What You Need to Know About Romance, or the Lack of, When You Have CF
I’ve been single for a year now, and I’m darn proud of it. I didn’t think I could do it, and I’ve grown so much because of it. From ages 17 to 24, I was with a…
Victorious — Brad Dell
Brad Dell is Deaf and was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis at 2 months old in 1993. He received a double-lung transplant from UC San Francisco in January 2017, then cochlear implants nine months later. He lives in Hawaii, where he was raised. Usually he’s traveling the world, chugging coffee, or devouring books. He also pastors Restoration Community Church and serves as the director of community content at Bionews, this site’s publisher.
Featured Post
Am I making excuses or simply explaining my reality with CF?
I’ve been trying to write more. I promise. But my tacrolimus dose is pretty up there, and it’s getting on my nerves. Literally. Nerve pain from the medication, an immunosuppressant used in lung transplant management, has me…
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CF Treatments Made Me Deaf, but Sound Is More Beautiful Than Ever Before
Fall 2010 I’ll never forget the morning I couldn’t understand what my friends said as we waited for classes to begin. I’ll never forget calling Mom, phone pressed to my right ear, and not…
In Memory of Serena Lawrence, Who Inspired Voices of the Hurting and Sick
Wednesday’s evening air was heavy. It was as if Atlas kneeled and tugged the sky down with him. I drove through the California hills and beaches of Santa Cruz for hours, searching for anything that could relieve my inexplicable…
Cases of Injustices, Humiliations, and Sorrows
I’m a positive guy, I swear it. But I’m exhausted and need a good vent. *** When I pay about $100 per week for prescription medicine, I feel punished for having a genetic defect. I…
7 Ways to Cherish Your Quality of Life
Friends. Today, my message is simple. Your quality of life matters. Quality of life is integral to physical health Inevitably, you will face trials that require quality of life sacrifices for survival. “Sacrifice” is a carefully chosen…
The 4 Deaths that Mold Me
Winter 2016-17: Sabrina Santos We called each other twins. Sabrina, like me, was a nerdy, faithful, coffee-loving journalist. She also had cystic fibrosis, Mycobacterium abscessus, deafness, and an urgent need for lung transplantation. Unlike me, she…
My Hospital, That Torturous Refuge
“Ahhh, so lucky! Enjoy your vacation.” Many people thought hospitalizations were times to sit around and cruise the internet; get treated like royalty and served wine. (Nah, I only got rubbing alcohol.) The response was rarely, “I…
Disease Fatigue Is Not the Same as Laziness
I come from the generation of “Netflix and chill,” except for me, it wasn’t a sexual innuendo. My college life consisted mostly of watching Netflix and chilling; sitting on the couch with my girlfriend at the time,…
Who Runs the Ward? Women.
I’ve been in sticky situations with dude doctors. With many male doctors, it’s a CF battle. We’re overcome by politics and competition; tackling for command and barking orders at each other. Yes, it’s mutual because I’m a…
CF Lung Transplant Candidates: It’s OK to Be Afraid
September 2016 Every bone, tooth, and vein in my body trembled. The oxygen cannula hugging my nostrils slipped on sweat. I sat at a cold table with my pre-transplant coordinator who’d subjected me…
There’s Jubilant Laughter at the Transplant Games of America
July 28, 1 p.m. We’re laughing. Some of us literally poured blood, sweat, and tears to be there laughing. Transplant recipients, like me. Others thought they’d never see their loved ones laugh again, much less years later.
Looking Back on a Year of My ‘Victorious’ Column
One year ago, I was six months post-lung transplant. I was still fumbling about, trying to sort out my new body and aspirations to help other CFers with my second chance at life. I didn’t know how…
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