Devon was born and raised in Indianapolis, Indiana, the youngest of 8 children. Today, he’s a police officer who works in a local hospital.
Growing up in such a large, close-knit family was wonderful but it shaped his food habits in ways that affected his weight and health as an adult.
- With 8 siblings, there were always birthdays and special occasions to celebrate. So, Devon associated good times and happy family gatherings with all the cake, cookies, ice cream, and pie he could eat.
- Devon also learned to eat everything at mealtimes because “Mom and dad worked hard to put that food on your plate.” A lot of that was starch heavy, the kind of filler food you need to feed a large family.
- Everyone in the family had chores to do, but the one time Devon got put on cooking duty, he started a grease fire, so his parents gave him other jobs instead. “To this day, nobody cleans or does laundry like me. But I didn't learn how to cook.”
Though Devon was big growing up, he was in great shape. Like his brothers, he played sports in school and trained every day which allowed him to eat whatever he wanted. “I didn't know that the food I ate was a problem because I was so active.”
After graduating, he stayed active and fit, so he would never have guessed he had any serious health concerns until the day his doctor checked his blood sugar. Devon’s reading was over 700, a number so high the doctor sent him immediately to the emergency department at the hospital across the street.
As healthy as Devon felt, he was at serious risk of imminent stroke and he wasn’t even 30 years old.
Strong, Fit, and Unhealthy
His family had a history of diabetes. Right away, Devon’s doctors started talking about putting him on insulin. He was reluctant because he’d heard that once you go on insulin you never get off. His grandmother was a nurse,, and told him he could take insulin temporarily until his numbers fell, but he would need to make serious lifestyle changes to stay off.
Eating healthy was key but Devon had never learned how to cook. He could make simple fast-food type meals – burgers, hot dogs, taco salads – but he had almost no vegetables in his diet. Instead of changing his eating, he doubled down on working out. Then he strained himself and needed hernia surgery. His doctor told him he would need to lay off the weights for at least a year.
“But my doctor never said anything about changing my diet, so I really only had a piece of the puzzle,” Devon said. Because he kept eating the way he had when he was still weightlifting, the pounds started adding up. He went from 270 and mostly solid muscle to 360. That weight gain made it even harder to stay active and he felt depression setting in. He coped by eating even more.
All his life, he’d been extremely active, but now he had no energy. So when hospital started a bariatric surgery program, Devon signed up. He didn’t want surgery, but he knew he needed a change.
Everyone in the program was put on a liver-reduction diet low in calories and carbohydrates. Participants needed to weigh in each week to stay enrolled. The goal was to lose enough weight to qualify for surgery or lose so much weight that surgery was no longer necessary.
Devon’s mother moved in with him temporarily to cook for him and help him stay on track. Over the next three months, they both lost over 30 pounds. “We did it together,” Devon remembers with a smile. “It was awesome to have a partner in that journey.” The more weight he lost, the better he felt and the more active he became.
Devon achieved his goal to avoid bariatric surgery but after his mother moved out and the program ended, old cycles kept repeating. His lack of experience in the kitchen meant he often turned to unhealthy food and he coped with periods of depression by eating more. He also often worked night shifts and double shifts which affected his eating habits and led him to reach for whatever was convenient instead of healthy. While he didn’t go back up to 360 pounds, he couldn’t maintain healthy A1C levels. That’s when his health plan emailed him about the “NourishedRx Fresh Food to You Diabetes Program.”
Ready, Set, Go
Right away, he knew NourishedRx would be a big help. “I was really excited. The program sent me raw fruits and vegetables and meals I could prep. I just had to warm them up.”
He ate healthy on his own for the first time in his life. But when the meal kits stopped, Devon faced his old challenge – shopping and cooking for himself. This time, the NourishedRx program (along with some timely help from his sisters) gave him the road map and practical support he needed with food suggestions, recipes, consults, and education to launch himself along a new path.
After the program ended, Devon continued to practice and expand on what he’d learned. He bought himself a couple air fryers to cook with less oil and he started trying new healthy recipes. He also became interested in learning more about the health benefits of other foods and spices like turmeric, which he incorporated into his diet.
“I’m still not a good cook, but I’m making better choices now. My shopping is different. The food in my fridge and kitchen cabinets is different. And my taste buds have changed, too. The unhealthy food I used to eat doesn’t give me the same pleasure anymore. I attribute that to the quality of food I’ve introduced to my body.”
The clear impact on his health has added to his motivation. When he joined the three-month NourishedRx diabetes program in August 2022, he weighed 284 pounds and his A1C level was 10.8. A year and a half after the program ended, Devon’s down to 269 pounds with a goal of reaching 250 and his A1C level is now 7. He’s also finally talking with his doctor about getting off some of the medicines he’s been on for years.
“The program opened my eyes to what healthy living is and gave me the knowledge I needed to be a better me and live longer. I know what certain foods do to my body now and I know how healthy food is helping me. I’m feeling stronger. I have more energy. My joints are better. My brain is sharper. I wish this program was available to everybody because I am convinced that society has set us up to be stuck in the healthcare system.”
And healthy food has brought his family closer again. “My family has seen my progress and now their shopping and eating habits are different, too. And we’ve started having family meals together once a month. We’re still celebrating around food, just like when we were kids, but we’re all eating healthy now.”
