I Forgot How To Drive. | Delyth’s Oligodendroglioma Story

Delyth Smith was diagnosed with an oligodendroglioma in late 2023.For years, she felt like her health was declining. She blamed COVID, menopause, and depression. But something wasn’t right.A passionate climber and mountaineer, she could suddenly barely walk. She forgot how to drive in the middle of town. Her personality shifted — impulsive, emotionally volatile, swearing without filter. It felt bigger than menopause.Then, while recording social media interviews in Sheffield, she had a major seizure.She woke in an ambulance, confused, having bitten through her tongue. A CT scan revealed what she describes as a “snowball” behind her eye.Within a week, she underwent an eight-hour craniotomy.In this episode, Delyth shares:subtle neurological and personality changes caused by a frontal lobe tumourthe seizure that led to diagnosiswaiting weeks to learn exactly what type of tumour it wasa large, slow-growing oligodendroglioma with calcificationan eight-hour “flip-top” craniotomy removing 90%complications including cerebrospinal fluid leakageinfection, emergency re-operation and high-dose antibioticsthe emotional intensity of high-dose steroidsthe trauma of long hospital stays and witnessing others’ terminal diagnosesChristmas after diagnosis and the strain on familyscan monitoring and the uncertainty of regrowthwriting a book about the patient journey and “tumour humour”why mental health during hospitalisation matters just as much as treatmentDelyth speaks with sharp honesty, dark humour, and raw vulnerability about losing identity — and slowly rebuilding it.⚠️ Content note: This episode includes seizures, neurosurgery, infection complications, hospital trauma, and steroid-induced emotional changes.