Victorious – a Column by Brad Dell

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

April 3, 2018April 2, 2018

Growing Out of a ‘Childhood Disease’

Columns, Victorious - a Column by Brad Dell

“A childhood disease.” That’s what they called cystic fibrosis back in my day. (Man, that makes me sound old. But that’s kinda the point of this column.) A childhood ... Read more

March 20, 2018March 18, 2018

Here’s How I Wish I Had Prepared for My Lung Transplant

Columns, Victorious - a Column by Brad Dell

When I first met my lung transplant surgeon, she remarked that cystic fibrosis patients have a great post-transplant life expectancy because we tend to be best prepared for it. ... Read more

March 13, 2018March 12, 2018

The Absurdity of Not Being Prepared for Pain

Columns, Victorious - a Column by Brad Dell

Military hospitals handled most of my cystic fibrosis (CF) care. Many members of the military worship pain (“Get some! Rub some dirt in it, hooah!”), and assume you do, ... Read more

March 6, 2018March 5, 2018

The Value of a Friend Who Breathes Heavily

Columns, Victorious - a Column by Brad Dell

There are times I feel especially mortal. Such as when I’m feet from the top of a rock climbing wall, and I realize I’m relying on a single rope ... Read more