Whitney Way Thore is saying "oui" to romance, on her own terms.
An exclusive sneak peek at My Big Fat Fabulous Life, airing Aug. 31, shows Whitney's latest virtual date with her French love interest, and the TLC star can't help but compare her new flame with her ex-fiancé Chase Severino.
"I'm almost about to get my second vaccine and then we can travel," Whitney assures her Frenchman, citing coronavirus border closures. "I know I can't commit to France because I already looked! It said at the end that they were making exceptions for married couples to reunite."
Her boyfriend, who asked to stay anonymous on the show, teases, "Oh, so we have to get married or something?"
Whitney jokes back, "So, you want to get married? Is that what you're saying?"
The date counters, "I mean, I think that this is going a bit too fast, and I don't think that Babs would approve, right?"
Whitney quips that her mother Babs would "totally approve" since her family is "really trying to marry me off, as soon as possible."
Yet, Whitney then opens up about the pressure she faces: "They're like, maybe you should lose weight and find a man!"
The man she has now found on a language dating app empathizes. "Oh really? That's awful, I'm sorry," he states. "I mean, look at you. I mean, I have trouble understanding how you can't find a decent person to care about you."
Whitney reveals that she even considered weight loss surgery after her shocking split from ex Chase. It was later discovered that Chase welcomed a baby with another woman just three months after their broken engagement. "It's really preferred to find someone who appreciated all that I have to offer right now," Whitney notes. "But yeah, I'm starting to wonder if that's not going to happen, I guess."
Whitney also confirms that she began thinking about the surgery a year ago once her relationship ended. While she doesn't believe that Chase cheated on her because of her weight, she does credit him for being the catalyst for considering a lifestyle change. "I feel like it could make my life easier in a lot of ways," she adds.
Whitney's supportive date offers some advice: "Just don't do it expecting anything from anyone else," he warns. "What I'm trying to say is you are already perfectly well the way you are."
During a confessional, Whitney can't contain her tears. "It's been almost exactly a year since my engagement ended with Chase and everything was just kind of shattered, you know?" she heartbreakingly explains.
"So, I've been trying to put all these little pieces back together and I feel in some ways even more unlovable or broken than I was before. So to hear someone tell me, 'you're perfect just the way you are,' I mean like, that's the most, just comforting, wonderful thing to hear because not being good enough is my biggest fear."
Watch the touching clip above to see more of Whitney's budding romance and journey of self-worth.
My Big Fat Fabulous Life airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. on TLC.