Amy Slaton inspired many morbidly-obese individuals with her success in losing weight, as documented in TLC’s reality-television series called “1000-lb Sisters.” She didn’t only manage to slim down, but she also made her ultimate dream come true and which was to get pregnant and have her own child. Back in 2020, it seemed to be a herculean task for her, but after a couple of years, she’s now had two healthy boys with her husband, Michael Halterman. So many things had happened since the third season ended, so fans were quite excited about what she would share on the fourth season of the show starting in January 2023.
A brief background on “1000-lb Sisters”
Over the years, the TLC network had been creating reality-TV shows focused on the weight-loss journey of morbidly-obese individuals who were seeking help from acclaimed medical experts. “1000-lb Sisters” allowed the viewers to witness their adventure, as the show explored the family dynamics of two sisters who had struggled with weight problems since childhood.
The meaning behind the title “1000-lb Sisters”
Initially, most reality-TV fans thought that the Slaton sisters weighed up to 1,000 pounds individually when they heard of the title of the show, “1000-lb Sisters.” It generated so much interest from the viewing public that it was considered a great, if inadvertent marketing strategy. However, in reality, the 1000-lb referred to the combined weight of the two sisters, and for three seasons it’s regaled viewers with the family drama, including and romantic entanglements of the stars of the show.
“Chubby Bunny Challenge,” the video that started it all
In November 2014, Amy uploaded a video on her YouTube Channel, which featured her and her sister, Tammy Slaton. They took part in the popular game called “Chubby Bunny Challenge”, in which they stuffed as many marshmallows into their mouths as they could, and then uttered the words, ‘Chubby Bunny.’ They would increase the number of marshmallows, and the one who could take the most and still say….would be the winner. The video went viral, attracting millions of views; apparently, most viewers found it enjoyable to watch two fat individuals having fun trying to outdo one another. Some TLC network executives saw it, and immediately offered the sisters the opportunity to star in their own TV show.
TV Premiere and viewership ratings
The hype about the Slaton sisters translated to almost a million views when “1000-lb Sisters” made its TV debut on 1 January 2020. This was quite huge for a TV show with unknown people, and broadcast on cable instead of a mainstream channel. The average viewership ratings doubled in its sophomore year, making it the top show for women aged 25 to 54 demographic. The TLC network immediately ordered another season just after it aired the second season finale. The interest in the two sisters never wavered, whether it was about their romantic interactions – believe it or not – or their not-so-good relationship with their mother. Fans were divided on who they loved or hated the most between the two stars of the show.
Get to know Amy Slaton
Before the reality-TV star became famous, Amy had been living a normal life with her husband, while taking care of her older sister Tammy in a duplex in their hometown. They arranged it so that way she could assist her sister who weighed in heavier than her, and so had mobility issues.
Her not-so-good childhood
Amy’s weight struggles started in childhood. She didn’t have access to healthy food choices, as the family had a hard time making ends meet. The Slaton family was originally from Dixon, Kentucky, and Amy was born on 28 October 1987; their father left them early on, and it was her single mom, Darlene Slaton, who took care of them, with the help of her mother. She gained a stepfather in 2013, when her mother married a local firefighter named Frank Rednour.
https://www.facebook.com/TLC/photos/a.10150297574380173/10162950921505173
Her toxic relationship with her mother
The Slaton sisters were bullied when they were kids, especially in school due to their excess weight. Words had the power to heal or break anyone, as Amy and her sister could attest because they were recipients of disparaging words such as fat, stupid and lazy. The worst part of this experience was that they heard such words from their own relatives, including their mother while growing up. Fortunately, their grandmother was the picture of a caring and generous individual, who continuously encouraged and supported them – Amy’s weight problem escalated when her grandmother died when she was 11 years old, and to cope with the loss, she started eating unhealthy food in huge quantities, as it somehow comforted her.
A loving and supportive husband
After her graduation from Union High School in Dixon, Kentucky, Amy dated schoolmate Michael Halterman, who later became a mill operator. They lived together for a couple of years, and eventually married on 15 March 2019, in Nashville, Tennessee. He knew early on in their relationship that his sister-in-law, Tammy, would always be part of their lives, as Amy promised to take care of her.
She was legally blind
Amy had a rare eye condition that rendered her legally blind as diagnosed by her doctors. According to her, it was her mother’s cat that caused her visual impairment, a rare condition called Ocular Toxoplasmosis, an infection caused by a parasite named Toxoplasma Gondii, which the cat had. Her mother would regularly clean her cat while she was pregnant with Amy, which somehow infected her when she was a baby. The prognosis of the doctors then was that she would be completely blind by the time she reached 35 years of age. It was for this reason that she regularly received disability benefits from the government.
Amy’s weight-loss journey in the first two seasons of “1000-lb Sisters”
Not everyone was quite brave enough to face several health problems head-on, and fans of “1000-lb Sisters” continued to commend Amy as she embarked on confronting her weight issues by doing something about it.
The first consultation with the bariatric surgeon
Amy started her weight-loss journey at 406lbs – about 180kgs – when she had her first consultation with Dr. Charles Proctor, a bariatric surgeon and weight-loss expert. She was told that she needed to undergo bariatric surgery if she wanted to enjoy quality of life. She might not be as heavy as her sister Tammy, and could still function on her own, but if she continued to gain weight, she would lose the mobility that she had. Losing weight was also her ticket to getting pregnant, which was her ultimate goal.
Qualified for bariatric surgery
Getting the surgery wasn’t as easy as going to the doctor and getting an appointment for it. When it came to bariatric surgery for obese people, the doctor would require the patient to lose a certain amount of weight before they could avail of the procedure. This step was needed so that the surgery would be less risky and the doctors could assess if the patients were mentally prepared for it, and were serious about maintaining weight loss. In Amy Slaton’s case, the doctor required her to lose 100lbs, about 45kgs. While it was one of the hardest parts of her journey, she followed the strict guidelines on what to eat and drink, and the workout routine, so that on her next appointment with the doctor, she was admitted to the schedule for the operation.
Underwent a successful surgery but had a scare
It was a great day for Amy and her husband when she had a successful bariatric surgery. There were no complications as per her doctor, however, a week after the surgery, she was given a post-surgery diet, which she didn’t follow to the letter. Dr. Proctor wasn’t pleased with what she did, as her surgical wounds weren’t healed yet – apparently, she ate some solid food, which was a big no-no, and could cause her sutures to burst; fortunately, it never happened.
Four months after surgery, Amy was pregnant
Amy’s dream came true when she learned that she was pregnant, but her sister Tammy, while happy that she would soon be an aunt, was worried that Amy was taking too much risk. Apparently, her doctor told her that she should wait for two years after her weight-loss surgery before becoming pregnant, as her body might not be able to handle the changes any sooner, her doctors saying that there was a high risk that she might lose the baby after just having bariatric or gastric sleeve surgery. This was because Amy’s body was dropping weight, when it was supposed to work hard in protecting the fetus and letting it grow. Amy and Michael didn’t plan the pregnancy, but were careless about it.
Amy stopped taking care of her sister due to her condition
This pregnancy phase was one of the most toxic times between the Slaton sisters. As seen in several episodes of “1000-lb Sisters,” Amy and Tammy would often argue because Tammy became more difficult to handle. Her older sister was jealous that Amy was getting nearer to achieving her goals, and it frustrated her that she didn’t qualify for the weight-loss surgery – she simply wasn’t dedicated enough. Their brother, Chris, volunteered to take care of Tammy while Amy focused on her pregnancy.
Gave birth to a baby boy
The sophomore season of “1000-lb Sisters” ended with Amy having a successful delivery of a boy they named Gage Deon Halterman. It was supposed to be a normal delivery because the baby was quite small, but when they found out that the baby was in a breech position, they delivered it via cesarean section. The Slaton-Halterman family was happy, because both the baby and the mother were healthy.
Lost 136lbs after giving birth
After giving birth to Gage, Amy lost about 135lbs, and her medical team said that she could have lost more if she hadn’t become pregnant. However, it didn’t matter to her, because she’d become a mother. She said that all the struggle and hardships were worth it each time she looked at her baby. She planned to continue losing weight to be healthier, so she could take care of her boy properly.
Amy’s life and weight in 2022
While the fans of “1000-lb Sisters” remained divided on their views about the choices that the Slaton sisters made, Amy continued to thrive in her personal life this 2022.
Another pregnancy
Amy risked her weight loss goal once again when she became pregnant for the second time. In January 2022, she uploaded a photo of her firstborn, Gage, dressed in a shirt with the print, ‘I’m going to be a big brother 2022!’ She also shared that she was due in July, and that they were ecstatic about the whole thing. It seemed that it was only recently that her son turned a year old, but based on their social media updates, they couldn’t wait for him to be a big brother. Amy and his husband were training Gage already on how to take care of a baby, and used a Mickey Mouse stuffed toy for demonstration.
Moved to a new house
After learning that they were expecting, Amy and Michael wanted to have a bigger space for their growing family. Apparently, Gage would normally sleep in the kitchen, and she wanted that by the time her second baby arrived, the family had enough space for the two of them. She shared, ‘We were driving around one day, and we saw the sign and we’re like, There’s our sign, we need to move.’ It was a bungalow-type property with an area of 1,584 square feet located in Morganfield, which was 20 miles away from Dixon. After they’d left the duplex she shared with Tammy, no one was currently living there since her older sister was staying at a weight-loss rehab center.
Baby on the tummy updates
Fans could see the difference in Amy’s take on her second pregnancy. Since everything seemed to be in order, unlike her first one, she documented everything from the day she found out about it. Aside from Gage, her social media posts were mostly updates about the growing baby in her tummy, including size, and what a pregnant mother should expect during the phases of pregnancy. Many fans were inspired by it, and found it very educational.
Another baby boy for the Haltermans
Amy gave birth to another healthy baby boy on 5 July 2022, whom they named Glenn Allen Halterman. Just like her first delivery, it came via a successful cesarean operation, the baby weighed about 5lbs 11oz, about 2.5kgs, and was around 17.5 inches tall, about 0.4m. In one of her interviews she said, ‘The delivery was a huge success and now I have both of my miracle boys; our family is complete!’
Oh my word my baby one month today. I cant believe it. Im so blessed. Thank you Jesus for my miracle boys….. pic.twitter.com/Rd26m0Vqr9
— Amy Halterman (@halterman_amy) August 6, 2022
Picked up another hobby – resin art
Raising two little boys was quite a challenge, but they received a lot of help from their extended family. For instance, they had a nephew named Braxton who was featured in her Instagram taking care of her babies, and she mentioned that sometimes they were with their grandmother. Amy shared that whenever she had free time, she would delve into a new hobby called resin art, and posted some of her creations on her social media account.
A dream come true
Amy was living the life that she dreamed of since she was a child. When she decided in 2020 to ask for help from a medical expert so she could live a healthier life, it led her to have what she called her ‘miracle’ babies. Most of her posts on her social media were about being grateful, for she knew how blessed she was to have a wonderful husband who supported her through the ups and downs of her weight-loss journey. She may not be at her ideal weight yet, but she was quite satisfied with what she has right now. A week before her 35th birthday, she posted a selfie and captioned it, ‘I gotta say I have nothing to wish for. I got me a wonderful man two awesome boys and a house – I’m proud of myself!!!’
https://www.instagram.com/p/CkRHhYvuNN6/
Breakdown of her weight since 2020
It was hard for fans to figure out her latest weight especially during the off-season, as Amy never shared anything about it on her Instagram account, probably due to a non-disclosure agreement she signed with the TLC cable network. The only way to have an idea of how she fared during her weight-loss journey since she started in 2020 was to get the data on her official weigh-ins from the first season up to the third season of “1000-lb Sisters.” During the first season, Amy went from 406 to 306lbs to qualify for the surgery. It was difficult at first since she only lost about six pounds during the second weigh-in, but eventually she adapted to the diet that Dr. Proctor gave her, and things became easier. By the last weigh-in done in the sixth episode, she’d lost about 70 pounds.
However, after her bariatric surgery, things got complicated when she became pregnant. Her weight-loss journey wasn’t her top priority anymore, because she needed to make sure that the baby in her tummy would grow healthy. The last weigh-in she had in the 10th episode of the third season she weighed 275lbs, and could have lost more but was derailed due to her second pregnancy. Viewers will only know her current weight when the fourth season premieres in 2023.
