Self-blame and living with obesity
Deon describes the painful experience of walking into meeting rooms and immediately feeling judged by his appearance. “So that’s every meeting room I would walk into. That’s what I would be faced with. And I would say, ‘My God, why can’t I be like that? What’s wrong with me? Why am I so weak? Why am I so weak that I can’t do the work that I need to do just to move a little more, eat a little less, resist that dessert?'”
Beyond the damning self-blame, he says, people living with obesity are often tormented by photos of themselves. Deon went to a spectacular event where photos were taken, and he looked at these photos with sadness.
“I would never say, ‘Wow, that’s a great looking group, what a great memory of that night.’ I just looked at them and said, ‘I’m really fat.'” He threw the photos away so he wouldn’t be reminded of his size.
But obesity is not something you can escape. The emotional toll runs deep, and the internal narrative of failure can become relentless.
The stigma surrounding obesity
“There is a stigma of being weak-willed, unable to control cravings and vulnerable to food advertising,” Deon explains. This pervasive stigma affects self-esteem and confidence, creating a vicious cycle where food becomes a source of comfort. “Food becomes a balm that heals your ailments and brings you comfort,” he says, describing how emotional pain and societal judgment can drive a person deeper into unhealthy eating patterns.
Lose weight and gain self-confidence
What changed Deon’s health was a connection with a leader in obesity treatment, Dr. Remi Rabasa-Lhoret, an endocrinologist in Montreal, who spoke to him about new drugs in development. At the time, researchers were just beginning to see how people with type 2 diabetes lost weight on Ozempic, the semaglutide drug first approved to treat type 2 diabetes.
A turning point with semaglutide treatment
After the groundbreaking clinical trial of semaglutide for weight loss, funded by Ozempic maker Novo Nordisk, was published, Dr. Remi Rabasa-Lhoret suggested that Deon should try it. And he did.
That was in 2022, after his weight rose to nearly 300 pounds during the global pandemic isolation. The effect of the medication was liberating and freed him from his food addiction.
“For the first time in years, I felt physically comfortable. I looked at myself in the mirror and smiled. Now my wife says I can’t stop looking at myself in the mirror,” he says, smiling broadly.
Deon’s story highlights the complex relationship between obesity, self-worth, and medical intervention. While the stigma of obesity often centers on willpower and personal discipline, his experience underscores that obesity is a medical condition that can benefit from professional treatment and evidence-based therapies. For Deon, the right medical support didn’t just change his weight — it transformed how he sees himself.
