Nutrition Counseling Helps Special Olympics Athlete Reach Weight‑Loss Goal for Needed Surgery

Maryann Harmer, of Port St. Lucie, Fla., credits the nutrition counseling her daughter, Sharon, received from Cleveland Clinic in Florida’s Center for Diabetes and Nutrition with giving her the motivation and support she needed to get her weight back on track.

Maryann and Sharon had moved to Port St. Lucie from Canada in 2002 and settled into an active lifestyle in which Sharon participated in bowling, bocce, swimming and showman in equestrian with Special Olympics, along with taking swimming exercise classes and volunteering in the library.

Sharon, 52, who is a high-functioning  globally challenged woman, has struggled with her weight for more than 20 years. She reached her peak weight of 276 pounds (at 5’7” tall) in 2018.

Mona Fakhry, MD, an internal medicine physician at Cleveland Clinic in Florida, referred Sharon to the Center for Diabetes and Nutrition, for nutrition counseling. By October 2020, Sharon was down to 194 pounds.

But Sharon’s weight started to climb again, getting more out of control when the two moved to New Jersey for two years in 2020. Dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic and a lack of support on their weight loss journey caused both women to gain weight.

“It seems to run in our family that we are heavy,” says Maryann, who has struggled with weight on and off in her life as well.

When they came back to Florida in March of 2022, Sharon’s weight had risen to 216 pounds, and Maryann had gained weight as well. They both tried unsuccessfully to lose weight on their own. Losing the weight became doubly important for Sharon, however, as she needed to have hernia repair surgery but was advised to lose some weight first. So, Dr. Fakhry referred Sharon to the Center for Diabetes and Nutrition again.

Sharon, with her mother by her side, began nutrition counseling sessions for the second time with registered dietitian, Tegan Bissell, RD, LDN, CDCES, in the spring of 2025. Through the program she has lost 30 pounds and was able to have the hernia repair surgery in December.

“Tegan taught Sharon portion control and so many tricks that have been so helpful,” Maryann says. She says she, too, has lost 20 pounds just by learning from Sharon’s counseling sessions with Tegan, which she says are always positive.

“It’s so helpful to have someone to be accountable to,” she adds.  “And losing the weight is so rewarding. You just feel better.”

Though Sharon’s counseling sessions have become less frequent, Maryann says they both learned a lot and are using that knowledge on a daily basis as they continue on their weight loss journey.