Private Chef, Writer & Podcaster
In 2007, a routine heart procedure turned into a life-changing diagnosis: heart failure. Eighteen years later, I’m still here—living with sarcoidosis, a defibrillator in my chest, and the constant awareness that my next heartbeat might depend on a tiny piece of metal and code. This is what surviving with an AICD really feels like—equal parts miracle, nuisance, and reminder to keep going.
At seventeen, I fell in love with roller skating—late-night practice sessions, flips, spins, even skating backwards at full speed. Decades later, with sarcoidosis, heart failure, and a novelist’s body instead of an athlete’s, I found myself wondering: could I still lace up those skates, or are some passions meant to stay in the past? This is a story about youth, health, nostalgia, and learning to admire others while letting yourself off the hook.
Ever had someone snatch your phone while you were just trying to show them a picture? Twice in one day, it hit me how much of my entire life—accounts, passwords, memories, even my brain power—now lives inside this little iPhone. As a chef with sarcoidosis and heart failure who once memorized entire bank account numbers and directions without GPS, I’m wrestling with the good, bad, and ridiculous sides of tech dependence.
Eighteen years ago this month, my life changed forever. That was the day I officially began this journey with sarcoidosis after undergoing an open lung biopsy—the most brutal medical procedure I’ve ever experienced. Four years later, I wrote about it, but never shared it. Until now. Despite the trauma, I’ve never regretted doing the biopsy. …
Continue reading "Eighteen Years Since Diagnosis: My Open Lung Biopsy Story"
At sixteen, a quiet walk home turned into the scariest night of my life — and the moment I found the fighter hiding inside me. What began as terror became transformation, proving that courage doesn’t wait for permission. This is the story of how I went from frozen in fear to running on pure fire.
Tate Basildon 