Kriti Mehrotra
With TLC’s ‘My 600-lb Life’ chronicling the real stories of those individuals who have found themselves on the extreme side of obesity, we get a series that’s both intriguing and inspiring. That’s because each episode follows one participant over a year as they try to turn over a new leaf under the guidance of Dr. Younan Nowzaradan, AKA Dr. Now, in the hopes of getting a gastric bypass surgery. Therefore, of course, season 12 episode 7, appropriately titled ‘Shakyia’s Journey’ since it revolves around 26-year-old Shakyia Jackson of Charlotte, North Carolina, is truly no different.
Shakyia Jackson Has Struggled With Her Weight Since She Was a Young Girl
Having grown up in a struggling single-parent household with two siblings, there was a point in Shakyia’s early years when she didn’t know when or where her next meal would be. She revealed that they barely had any food at home and rarely saw their mother as she worked three jobs, resulting in them treating every meal like their last until a concerned neighbor called Child Protective Services. She was subsequently placed in her father’s custody, but things changed when he gave her up, and she switched around from foster home to foster home until she was ultimately reunited with her mother.
By this point, Shakyia’s mother had managed to find some stability and always had food at home, resulting in the young girl turning to it every time she felt like she needed comfort. This resulted in her being over 200 lbs at the age of 11, only for it to continue when she started getting bullied at school, as she found solace in eating. Things only got worse when she started hanging out with the wrong crowd in an attempt to fit in. She revealed that she even became intimate with a boy she trusted when she was 13. However, he broke her heart by pretending as if he didn’t even know her when he saw her next.
Shakyia was more than 400lbs when she graduated from high school. She stated that college made her spiral further as she became independent and had access to all kinds of food whenever she wanted. Eventually, though, her weight gain started affecting her social standing as well as her mental health to such an extent that she fell into depression, dropped out of college, and came back home. She did begin working, but her physical and mental health significantly declined in 2018 after she was raped at her gas station job. She tried suppressing her trauma by resorting to emotional eating as a coping mechanism, but it didn’t offer any relief from the trauma she carried.
Shakyia Jackson’s Weight Issues Have Affected Her Health
It was around the late 2010s when Shakyia developed lymphedema in her left leg, and because of her obesity, the asthma she had only became worse as the years passed by. Thus, worried about possibly losing her life and not being able to accomplish any of her goals, she decided to enlist the help of Dr. Now’s program in the hopes of getting better. She weighed 655.7 lbs, and her BMI was well over 100 when she went to Houston for her appointment with him, driving him to give her a 1200-calorie diet and a strict plan to follow to lose 50 lbs in 2 months so as to proceed further.
However, Shakyia never showed up for her follow-up appointment and didn’t respond to any of Dr. Now’s messages for months, only for it to turn out she had been hospitalised. As per her own accounts, she had been doing her best to follow the expert’s plan, but things changed when she returned home from work one day extremely tired. She said she lay down to rest and fell asleep, only to wake up 3 weeks later, tied to several tubes in a hospital. Her respiratory system had shut down, and she was in a coma.
Following that, Shakyia was transported to a halfway facility because her mother had said she could no longer care for her. She had to make arrangements for herself and lived in an extended stay hotel until she could get a place of her own. She was still determined to lose weight, but even after continuing in the program, she lost 20 lbs in total. In the end, Dr. Now let her know that he would only be willing to revisit the process in the future if she herself shows some change by losing weight and going to therapy to deal with years of emotional trauma.
Shakyia Jackson is Leading a Truly Independent Life Today
While Shakyia’s weight loss journey has not panned out in the way she expected despite her efforts, she has since managed to make a few significant changes in her life. From what we can tell, she now lives independently in every sense – without any constant care or support – meaning she has regained mobility as well as her health after the scare she had. As if that’s not enough, she has also managed to repair her relationship with her mother to a large extent, writing on Facebook on August 6, 2025, that she is thankful for her standing by her side “during the most difficult times I have had for a while. I know we have had our differences and moments but i really appreciate and love you 🥰.”
However, Shakyia’s relationship with her father is far from okay, as they haven’t even been in touch since she was in the hospital 3 years ago. Nevertheless, she is still grateful for her life because she has a lot of people who genuinely care for her, including her step-dad, her supportive sister Nunu Marie, loving nephews, and her best friend. She also adored her grandmother, but she sadly passed away 4 years ago (in 2021). So now whatever Shakyia does, she makes sure to do it while keeping her memories alive in her heart.
As for Shakyia’s dreams and aspirations, she had made it clear in the show that she wants to one day return to college and earn her degree so as to become a teacher, be in a sorority, and go on a cruise. She hasn’t been able to achieve the first two goals, but she did manage to go on her very first cruise this year – in June 2025 – before returning home as refreshed as ever. It’s also imperative to note that while she hasn’t been public about her weight loss journey since her time on the show, she did undergo a procedure in early January 2025. She wasn’t explicit about what it was regarding, but she did caption the post related to it, “Who can’t get the surgery 👀👀👀 . Ohkay That’s What I Thought,” indicating she did get the gastric bypass. Honestly, we can’t wait to see what’s in the cards for her next.
Read More: Where is Jonathan Colp Now? Update on My 600 lb Life Star
