1000-lb Sisters star Tammy Slaton said she "could have easily" died if she had failed to lose weight.
The 36-year-old is grieving the death of her estranged husband Caleb Willingham, who died last week at just 40 years old. His health had "continued to get worse" after he reportedly gained 30lb (2.1 stone) while in a food rehabilitation centre.
Tammy and Caleb split just two months before his death following a whirlwind romance. It's thought Tammy called time on their relationship because Caleb "wasn't taking care of his health".
A source has now said Tammy went through the same experiences as Caleb and believes it "could have been me" who died.
"They were best friends and were supporters of each other in the clinic, and [his death is] devastating for her. She told me she could have easily been him," they said.
The source said Tammy had tried to encourage Caleb to lose weight, but he "just didn't have a drive".
"She didn't have the drive for a bit and was struggling with alcohol abuse and not caring and I think Caleb had the same mindset of 'I've already done this to myself, I'm already this big'.
"It's hard on her because she has experienced it and is of the mindset of, 'This could have been me'," the source told The Sun.
Tammy paid tribute to her ex-husband following his sad passing as she emotionally recalled how he showed her "real love".
"Rip sweet angel you will forever be missed and loved so much thank you Caleb for showing me real love and happiness," Tammy penned in her emotional message today on her Instagram page.
She then took to TikTok to open up about her grief. She was reduced to tears as she struggled to speak about Caleb's death.
Tammy said: "I hate getting on here and everybody seeing me like this," as she wiped away tears.
"Yeah, we were having problems, but I loved that man, and I still do I miss him like crazy, but I wanted to thank everybody for - I'm sorry - thank everybody for your comments."
She added: "I know that he's looking down on me. He's not in any pain anymore. I know he's in a better place."
