Stress and Vitamin DeficiencyAfter my radical cystectomy, I experienced severe hair loss. Although I did not end up bald, my medical team estimates I lost about 75% of my hair. I had very... By Brittney Tellekamp3 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments1 comments
Packing for a Cruise With an OstomyI am finally going on my first big trip since being diagnosed with bladder cancer - a 1-week cruise to the Virgin Islands. I am so excited, but also very... By Brittney Tellekamp2 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments2 comments
My Diagnosis Story: A Wild Visit to the Emergency RoomBy the time I got to the front desk and said, "Hey, my hip hurts," my husband was calling me. "Did you just leave the house?"... "Yes"... "Did you tell... By Brittney Tellekamp3 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments1 comments
My Diagnosis Story: Strange SymptomsBeing a young woman diagnosed with bladder cancer, the thing I'm most often asked is, "How did it happen?". I've told my diagnosis story many times, and each time I... By Brittney Tellekamp3 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments6 comments
Intimacy After CystectomyI am a sex-positive person. I think education and conversations surrounding sex and intimacy should be normal. I am even more passionate about these conversations being part of all the... By Brittney Tellekamp2 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments0 comments
Being BraveYou're so brave. I'm so inspired by you. You're doing so great. You are so strong - blah, blah, blah. I have heard all of this and pretty much every... By Brittney Tellekamp3 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments13 comments
My Dog Knew I Was SepticWe can all agree that our pets are very intuitive. They just seem to "know" when something is wrong and, in their own way, try to help. Early on in... By Brittney Tellekamp3 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments2 comments
A Letter to Newly Diagnosed MeLet me start there. You are so beautiful and have an inner strength that will change lives, even if you don't know it yet. You have suffered in silence, with... By Brittney Tellekamp2 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments0 comments
Not Another Coloring BookLet's get in the time machine and go back to September 2019. I was freshly healed from my radical cystectomy, starting to get acquainted with having a urostomy and grappling... By Brittney Tellekamp2 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments2 comments
Cold Weather Ostomy HacksThere I stood at my bathroom counter, a third failed bag in the trash, and staring daggers at my stoma. Nothing I did could get my ostomy bag to stick... By Brittney Tellekamp3 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments3 comments
Reclaiming My NormalI have declared 2023 as the year I will reclaim my normal. In 2019 I was diagnosed with what should have been terminal bladder cancer. 2020 brought about COVID. 2021... By Brittney Tellekamp2 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments1 comments
Well, They Didn't Tell Me THATMaybe we can blame it on the emergency surrounding my surgery, and maybe we can say the post-op complications were taking precedence. But before and even after my surgery, I... By Brittney Tellekamp3 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments11 comments
Coping With MusicMusic has always been an integral part of my life. Even as a baby, my parents said I was always dancing and bouncing whenever there was a tune playing. As... By Brittney Tellekamp3 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments2 comments
Living the 1 PercentFrom the day of my diagnosis, I have always been "different." I was too young (only 28 years old at diagnosis). I was a woman. I had never smoked or... By Brittney Tellekamp3 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments8 comments
Caring for Your Mental HealthOnce faced with a cancer diagnosis, your entire focus tends to shift to caring for your body. Staying hydrated, eating well, prepping for procedures, dealing with treatment after effects, and... By Brittney Tellekamp3 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments4 comments
Hope for a Happy New YearOn July 25th, 2019, everything stopped. It was like my world froze into place, and here we are now, and it feels in many ways like I am still frozen... By Brittney Tellekamp2 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments5 comments
Summertime Ostomy ManagementSummer has arrived in the southern United States, and the weather is sweltering. It's not unusual for the heat indexes here to reach the triple digits and this brings along... By Brittney Tellekamp2 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments2 comments
The Right Book at the Right TimeA theme that has run consistently through my cancer journey has been timing. Everything has always happened in timing that has been eerily just the way it needed to happen... By Brittney Tellekamp3 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments2 comments
Re-Staging My Bladder CancerIt is strange to think that 2 years ago we really were unsure what my future would look like with bladder cancer. I was so sick, and we knew my... By Brittney Tellekamp2 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments4 comments
New Keytruda ProtocolBack on October 4th, 2019 I received my very first dose of Keytruda. For the following two years, I received my infusion every 3 weeks with great success. The symptoms... By Brittney Tellekamp2 min readBookmark for laterReactions 0 reactions Comments2 comments