Invisible injuries, not bad eating habits, caused my son’s aHO
The problem wasn't on his plate; it was inside his brain
Written by |
Looking back, I realize that my son Hollis’ acquired hypothalamic obesity (aHO) didn’t begin with weight gain. The signs had been there for years, I just didn’t know what I was seeing.
In October 2019, Hollis underwent brain surgery to remove a craniopharyngioma, a rare type of noncancerous brain tumor. The surgery saved his life, but it also permanently changed it. At just 4 years old, his childhood changed overnight.
While Hollis was recovering in the pediatric intensive care unit, I noticed something different. He constantly asked for food. The chef from Children’s Hospital of New York would come to his bedside and ask what he wanted to eat. His favorite requests were macaroni and cheese, spaghetti, mashed potatoes, and even Domino’s pizza at 5 a.m.
At the time, I didn’t think much of it. I thought he was simply a little boy recovering from major brain surgery. I thought the hospital staff was comforting him, caring for him, and showing him love during one of the hardest moments of his life. I never imagined those moments would stay with me years later.
Our healthy habits didn’t change
Once Hollis recovered, life settled into a new normal. Even after brain surgery and 30 rounds of radiation, he remained the same picky eater he had always been. He ate three meals a day with snacks in between, got full, and maintained an average weight. From 2020 until 2024, he wore age-appropriate clothing sizes and looked like any other healthy little boy.
He wasn’t constantly asking for food, and he didn’t have overwhelming cravings. If anything, getting Hollis to try new foods was still a challenge.
One thing people often assume when they see a child living with obesity is that their diet must be unhealthy. That couldn’t be further from the truth.
Hollis has always been an incredibly picky eater. In 2025, he even confessed to his therapist that he hated my cook-up rice, a traditional Guyanese one-pot dish made with brown rice, beans, meat, and vegetables. At one of our appointments, his therapist jokingly teased me about my cook-up rice. I couldn’t help but laugh because I already knew Hollis had probably spent part of his therapy session complaining about my cooking. The funny part is that cook-up rice is one of the most nutritious meals I make.
Our family rarely eats out. Most of our meals are prepared at home, and I’m in my kitchen every day making breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Nutrition has always been important in our household.
Water is our drink of choice. Juice and soda are occasional treats, not everyday staples. Every time I grocery shop, my cart is usually filled with 12 to 20 gallons of water, along with cases of 16-ounce bottled water to last our family about two weeks. Everyone has a gallon jug labeled with their name or carries a Stanley cup throughout the day.
Those habits haven’t changed — not after brain surgery, not after radiation, not after Hollis’ seizure, and not even today in 2026. What changed wasn’t our family’s lifestyle. It was Hollis’ brain.
Temperature regulation was a clue
I noticed another change after radiation, although I didn’t understand its significance at the time: Hollis was always hot.
From 2020 until 2022, we lived in the South Bronx in New York City. Our apartment had excellent heat during the winter, so much so that we could leave the windows open and the apartment would still be warm. Yet Hollis always wanted the air conditioner running.
In March 2022, we moved to Far Rockaway, where winters were much colder because we lived near the beach. Even then, Hollis rarely wanted to wear his jacket. If he wore one, it usually stayed unzipped. At home, the air conditioner ran in his bedroom all year long, even during the winter months.
At the time, I thought it was simply his preference. I didn’t connect the dots. Then came July 26, 2024, when Hollis suffered a seizure that left him unconscious. After that day, everything changed.
The child who had always been a picky eater suddenly seemed hungry all the time. No matter how much he ate, he never seemed satisfied. His weight began increasing, even though nothing about our family’s eating habits had changed.
Looking back, the pieces of the puzzle that had seemed unrelated for years finally began to fit together. I later learned that the hypothalamus doesn’t just regulate hunger and metabolism. It also plays an important role in regulating body temperature. What I had once dismissed as a personal preference was another effect of damage to one of the brain’s most important control centers.
As parents, we often blame ourselves for not recognizing the signs sooner. But the truth is, you can’t recognize something you’ve never been taught to look for. I wasn’t ignoring the signs; I simply didn’t know that surviving a brain tumor could leave behind invisible injuries that would continue changing my son’s life years after his surgery.
Today, I know those invisible injuries have a name: acquired hypothalamic obesity. Our family’s eating habits never changed. Our routines never changed. The problem was never what was on his plate; it was the injury hidden inside his brain.
Note: Rare Obesity News is strictly a news and information website about these disorders. It does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. This content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or another qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on this website. The opinions expressed in this column are not those of Rare Obesity News or its parent company, Bionews, and are intended to spark discussion about issues pertaining to rare obesity disorders.
