Posts by: Brad Dell

Brad Dell

Brad Dell is a deaf 24-year-old with cystic fibrosis. Originally from Hawaii, he received a double-lung transplant from University of California at San Francisco in January 2017. When not testing out his new lungs with exercise or reading comics, he's writing to spread awareness of organ donation and CF

June 19, 2018June 18, 2018

My Thoughts on the European Cystic Fibrosis Conference (ECFS 2018)

Columns, Victorious - a Column by Brad Dell

After 37 hours of travel, I landed in Belgrade, Serbia. I hopped in a cab and rolled past rows of rusted relics — airplanes of various centuries, including the ... Read more

June 12, 2018June 8, 2018

Making Up for Lost Time and Lost Experiences

Columns, Victorious - a Column by Brad Dell

I’m flyin’ high. Or maybe flyin’ buzzed. My transplant docs say “drink only in moderation,” and I am, smuggling sips via a straw tucked into my N99 mask. It’s ... Read more

June 5, 2018June 1, 2018

With Pulmonary Disease Comes Brain Fog, and It Sucks

Columns, Victorious - a Column by Brad Dell

Confession: I failed kindergarten. It was open house night and my teacher showed my parents a line of class self-portraits. There were probably some overly large heads and outlandish ... Read more

May 29, 2018May 31, 2018

My Erratic Mental Pendulum Slams Between Depression and Anxiety

Columns, Victorious - a Column by Brad Dell

It starts with chemicals too small to see. Too little of this, too much of that. An imbalance. It becomes a dulled personality. A mixture of confusion and ... Read more

May 15, 2018May 14, 2018

CF Battered Me, but I’m Striking Back at Life at a Full Sprint

Columns, Victorious - a Column by Brad Dell

I’m dead-beat. Bone-tired. Wasted. But I ain’t dead-dead and I ain’t lung-tired. And with my lung transplant, I guess you could say I’m recycled, rather than wasted. Maybe these ... Read more

May 8, 2018May 7, 2018

Sugar Does the Trick, But I Won’t Let It Trick Me

Columns, Victorious - a Column by Brad Dell

Mom never had to force me to eat my veggies. Matter of fact, she tried to force me to eat less of them. There was nothing quite as refreshing as ... Read more

May 1, 2018May 3, 2018

Cystic Fibrosis Didn’t Shatter Me — It Forged Bravery

Columns, Victorious - a Column by Brad Dell

Moonlight twinkled off Eagle Scouts’ accomplishment pins (earned for demonstrations of helpfulness, generosity, and loyalty) as they wound rope around my friend and me — tying it off with ... Read more

April 24, 2018April 24, 2018

Springs of Various Sorts: Post-transplant Peace and Euphoria

Columns, Victorious - a Column by Brad Dell

Spring 2017 It was a historic rainfall in Silicon Valley, the likes not seen since the days of Noah and his big boat. Los Gatos Creek spilled over and ... Read more

April 17, 2018April 17, 2018

When Invisible Illness Becomes Visible

Columns, Victorious - a Column by Brad Dell

I breathed 23 years of invisible illness before retching tan-green Silly Putty into city trash bins while leashed to a bulky, wheeled, metallic canister of oxygen. Twenty-three years of ... Read more

April 10, 2018April 10, 2018

What Is Victory? Sharing Our Reality.

Columns, Victorious - a Column by Brad Dell

What is victory for us? I know we crave a cure above all, but what is attainable in the meantime? When I began this column, titled “Victorious,” I viewed ... Read more

Pin It on Pinterest