Laura's weight began to spiral out of control after she was molested as a young child

The 41-year-old was ‘close to death’ however somehow managed to make a full recovery

after she ignored the symptoms of her lung infection

Laura, from San Antonio, Texas, was rushed to the emergency room and put on a

A 600lb woman, whose eating spiraled out of control after she was molested as a child, was left fighting for her life after she developed a deadly case of pneumonia following her weight loss surgery.

On last night's episode of the TLC obesity series My 600lbs Life, Laura Perez, from San Antonio, Texas, admitted that she was afraid she would die on the operating table – but it was actually her persistent refusal to address the symptoms of a lung infection that almost cost the 41-year-old her life.

'We got her just in time to keep her alive, but its not looking good right now,' Laura's surgeon Dr Younan Nowzaradan told the cameras. 'She is very close to dying.'

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Close call: Laura Perez's husband Joey held her hand as she battled pneumonia after her weight loss surgery on My 600lb Life

Personal nightmare: Before undergoing weight loss surgery, the 41-year-old cried that felt 'trapped in her own body'

The Houston-based doctor explained that Laura's family said she hasn't been feeling well, but she never came to the hospital.

Instead, Laura was later rushed to the emergency room, where she was placed in the intensive care unit and given a ventilator because she couldn't breathe on her own.

'A patient this size can't handle any sort of sickness,' Dr Nowzaradan said. '[Her] body has nothing left to give.'

Laura's common law husband Joey tearfully watched her quietly battle the infection in her hospital bed.

Mad love: Joey had to help Laura get out of bed in the morning because she was morbidly obese, weighing 594 lbs

Team work: Laura's mom Carmen and Joey had to help clean Laura's body and get her ready for the day

'Laura is my life,' he said. 'She's been there with me through thick and thin.'

Despite her severe condition, Laura miraculously managed to make a full recovery after spending two weeks in the hospital – but sadly her illness was just one of her many set backs.

When Laura first traveled to Houston to meet with Dr Nowzaradan, she was told that she needed to shed 50lbs from her 594lb frame before being eligible for gastric bypass.

'She is physically in one of the worst shapes I have ever seen,' the doctor said of Laura, who was a diabetic and needed an oxygen tank and a wheelchair with her at all times.

After Laura lost the necessary weight, Dr Nowzaradan proceeded with the surgery, only to find in the midst of the procedure that Laura's liver and spleen were far too large for her to actually undergo the gastric bypass.

Emotional trauma: When Laura was a young child (L), she didn't have a problem with her weight. She started piling on the pounds (R) after an older cousin started molesting her when she was only five-years-old

Constant struggle: Laura continued to put on weight, and by the time she was in high school, she weighed more than 300lbs

Soulmates: Joey and Laura met when she was 27-years-old. He said he was attracted to heavier women at the time and liked the way she looked

Instead, he had to do a gastrectomy, in which he removed 80per cent of Laura’s stomach. Although the procedure wouldn't be as beneficial to her weight loss as a gastric bypass, it was all he could do.

Laura, who almost cancelled the surgery the night before it was scheduled because she feared it would kill her, was devastated to learn that the doctor couldn't perform the gastric bypass.

Weeks later she was deathly ill and fighting for her life, but battling pneumonia gave Laura even more determination to lose weight once and for all.

'It made me realize how much of my life I had wasted,' she said. 'I have taken all this pain and bitterness and all I have done was eat instead of dealing with it.'

Major problem: Laura, who said she is addicted to sweets, can be seen eating candy that Joey had given her

Bad news: Weight loss expert Dr Younan Nowzaradan told Laura she had to lose 50lbs before being eligible for gastric bypass surgery

Panic mode: Laura's niece watched her aunt cry into her pillow the night before her surgery because she feared the procedure would kill her

She continued: 'I thought if I lost the weight, then I would start to get happy, but its really just been bringing everything to the surface and I don't want to run from it anymore.'

As a young child, weight was never an issue for Laura, but after an older cousin began molesting her when she was only five-years-old, her eating habits dramatically changed for the worst.

'I never told my parents anything so the molestation went on for years,' she told the cameras while crying. 'My whole life just changed, so I turned to food, That was my comfort.'

Being the heaviest kid in elementary school brought her even more pain.

Family support: Laura's mom and sister spend time with her before her scheduled surgery

Change of plans: In surgery, Dr Nowzaradan learned that Laura's liver and spleen were too large for gastric bypass. Instead, he had to perform a gastrectomy, in which he removed 80per cent of her stomach

Filled with fear: Joe tearfully watched Laura as she battled pneumonia in the intensive care unit at the hospital

'They would call me fat and say: "You are going to break the desk,"' she tearfully recalled. 'And I took all that pain and kept eating.'

Laura weighed more than 300lbs when she was in high school, and she was even heavier when she met Joey at the age of 27.

'I did like heavy set girls when I was younger,' Joey said. 'I liked the way she was.'

But after gaining so much additional weight Laura confessed that she had started to feel more like a burden in his life.

Joey and her mom Carmen had to do almost everything for Laura, including bathe her.

Turing to God: Laura can be seen lighting a candle at church after recovering from her life-threatening bout of pneumonia

Listening ear: In order to move past her traumatic childhood, Laura began seeing Molly McCann, a therapist who could help her with her emotional issues

Final results: A year into her journey, Laura was weight and learned that she had lost 237lbs

Laura explained that she felt 'trapped in this body'.

'It's just humiliating to have to your family do everything for you like this,' she said. 'Some days I want to die, so they don't have to take care of me anymore.'

She said she wants to get healthy, but admitted that she was battling an addiction to food. To make matters worse, Joey was often helping her sneak sweets behind her mother's back.

'She means the world to me. I love my wife a lot,' he explained. 'It's hard to tell her no because I love her.'

Warm embrace: Laura hugged Dr Nowzaradan and thanked him for saving her life

Before and after: Laura first entered Dr Nowzaradan's office in a wheelchair with oxygen, and now she was able to walk out on her own two feet

But Joey also noted that his biggest fear is that she will just give up on herself.

Laura's love for Joey, her mother, and her nieces, whom she calls her 'babies', is ultimately what drove her to see Dr Nowzaradan in the first place.

'I need to live for my babies,' she said, adding: 'I need to live for myself.'

After her bout with pneumonia, it dawned on Laura that she needed to deal with her emotional issues and began to see a therapist.

'A new body won't matter if I still feel the same way,' she said.

Special trip: Laura tried on a dress for Joey. It would become the first one that she would ever purchase and wear

Arts and crafts: Laura was able to go out with her nieces for the first time in their lives. They spent the day painting pottery

Dr Nowzaradan was concerned that she had only lost 18lbs since her surgery, and noted that she was on her way to gaining weight again.

But slowly, Laura began to heal emotionally. She had a heart-to heart with her mom about the abuse she faced as a child and she was finally beginning to forgive those who hurt her. And it was this emotional closure that enabled her to really buckle down and lose weight.

A year after she started her journey, Laura lost 237lbs and could do almost everything for herself.

She was even able to go shopping, purchase her first dress and go out with her nieces to paint pottery.