S05.E11: James K's Story

[Thriftykins]

I swear, this whole season every episode has had me thinking "This person is terrible.  Worst ever."  Then the next week there is someone even worse.

BTW there is a new episode next week, then another after that with an interesting description...

 

Two brothers weigh nearly 1400 pounds combined, and their father drives them 35 hours to see a doctor even though they can't stand each other.

[Smoothcoat]

Some thoughts:

How could James eat in that position? I mean, obviously he did, and did it well, but why didn't he prop up a bit with pillows or something to eat? If I tried to eat laying down like that I'd be spilling food and choking.

Was James the first person to NOT get the surgery?? BF couldn't watch the whole show because he had to go to bed, and I kept saying you know he's getting surgery or he wouldn't be on the show, whoops, I was wrong!

Re: the catheter - it may have been the indwelling type inserted in the lower belly to the bladder or inserted in the penis, but in either case they have to be changed fairly often (by a nurse or doctor) and cath users are super prone to bladder infections even with the best of care, which he obviously wasn't getting. But between the cath care and the horrible state of his legs, he HAD to have been getting some at home nursing care we didn't see?

That was a big ass burger! Made the 2nd one he ate look tiny in comparison and that one was probably a quarter pounder or more!

I love Dr Now, but seriously if the patient can't stick to a 1200 cal diet, ya think he's going to stick to an 800 cal one?? 

I also wondered where James's son was. I figured he left home long ago so he wouldn't be stuck caring for James like his sister and mom. Funny they never mentioned him after the intro-bio. Wonder if there is some animosity there from him leaving?

James's friends looked like they had their pool game at the VFW hall interrupted to go help wash James's ass.

James's poor dad. I felt so bad for him. Lisa I flip flopped from sympathy and just wanting to smack her (not literally)! 

From watching this one and Nicole's ep both yesterday I'm just flabbergasted. 

[IOU Payne]

How many episodes are there this season?  I'm trying to determine how much worse it can get!

[gardendiva]

7 minutes ago, DC Gal in VA said:

So well said gardendiva.

Please allow me to add two more that always sets me off: 8) complete ingratitude and 9) a massive sense of entitlement.

I added those in an edit before seeing your comment. Great minds think alike :-)

[CaughtOnTape]

20 minutes in and I want to punch this guy in the throat.

If I had to hear him whine OW one more time in vicinity of this asshole I would have left him there.  I've never been this outwardly hostile towards a member of this show before.  I seriously wanted to push him over and walk away.

"I know I'm making good progress!"  while he's shoveling cheesecake into his mouth.  

What an unimaginable baby.  

[notyrmomma]

Holy cow, you guys have said pretty much everything I have been thinking, but I still wanted to chime in here.  Most of all, this story reminded me of another documentary that TLC did called "900 pound man: race against time" which is the story of a 900 pound man (Ricky Naputi) who lived in Guam, and there were no facilities that were equipt to help him on the island.  The gist of the documentary is several people trying to figure out a way to get him to Houston (not sure if it was Dr. Now or not).  All the while they were trying to help him, he kept getting bigger and bigger and the doctors were all blaming his wife, who was the one bringing him the food - just like our story here!  They eventually gave up trying to get him to Houston and just wanted to get him into a nursing home type of facility to put him on a supervised diet, because obviously, his wife was of no help.  

They should have done that with James.  I don't understand with the infections and the CHF he had, why he wasn't in the hospital...or at least in a rehab facility/nursing home.  It was obvious that his GF/daughter couldn't take care of him properly.

Anyway, spoiler alert, Ricky's story didn't end well and I don't think James' will either.  I think you can YouTube Ricky's documentary.  It was mild compared to James' story.

[Lizzie Jones]

3 hours ago, operalover said:

Explain to me then how it can be on his legs and not in his whole system where you need antibiotics? I thought it was a medical emergency and you need to resolve it with heavy duty antibiotics because you have a high fever and will die otherwise. I thought cellulities was a bacterial infection of your whole system so I don't understand how he has "cellulitis ON his legs".  Shouldn't he be dead by now?

I had a high fever for a week before my cellulitis emerged for the second time (It was on my left leg from just above the knee down to the bottom of my foot. I have photos) but on the day it appeared the fever was gone. I simply sat up on the side of my bed, attempted to stand up to go to the washroom and my left foot started to slide on the floor. I sat and looked down at my leg and that is when I noticed all the huge fluid filled blisters all over my leg and foot. My first thought was "I had better get my butt to the hospital" and I went. I have no idea why he hasn't gone for medical treatment for it but when I was at the hospital there was a guy in there who had it and he didn't seem to be getting any better or worse the whole 6 months I was in there.

[Smoothcoat]

A couple people have mentioned this guy from Guam, I'm going to look for this video!

[Hockeymom]

I almost feel bad for this hostility toward James. He is a delusional mess who truly doesn't get it. It's like having a battle of wits with an unarmed opponent. He's no fun to ridicule because it's so sad.

Girlfriend is no better. I would feel bad for her, but she sacrificed her own daughter to feed this madness.

And what's up with all the crotch shots? Does his daughter really need to see the kibbles and bits every day?  When Dr. Now did the house call, James was splayed out, spreading his business all over town! 

And Lisa's hair? Did she suddenly have one orange spot toward the end?

[Thriftykins]

It really is a medical marvel that some of these people are still alive.

I'm trying to work out how he managed to gain 135 pounds in, what was it, 2 months?  Being that big gives him a higher base metabolism than a fit person or even a more moderately obese person.  It's like a skilled marathon runner who loses the race even after getting a 2 mile head start.  I mean, he has to eat a ton of food just to remain that fat, and a tremendous amount to gain so much so fast.  I went a little off the rails in November and December of last year.  Ate REALLY poorly.  But I still only gained about 20 pounds (from 285 to 305).

Lemme try to do the math with some rough estimates of base metabolism...

 

This site estimates metabolism for a man who is 750 pounds, 5' 11" tall (I took a wild guess at the height) and 45 years old (another guess.... I think they mentioned something happening when he was 42 and that it was only a few years prior).  It estimate 5342 calories base metabolism.  To gain 1 pound, you need to eat 3500 calories in excess of what you burn. 

 

James gets a metabolic balance, over 60 days, of 320,520 calories (5342 x 60).  This consumption would leave him roughly equal in weight, and was probably about what he was eating after Dr. Now gave him his last chance.

 

135 pound gain requires an excess of 472,500 calories.  Which means over 2 months, James consumed about 793,000 calories total.  Spread out over 60 days, you're averaging about 13,217 calories per day. 

 

That's a lot of food!  To put this in a little perspective:

An entire extra large cheese pizza from Papa John's is 2,360 calories.

An entire 16 piece bucket of extra crispy chicken from KFC is 3,900 calories.  A large mac and cheese is 560 calories, coleslaw is 630, and mashed potatoes with gravy is 560. 

A McDonald's Grand Mac, with Large Fries and Large Coke is 1,670 calories

 

You could eat ALL the food I mentioned above and still only be at 9,680 calories.

[MJS]

Again, I wonder if with CHF he was also retaining fluid, that adds to his overall weight gain.

 

Plus, y'know, the mountains of food.

[Thriftykins]

5 minutes ago, Smoothcoat said:

A couple people have mentioned this guy from Guam, I'm going to look for this video!

It's called "The Man Who Ate Himself to Death".  You can see it on Youtube.

[CaughtOnTape]

10 minutes ago, Michael Stabosz said:

It really is a medical marvel that some of these people are still alive.

I'm trying to work out how he managed to gain 135 pounds in, what was it, 2 months?  Being that big gives him a higher base metabolism than a fit person or even a more moderately obese person.  It's like a skilled marathon runner who loses the race even after getting a 2 mile head start.  I mean, he has to eat a ton of food just to remain that fat, and a tremendous amount to gain so much so fast.  I went a little off the rails in November and December of last year.  Ate REALLY poorly.  But I still only gained about 20 pounds (from 285 to 305).

Lemme try to do the math with some rough estimates of base metabolism...

 

This site estimates metabolism for a man who is 750 pounds, 5' 11" tall (I took a wild guess at the height) and 45 years old (another guess.... I think they mentioned something happening when he was 42 and that it was only a few years prior).  It estimate 5342 calories base metabolism.  To gain 1 pound, you need to eat 3500 calories in excess of what you burn. 

 

James gets a metabolic balance, over 60 days, of 320,520 calories (5342 x 60).  This consumption would leave him roughly equal in weight, and was probably about what he was eating after Dr. Now gave him his last chance.

 

135 pound gain requires an excess of 472,500 calories.  Which means over 2 months, James consumed about 793,000 calories total.  Spread out over 60 days, you're averaging about 13,217 calories per day. 

 

That's a lot of food!  To put this in a little perspective:

An entire extra large cheese pizza from Papa John's is 2,360 calories.

An entire 16 piece bucket of extra crispy chicken from KFC is 3,900 calories.  A large mac and cheese is 560 calories, coleslaw is 630, and mashed potatoes with gravy is 560. 

A McDonald's Grand Mac, with Large Fries and Large Coke is 1,670 calories

 

You could eat ALL the food I mentioned above and still only be at 9,680 calories.

Just reading this made me want to vomit.

[gardendiva]

I think it was Pauline that took an entire year just to get to the point where she could stand up and bear her own weight for a few seconds and considered that a major triumph, only to have that topped by James who seems to think that sitting upright in a bed after a year is really something.

Oh, and I was amused by James' delusional thinking that he could convince Dr. Now that what appeared to be 158 lbs of weight gain was just a different mattress. Dr. Now could probably moonlight at a circus, accurately estimating the weights of morbidly obese people just by looking at them at this point. There is no way he was going to bamboozle Dr. Now with fast talk and lies.

Edited March 16, 2017 by gardendiva

[Yokosmom]

Quote

You could eat ALL the food I mentioned above and still only be at 9,680 calories.

You forgot his breakfasts.  They must be eleventy billion calories.

[operalover]

Yes Dr. Na knows this formula and knows this guy had to be eating at LEAST 10,000 calories a day and your explanation shows 13,000. When the girlfriend said "we cheated SOME" Dr. Na said "SOME? some is not every single meal every single day!" He was livid! 

 

And when he sat upright in the bed he hadn't lost anyway ,he just had 4 people heave his body over why he screamed and yelled and cried!!

Edited March 16, 2017 by operalover

[Thriftykins]

Just now, Yokosmom said:

You forgot his breakfasts.  They must be eleventy billion calories.

Well, those are a little more difficult.  It's hard to calculate the calories on a truly gluttonous breakfast.  Although I will say that if you ate one of each breakfast sandwich on McDonald's menu, plus 2 hashbrowns, it would come out to 5400 calories.

[mamadrama]

1 hour ago, AZChristian said:

But it was TURKEY bacon.

And FRIED rice!

[operalover]

Rewatching him eat the cheesecake he says "life is meant to be enjoyed. I just need to balance what I like with what I need to do. mmmmmm this cake is so good. The next step is surgery. I just need to stay on top of it" so he is enjoying life?

Edited March 16, 2017 by operalover

[jacksgirl]

2 hours ago, DC Gal in VA said:

Inquiring minds just gotta know, what is the word "rushed" in reference to Threnners? I watched most of this episode, but must have missed this.

Only guessing DC Gal, I think it's a tongue in cheek statement. With all of James' whining and difficulties getting in and out of his apartment and ambulances, it is doubtful he was "rushed" to the hospital. Transported may have been a better word choice,  struck me as funny though 

[Hockeymom]

I'm fascinated with the Lisa backstory. She lived a couple of houses down with her husband and four kids. Supposedly, it's an abusive relationship, but she's the one creeping with the much younger James. He oh, so platonically, kisses her on the cheek and they fall in love. An affair ensues. Lisa gets pregnant twice and passes the kids off as her husband's. James lets this "abusive" monster raise his kids.  He never says boo about it because, you know, its easier to be a non dad, and sometime booty call, than the one paying the bills. The kids don't know he's their dad until they're tweens!!!

This is like a live action Springer audition.

[Barb23]

2 hours ago, mamadrama said:

He actually lived in one of our state's biggest cities. It's definitely not "rural." It has two colleges and 2 universities (including one of the biggest universities in the state and one of the top-rated state schools in the south) and every fast food delivery place you could want. I live in rural Kentucky. My county doesn't even have a Wal-Mart. His city has 2 or 3. He didn't live in the countryside, either. They lived right in town. 

From what we saw, it looked like he lived across from a cornfield & he mentioned he missed farming with his dad. I realize there can be "country life" right next to a Wal-Mart but it looked like Lisa had to drive a distance on highways to get their fast food dinner.  She was in walking distance of the Chinese place when they were in Texas. 

I wish they would have given us more of James' health history besides him hurting his foot or ankle which led to him being bed bound.  

Like others have said, there had to have been a doctor involved with his care at home.  He had a ton of  prescriptions, a c-pap machine, the catheter, the huge hospital bed & other supplies which need doctor's orders to get & keep getting.

I have rheumatoid arthritis & have wounds on my lower legs (not cellulitis) that are related to my wacky immune system.  I am under the care of a great wound care center at our local hospital.   I can't wait til my next appointment in April to question the doctor & nurses about James' type of cellulitis.  I'm sure if James had the proper wound care, his cellulitis wouldn't look & be that bad.  I'm sure washing them with plain water with the kitchen dish rag & then laying a dry towel over them isn't what the doctor ordered.  My doctor recommends good old soap & water to clean wounds.  BTW, my wounds (that aren't infected) drain & it does smell & I have to make sure they are cleaned & dressed daily to keep the odor at bay.  I'm not sure what kind of dressings & treatment  they would use on his because of their size but there has to be something.  I'm sure just cleaning them properly would help immensely. It does hurt so maybe his whining about the pain is what caused them not to bother caring for them properly. (Except there is numbing medicine they could use.)  Knowing how much my wounds drained at the beginning when they were large (but no way as bad as his),  he must have buckets pouring out of him.  Sorry, didn't mean to be so graphic.

It seems all the weight loss patients start their stories with how much pain they are in & how much it hurts to move.  I would think the pain would be another wake up call but instead they use it as an excuse for not moving. It makes me mad when they talk about their pain that they caused by overeating compared to mine coming  from a disease I had no control over getting. 

I can't wait for the Supersized episode tonite.  Maybe some of our questions will be answered with all the little tidbits of info they give us  Happy viewing to all !!

Edited March 16, 2017 by Barb23

[Minivanessa]

1 hour ago, Hockeymom said:

I almost feel bad for this hostility toward James. He is a delusional mess who truly doesn't get it. It's like having a battle of wits with an unarmed opponent. He's no fun to ridicule because it's so sad.

I know. But his behavior is so awful that it inevitably gets a hostile response. I mean, this is a grownass man exhibiting a breathtakingly infantile level of self-absorption, helplessness, dependency, and selfishness. He had absolutely not a single word of thanks to anybody, although he's totally helpless to do anything but shove food into his mouth, talk, and shit in his own bed. 

And he talks crazy, like, "I've got too much going on to be able to get to the doctor's office right now." WTF, dude? Too busy eating and shitting and whining and demanding your slave girlfriend unwrap your burger? While I'm writing this, @operalover posted this classic piece of batshit: 

Quote

Rewatching him eat the cheesecake he says "life is meant to be enjoyed. I just need to balance what I like with what I need to do. mmmmmm this cake is so good. The next step is surgery. I just need to stay on top of it"

It's horrible to watch, it's despicable.

And yet, he is so bloody delusional. 

Is there any treatment for someone in his situation, to get him to stop with the delusional thinking and face facts? He's got zero motivation in the situation we saw on the show. He's got his girlfriend to fetch and carry and see to his every need. His daughter was "pulled out of school" by the awful Lisa, so she can also be his caretaker. A few guys come in every day to help with his hygiene (such as it is). 

Nobody ever tells this guy no. Everybody's dancing to his tune 24/7/365.

Even when Dr. Now fired him, his array of sock puppets, led by Lisa, seem set to continue with his Infant Baby King of Everything regime.

Until, of course, he dies.

Edited March 16, 2017 by Jeeves

[DC Gal in VA]

Just now, jacksgirl said:

Only guessing DC Gal, I think it's a tongue in cheek statement. With all of James' whining and difficulties getting in and out of his apartment and ambulances, it is doubtful he was "rushed" to the hospital. Transported may have been a better word choice,  struck me as funny though 

Oh, okay thanks jacksgirl, that makes sense. Dontcha just love it when people like James are constantly saying stuff like "we're working really hard" or "it's a lot of work" to do whatever is being done when they're just sitting or laying there while everyone else is doing the actual work? Makes my teeth itch.

[Suzysite]

Quote

I just need to look at my food and say, "you are too many calorie!"

Yes!  This is my new mantra.  Should be stuck on the fridge, as well.

[operalover]

"we'll figure it out, somehow" she says to him after he gaine another 100 pounds...what is there to "Figure out" quit eating 13,000 calories a day! Quit brining him all that bad food! sooooo complicated

[Pepper Mostly]

Right?? Its not rocket science! Eat less! Eureka!

[aliya]

13 hours ago, mamadrama said:

 I think he was a big cry baby and I think they should have just left him at home and taken the refinancing money and gone on a big family vacation without him.

Yup.

On a serious note - can any health professionals tell me why he had a catheter when other bed bound people on the show have used pads or bed pans?  I'll assume it is too difficult for him to lift up for a bed pan, but a pad? 

[cpcathy]

Can I just "heart" everyone's posts? This man was such a mess I wouldn't even to know where to begin my thoughts.

[legalwriter]

Here are some of my thoughts about this episode:

Criminal Case Against Lisa When James Dies: James is probably going to die in the next year. As a lawyer, I was thinking at the end of the episode whether the state of Texas will bring a criminal action against Lisa when James dies. Food for thought...  Oh wait that was a poor choice of words.

Tape Measure: I wonder why patients don't use a tape measure to measure their progress. I realize that access to a scale is difficult for these people but a tape measure is inexpensive and easy to use. Patients can take measurements of their waist at the navel, arms, chest, and navel to check progress. If you gain 100 pounds, you will notice an increase in measurements. Nevermind . . . that would require accountability.

Food Journal: I have never seen any shows where Dr. Nowzardian encourages patients to keep a food journal. Medical studies have shown that those who keep a food journal or food diary do a lot better with their weight loss. Some of the counselors have suggested keeping a food journal.

Broken Car: I wonder why Lisa just didn't walk to the grocery store to buy food when the car broke. Oh wait - that would require actual exercise. 

Chinese Food: I had Chinese food last night before watching this episode. I'm debating whether to eat the leftovers tonight. Maybe I will have some fried rice in honor of James.

Counseling: Both Lisa and James need serious counseling. This is a toxic relationship. I never heard any mention of counseling in this two hour episode.

EMTs: I have a brother in law who is an EMT currently on disability. He hurt his back moving a super-obese person who was around 500 pounds. He just had back fusion surgery. I think those EMTs went above and beyond in this episode.

[mamadrama]

25 minutes ago, Barb23 said:

From what we saw, it looked like he lived across from a cornfield & he mentioned he missed farming with his dad. I realize there can be "country life" right next to a Wal-Mart but it looked like Lisa had to drive a distance on highways to get their fast food dinner.  She was in walking distance of the Chinese place when they were in Texas. 

 

They had only been living in that house for 2 weeks prior to the filming of the show. Before that, they'd lived in a brick house in town, not far from the university. He dad was a farmer, but James had not lived in that manner for awhile. There is a gap that the show didn't cover. James had been in the hospital for a month. At that point, they had to move and then relocate to the house that the show filmed. 

[Kid]

7 hours ago, Michael Stabosz said:

I am of the opinion that if you're so fat that you lie around in bed naked all day, you are basically no longer a human being and actually an animal.

Actually, animals have more self-respect. If you've ever lived with one of them, it is obvious.

[satrunrose]

2 minutes ago, aliya said:

Yup.

On a serious note - can any health professionals tell me why he had a catheter when other bed bound people on the show have used pads or bed pans?  I'll assume it is too difficult for him to lift up for a bed pan, but a pad? 

Not a health professional, nor do I play one on tv, but the pee pads would have to be changed more than once a day, wouldn't they? If it took four "friends" to roll him for bathing, I doubt Lisa, Bayley or Dad could have done it several times a day on their own.

The catheter and the cellulitis do confuse me, though. My grandfather was catheterized in the last year of his life and had a lot of bladder infections (which kicked his dementia into high gear. Fun times!). How is James avoiding that? As for the cellulitis, like many here, I always thought of it as a very serious infection because it can very easily turn to sepsis. How was he not getting serious treatment for that? 

And now my own question for the medical folks: how long can you last in CHF, especially if you don't change your diet? 

[operalover]

After the second or third bitching out by Dr. Now Lisa says "I swear to you doctor we are trying now" yes because he dieted for 2-3 days before their appt.

[Hockeymom]

This has been a depressing season. I was watching last night, and thinking, this is what mental illness looks like. It's ugly and infuriating and defies logic. These two are toxic. She wants to make him happy, and he wants to be an infant. He has some mommy thing going on. It's a shame for the dad. He seems like a nice guy who is totally out of his depth. It's a shame for anyone in their orbit. Someone needs to yank that kid out of the mix, send her back to school, and tell her not to look back. They are going to self destruct, and it's better if she doesn't watch.

[Lesia]

thank you all for helping me get through the day at work.  it has taken me 5 hours to get through these posts. 

you are all so perceptive and funny.  Great company!!

Now, what a waste of life.  You get what , 80 years if you're lucky.  You want to spend it naked in a bed with a catheter and open sores, laying in your own shit pads shoveling biscuits and gravy in your delusional face?  His world is that bed and whatever plate of food is in front of him. So very sad.

LOVED: "I'm gonna do weights!"  "Wanna do some now?" "Nah, I don't feel like it..." 

that summed it up right there.

[operalover]

6 minutes ago, satrunrose said:

Not a health professional, nor do I play one on tv, but the pee pads would have to be changed more than once a day, wouldn't they? If it took four "friends" to roll him for bathing, I doubt Lisa, Bayley or Dad could have done it several times a day on their own.

The catheter and the cellulitis do confuse me, though. My grandfather was catheterized in the last year of his life and had a lot of bladder infections (which kicked his dementia into high gear. Fun times!). How is James avoiding that? As for the cellulitis, like many here, I always thought of it as a very serious infection because it can very easily turn to sepsis. How was he not getting serious treatment for that? 

And now my own question for the medical folks: how long can you last in CHF, especially if you don't change your diet? 

People can live quite awhile wih Congestive Heart Failure if they eat right and take the medication. Usually the first sign they are filling with fluid is the limbs swelling, like my dad's feet would swell. But how would James know if his feet were swollen?His heart and lungs is going to fill with fluid and he is going to stop breathing - Im suree they have him on the medication which is a diueretic which he pees out thru the catheter. He is doomed either way.  Since his heart is already working  4 times harder than a normal person.

[Thriftykins]

Followup on my early post on the mathematics of weight gain, I wonder what if James had followed Dr Now's 1200 calorie a day diet.  I guess we sort of know the answer from the 2 times he did while in the hospital.  But let's run the numbers anyway.

If we again assume a metabolism of 5342 calories a day.  Eating only 1200 leaves you at a 4142 calorie deficit.  Over 30 days that is 124,260 calories.  With 3500 calories per pound, that's 35.5 pounds lost per month.  Which is, after all, about what Dr. Now expected.

 

The more restrictive 800 calorie diet would have left a deficit of 4,542 calories per day, 136,260 for the month, and a 39 pound weight loss.  Probably not worth going THAT deep for a small extra loss.  800 calories a day seems kinda nuts.

[Christina]

I just listened to the Missing Richard Simmons podcast, and there was a clip of an interview where he explained that a nurse asked him if he was ready to die because he was killing himself, and that is when he got it together. I'm not sure if that was when he was at his heaviest or during his eating disorder of bulimia or anorexia, I don't remember which one it was, but he snapped out of his self-destructive behavior and tried to get it together. He later became an advocate for the obese and several people agree that he helped them immensely with his support and motivations.

It makes me dislike James more, because it really threw his obstinence and abuse in perspective more than when I watched the episode. We had the twins and then the woman with her niece that were successes, Nicole is claiming she is a success, and I think all the rest of them have not been. It is quite frustrating to watch and I don't know if I'll be back next season. I expect another success soon, or this season will end on a negative note with all the failures. They seem to be peppering in the successes as palette cleansers because there are so few. This show has hit the famewhores and not as many who want to actually change their lives for the better. It seems to happen to all these shows eventually.

[happy2bhere]

5 hours ago, poeticlicensed said:

I'm guessing that one reason that insurance ( I.e. Medicaid) denied the request is that he was not under a doctor's care. Dr now made the request to Medicaid but he was probably not under a doctor's care in Kentucky. So Dr now can't speak to his medical history. I have a hard time believing that he has been getting any kind of care until they contacted Dr. Now, who they probably saw on TV . If he was under the care of another doctor no doubt that doctor would have tried to intervene, even to suggest institutionalization. 

Has anyone figured out if James is still alive? It looks like summer when it was filmed. That's more than 6 months ago. 

The other thing I don't understand is this. They clearly are depending on govt assistance for everything. I assume food stamps are part of it. Can you buy fast food with food stamps? If not how do they afford it? I just don't get it. The only thing I can figure is that Lisa is getting paid to be his caretaker, hence the reason they are not married. 

I looked around on the web for news on his well-being.  His full name is easy to find, and there are a couple of relatively recent light news pieces on him. One said he had lost sufficient weight for surgery, and was looking for help (not surprisingly).  My suspicion is that his "loss of sufficient weight" is self reported, and not necessarily actual.

[Pepper Mostly]

Poor Bayley had a look on her face like the animals in the ASPCA ads. Sad, in pain, uncomprehending.

She may be 19 now but I don't think she was in college (for one thing, she didn't seem too academically inclined). She said her mother "pulled her out of school" to help tend to James. She could have done that some time ago, years even. Also it struck me as an odd turn of phrase--if she was in college wouldn't she say something like "I had to quit school" or "I had to drop out of college" or something? Saying she was pulled out of school implies that she was a minor with no say when it happened.

Edited March 16, 2017 by Pepper Mostly

[fonfereksglen]

7 minutes ago, satrunrose said:

Not a health professional, nor do I play one on tv, but the pee pads would have to be changed more than once a day, wouldn't they? If it took four "friends" to roll him for bathing, I doubt Lisa, Bayley or Dad could have done it several times a day on their own.

The catheter and the cellulitis do confuse me, though. My grandfather was catheterized in the last year of his life and had a lot of bladder infections (which kicked his dementia into high gear. Fun times!). How is James avoiding that? As for the cellulitis, like many here, I always thought of it as a very serious infection because it can very easily turn to sepsis. How was he not getting serious treatment for that? 

And now my own question for the medical folks: how long can you last in CHF, especially if you don't change your diet? 

My brother has a suprapubic catheter to help avoid the infections.  Has had it now for about 16 months and still has the infections, but not nearly as often.  Of all the disabilities my brother developed as a result of his catastrophic medical event, having to use a catheter is the most cruel thing ever.  And imagine self care with only one arm, something he and my husband figured out by finding the right type of tubing and bags.  

I can't fathom how someone just needs a catheter because of obesity and thinks that's ok.

[Thriftykins]

Ok I looked something up and apparently James' 135 pound gain was over FOUR months, not TWO.  Running the numbers, that only requires about 9,280 calories per day, not 13,000.  Which is about as much as the sample menu I gave in my original post.

[operalover]

Just now, Michael Stabosz said:

Ok I looked something up and apparently James' 135 pound gain was over FOUR months, not TWO.  Running the numbers, that only requires about 9,280 calories per day, not 13,000.  Which is about as much as the sample menu I gave in my original post.

Lol at "ONLY 9,280"

[Tabbygirl521]

Did the show happen to say how much this guy weighed when he met his GF? I wonder if his gaining accelerated thanks to her "care." I have to find time to watch this. The dynamic between them sounds so morbidly fascinating. 

[AVM]

I love this board, I am  happy to read others feel the same way as I  do about  James K the 158 lbs weight gain from cheating a few times had me spinning .and his girlfriend saying he doesnt eat lunch ? Oh Brother

[OSM Mom]

1 hour ago, Yokosmom said:

You forgot his breakfasts.  They must be eleventy billion calories.

And the enormous pieces of cheesecake. I can't really add anything else, but this episode pissed me off. More than almost any other. Someone save me a place in the handbasket. I've got my own panties soaking in gasoline. 

[Hockeymom]

12 minutes ago, Tabbygirl521 said:

Did the show happen to say how much this guy weighed when he met his GF? I wonder if his gaining accelerated thanks to her "care." I have to find time to watch this. The dynamic between them sounds so morbidly fascinating. 

I think it was in the 400lb range. He was pretty big, but still mobile. James mentions how happy he was with her but nevertheless continued to gain weight. It was the foot / ankle injury that did him in. He fell, needed the fire dept. to get him up, and effectively never got out of bed again.

[Tabbygirl521]

3 hours ago, Crazy Bird Lady said:

In a man that hugely fat, the urinary catheter can be very, very hard to insert --because the penis is buried under layers of fat. James K may have required a catheter inserted through his skin, directly into his bladder and dripping into a urine bag.

And they may not have been able to find a home-town Kentucky doctor willing to go to James K's home to treat him. Most Dr's these days do *not* make house calls, under any circumstances.

I know we will all want to visualize this: Jimbo may be wearing a Texas (hah y'all doin'?) condom catheter. Just what it sounds like - a condom with a tube leading to a drainage sac. 

[operalover]

3 minutes ago, Hockeymom said:

I think it was in the 400lb range. He was pretty big, but still mobile. James mentions how happy he was with her but nevertheless continued to gain weight. It was the foot / ankle injury that did him in. He fell, needed the fire dept. to get him up, and effectively never got out of bed again.

It was because he was so fat he broke the bed! Apparently he stayed in the broken bed with his foot in the wrong position so it didn't heal? some big old excuse like that. He was 550 I think when that happened.