Adam Devine recently shared his experience of receiving a frightening health diagnosis just before becoming a father.
The star of Pitch Perfect and Modern Family was informed he suffered from a rare condition that significantly shortens lifespan.
This condition, Stiff Person Syndrome (SPS), has gained public attention following singer Céline Dion’s public disclosure of her own diagnosis.
Dion announced her battle with this condition in August 2022.
Medical experts describe SPS as an uncommon, persistent disorder characterized by muscular rigidity and painful contractions.
The manifestation varies among patients and currently has no remedy, with an estimated occurrence rate of merely one or two individuals per million population, according to medical authorities.
Recounting his diagnostic experience on the In Depth With Graham Bensinger podcast, Devine explained: “My body experienced widespread spasms, which continue somewhat today.”
“Medical professionals remained uncertain. For a period, they predicted my imminent death—literally within the past year.”
“They diagnosed me with Stiff Person Syndrome, explaining that it causes such extreme muscle constriction that mobility becomes impossible, and eventually the heart—being muscular tissue—becomes too constricted to function.”
The performer mentioned that physicians cited a six-year average survival period following diagnosis, news he received approximately four weeks before his son Beau’s arrival.
This prognosis left the entertainer worried that his child would only experience life with a physically impaired father and lose him entirely by age six.
Subsequently, however, Devine consulted a specialist in SPS who concluded he did not actually have the syndrome.
Rather, the specialist attributed his muscular issues to trauma sustained during childhood when he was eleven years old.
Quoting the specialist’s assessment, Devine stated: “He explained it stemmed from my childhood accident. The muscle spasms remain somewhat inexplicable, but possibly resulted from extreme muscle tension causing neurological misfiring.”
As a youth, Devine survived being struck by a massive cement truck weighing 42 tons while crossing a street.
The accident necessitated multiple surgical interventions and temporarily confined him to a wheelchair.
Though Devine eventually achieved complete rehabilitation and regained mobility, at 41 he continues experiencing lingering effects from this traumatic incident.