet

and doing it my mom's way, with no cheat days.

And I know I'm losing a lot more weight

because I can feel it in my knees when I walk.

So I should be on track to hit my next goal

by the time I go back to see Dr. Now again.

So, overall, I'm feeling really good about this.

The plan is to move down to Houston next month,

in time for my next appointment with him.

So that means we need to pack up

and head there in the next few weeks.

Unfortunately, I didn't find

a better apartment, like I was hoping.

So we're just moving on the best option

from what I have to pick from.

And hope that it works out like need.

So everything is coming together,

and I'm making big strides,

and I'm excited to be doing this.

I'm moving to Houston to get the help I need.

[music playing]

[Ryan] My family and I need to move down to Houston in the next week,

if I'm gonna get there in time for my next appointment with Dr. Now.

It's in about nine days from now and I don't wanna miss it,

because I've been working really hard,

and I wanna show Dr. Now how well I'm doing.

But my mom and Leroy are saying

they need more time to get things ready.

And so I've been frustrated with them,

because they knew I had this appointment coming up.

So, I told them, one way or another,

I'm getting down there.

And I asked Leroy to get me some boxes

so I can start packing up my stuff,

because come hell or high water

I'm gonna find a way to get to Houston.

With or without them, if I have to.

I moved to Montana on my own,

so I can move to Texas on my own.

Especially with how much progress I'm making.

I'm getting healthier and stronger everyday,

and I'm rising to the challenges I need.

So if this is just one more obstacle I have to overcome,

then I will.

But right now, everything is up in the air.

I'm pushing my mom and Leroy to figure everything out,

and take this more seriously

because my whole life is depending on this.

And they know how important this is to me,

and how much I'm sacrificing.

You know, my friend in Oregon, who is sick,

he's getting worse,

and I've been ignoring them to keep losing weight...

And it's made me feel like a horrible friend.

That's how committed I am to doing this,

and getting life right.

So if my mom and Leroy don't come through like I need them to,

then I plan to just figure it out on my own

because I'm ready to do whatever it takes,

to keep going and do Dr. Now's program,

with or without them.

And I've already started with back up options.

I started calling friends to come pick me up and take me.

And I have someone that says

that they'll drive me to Houston if it comes down to that.

So at least, I have a driver.

I'll figure out where I'm staying

and everything else too if I have to.

I've come too far and worked too hard

to let things start to get missed up now.

So I don't know exactly what I'm gonna do,

or how I'm gonna figure it all out.

But what I do know is that I will, no matter what it takes.

Because I'm not missing my next appointment and risking

my only chance to get my life back.

[sighs]

[Dr. Now] Since my last call with Ryan

a few months ago

he seemed to have fallen off the map.

We set an appointment with him,

here in Houston, to see where his weight is,

and if he is actually losing like he said,

but that was supposed to be a month ago,

and he never showed up.

And he hasn't been answering my calls.

But my office finally got hold of him

and set up a call with him today.

So we'll see what he has to say

because he has said he was moving here to Houston

but that doesn't seem to have happened

and we have to know what's going on with him

but so far it doesn't really seem like he's very committed

to doing what he needs to get healthy

and save his life.

[Skype ringing]

[grunts]

It looks like he's not answering

and he's not showing up on video.

For past two months every time we call him,

he doesn't answer his call...

And seems like he's not serious about saving his life.

So I'm not sure where we go with Ryan.

So I'm going to call him on cell phone and see.

[line ringing]

Hello.

- [Ryan] Hello. - Ryan?

Yeah, Dr. Now, how are you?

I'm doing okay. How have you been?

All I'm doing, right now I'm dealing

with some family stuff here in Oregon.

Um, but-- We're dealing.

What's going on?

Well, you haven't been answering your calls

so we haven't been able to get in touch with you

and see what's going on.

Yeah. This is the first time I've seen you call

'cause I have you on my phone under Dr. Now so.

I don't have any missed calls from you.

Well, you missed a lot of calls from me and my office.

And so what's going on whit you?

You were talking about coming down to Houston a few months ago,

but you missed the appointment we had for you, last month

and we haven't heard from you.

What-- What happened with that?

Uh, I didn't-- My driver-- I ended up with another driver

I got all taken care of now.

Uh, I do have a driver now.

Okay. Uh, so are you doing your diet?

Yeah. You know, I've got a gym membership at home.

Gym is good but it's not affecting your weight,

your weight has to do with your eating habits.

Are you watching your diet?

Yep, I've been doing chicken breast and, like, veggies.

Um, it's almost too much but I've stayed with it

I-- I honestly follow 95% of the time.

I follow my diet.

You feel like you've lost any weight?

Oh, in my knees for sure.

Absolutely.

So how much you think you lost?

Um, I don't know.

I feel easily 40-50 pounds minimum.

On top of the weight you think you lost already or total?

On top of how much I'd lost.

Okay.

So when do you think you're coming down to Houston?

So, ASAP if all goes well

So hopefully by the beg-- End of this coming week

or beginning of the following week

will be the worst case scenario

Okay. We'll set an appointment for you to be here

at the end of next week

to give you time to come here,

but before you do, it's been do long

since we had the tests done

that we need to make appointment at the clinic over there

and get you over there and check your weight and see

what you progress is,

and run some tests on you again

to make sure there are no issues with your health

that will make it unsafe for you to travel.

- Okay. - But you need to stop giving me excuses

because saving your life is more important

than any other event in your life.

So this is something that you need to be proactive for it.

- And-- - Mm-hm.

And it's not something that you should play around and waste time on it

because you don't have much time.

The way your body is built up

and your weight and all,

the strain you have on your system.

So the priority should be saving your life and try to lose weight.

And all these delays that you're making...

At some point, you're going to run out of time

if you don't take care of yourself.

So that's important thing for you...

priority should be to saving your life

and try to lose weight and take care of yourself.

And-- But you making all these other priorities

and you're putting everything back on hold

and that doesn't seem that you're taking things seriously.

Oh, I'm-- I mean, I'm taking it seriously

it's just I did not have a driver the first time

so I'm taking it serious, I mean...

I'm coming there a 100%.

It's just a couple of things came up

and I had to get those

ducks on a row, so to speak,

in order to even be able to come there at all.

- So... - All right.

And you're doing your exercises?

Yeah. [clears throat]

Okay.

So after they get your current weight at the clinic.

I want you to give me a call on video and see how you look like.

Okay.

So we'll set that appointment for you

and then if everything looks good

with your weight and the tests

I'll see you here in Houston at the end of next week.

That sounds great.

All right. Talk to you later.

- All right, Bye bye. - Bye bye.

[mellow music playing]

[sighs]

It looks like Ryan keeps making excuses

so I'm not sure where we go with that, with Ryan.

I think Ryan is intentionally

avoiding video call with me.

So he either has not made any more progress

or put on some weight,

because my guess is it's likely he's still in the 700s

but hopefully that's not the case

and he's making progress

and hopefully Ryan is telling me the truth

when he said he's ready to do this.

But I am skeptical.

We'll see where his weight is at

and once we learn that, that will tell me a lot.

Because, if the scale still cannot read his weight,

then he can't continue with the argument

that it is still malfunctioning.

But if he is still over the weight limit of the scale,

then we will have to run the test on him again.

Because he could be gaining, and if that's the case,

then not only will I have concern about him travelling

thousands of miles with all that strain on his body,

but it will show me he is not really

taking his situation seriously and he's playing games.

And if that's the case, then there is no point for him to come down here

and put his body through all that just to waste everyone's time.

Because we're not moving ahead with him until he proves to me

he's ready to do what he needs to succeed at this.

[slow song fading]

Lately, it's been a really hard time for me.

I've been struggling a lot

and that started about a month and a half ago,

when a lot of bad things happened to me.

First, my mom and Leroy decided they weren't coming with me to Houston.

And that they weren't gonna move with me after all.

Which hit me hard.

'Cause I thought I had their support and they'd be there for me.

Do you need anything else?

- No, I'm good. - You good? You sure?

Yep.

I was wrong about that though.

And that's been very hard for me to accept.

Keep going.

[Ryan] Because I've been really frustrated at them

for doing that to me

and making me feel completely abandoned.

But I wasn't gonna let that stop me

from getting help, so I called some friends

to see if someone can take me to Houston

and help get me there.

And someone said they would.

And the day before we were gonna leave,

he called and told me he had to back out and couldn't do it.

So, I was just left with just no options at all.

But I didn't give up even then.

I kept calling around to find someone

who could take me, but no one could.

There was absolutely no one I could go to in my life

for any type of support.

So, I'm completely alone and on my own.

And that alone was depressing.

So I know I'd shut down for a bit.

[line ringing]

[man] Hello. How can I help you today?

Hi, I'd like to place an order for delivery, please?

[man] All right, go ahead, whatever you like.

Can I please get two Philly steak and cheese sandwiches,

an eight-piece order of wings,

and a large cheese curd with ranch?

- [man] What else can I get for you? - Uh, that's it.

Um, give us about 40 minutes and we'll have that right on at ya.

- All right, thank you so much. - [man] I'll see you shortly.

[Ryan] On top of losing my mom and Leroy's support and help,

recently, things got even worse for me

when I found out about my friend back in Oregon who is sick,

is practically gone at this point.

Their health is so bad that they don't have long...

[clears throat]

and when I found that out, it made me feel like such a horrible friend

because I sacrificed being there for them.

To try and focus on me.

[knocking on door]

And it's hard not to feel like that was not only completely selfish of me

but that choice might have stolen my last chance

to be there for them and see them.

And that depressed me even more.

-[delivery man] Here it is. -[Ryan] Thank you. Have a good one.

[clears throat]

So, life has just been a struggle for me lately.

To where it feels like there's just no one in my corner.

And no matter what I do,

I just can't get ahead.

But despite all this and all the setbacks,

I haven't let that stop me from doing what I need.

I've still been sticking to the diet

and working hard at my exercises.

But the reason I've been able to stick to it like I need

is that I'm having some cheat meals.

Not whole cheat days,

just a meal once or twice a week.

That looks good.

Well, everything I eat doesn't have to be something from the diet.

I usually wait until my mom and Leroy go out

so I don't have them in my face.

I don't know what my weight is,

but I know it's a lot less than it was.

And probably in the 500s at this point.

Perfect.

But I haven't been able

to go back and get my weight checked yet.

I talked to Dr. Now couple of weeks ago

and he wanted me to go back to the local clinic.

But then right after is when I found out

what was going on with my friend in Oregon

and how bad off they were, and I had to postpone

just because it wasn't a good time,

and I was too depressed.

And that also delayed me going to Houston.

But my plan is to reach out to Dr. Now again

here in a few weeks

and get him to reschedule the appointment here

he wants me to have.

[clears throat]

And so, I can go show him how I'm doing

and so, I can keep moving forward

because I'm still just as committed to doing this

and getting healthy as I was as when I started.

It's just, life's been throwing me some curve balls

and I'm trying to figure it all out as fast as I can.

It's not ideal, but it's life.

I can't control when bad things happen.

And it feels like once there's one thing,

a ton of other issues and problems are right behind it.

[clears throat]

Not only have I had

all the setbacks of moving in with my friend,

but because of the delay in moving to Houston,

I even lost the apartment option I had.

[clears throat]

So, I have to figure that again

and figure out how to move down to Houston on my own.

So, there's a lot that's on me to figure out.

That was good.

This is hard.

Some days, I'm so close to quitting, it's ridiculous.

But mama didn't raise no quitter, so I can't.

Just gonna keep going,

gonna prove that I can do this.

[sighs]

[chiming from laptop]

Oh.

Ryan had an appointment and he's not showing up.

I'm gonna call him on the phone.

[number pad beeping]

[line ringing]

Over the past few months,

I have made a number of appointments

to make video calls with Ryan

and he has missed all of them.

[continues ringing]

I guess he's not picking up the phone.

And it looks like he is doing that again today.

I had a call with him right now

and he's not picking up again.

So, it looks like

he's been avoiding me and playing games.

In a few days, after he misses each call,

he sends me different excuses.

Once he said he had moved to Oregon

to take care of a dying friend.

And he's now living there

and has to prioritize being a good friend

instead of doing the program.

But I find it hard to believe

at 700 lb. he is able to take care of anyone.

Then he told me he is still in Montana.

But that he is sick and dying

and that he has a friend of their family

who is a doctor, who is taking care of him

and he doesn't need my help anymore.

But a couple weeks after that, he sent me a message

that he changed his mind

and that he wants to come to Houston and get my help.

And then, this last month,

he said he moved to Oregon again

and he's helping his friend out.

But he won't talk to me

any time I set a call with him.

Because if he doesn't pick up,

so I think, at this point,

Ryan has made his choice.

He doesn't see the urgency in his situation

to do anything about his health

and still thinks he can continue to lie

and manipulate everybody around him

to do whatever he wants, whenever he wants.

So, at this point, there is nothing more we can do for Ryan

and there is no point in playing his game any longer.

I think his motives for reaching out to me

were for other reasons than to get the help he needs.

Hopefully, he wakes up

to start doing what he needs before it's too late.

And if he ever decides to do that

and actually starts telling me the truth,

and starts following through with what he says,

then I may consider him at that point.

But as of right now,

we're not moving forward with Ryan

because he has no intention to comply with the program

and I'm not sure he ever did.

So, I wish him the best

and truly hope he can turn his life around soon,

before it's too late for him.