Bradley Dryburgh has been hosting fascinating people on his podcast for more than two years, but he did not expect a three-and-a-half-minute video of him sobbing to be the one that went viral.
It was an excerpt of him sitting with two friends, reading them the eulogy he had written about himself.
The footage is raw, sad, uplifting and something most people would never consider doing.
"This video got over 500,000 views on Tik Tok," the 26-year-old said.
"I didn't expect it to go viral, but authenticity and vulnerability is something young men crave and it seemed to have a real response among young men."
The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation says people with the condition are living longer than before, but someone born between 2017 and 2021 with cystic fibrosis has a life expectancy of 53 years.
'Blessed to have air in our lungs'
Cystic fibrosis is an inherited disorder that causes severe damage to the lungs, digestive system and other organs in the body.
"I've had a unique experience with mortality through having cystic fibrosis and being challenged by some lung bleeds and that made me think, 'Is this my last moment?' while being rushed to hospital," Mr Dryburgh said.
"It makes you think about the sentiment of life and how blessed we are to have air in our lungs and a heartbeat."
He liked the idea of thinking about death and appreciating each day of life, and wanted to express his feelings towards loved ones publicly.
Mr Dryburgh and two of his friends — Joe Plumb and Tye Grieve — took turns reading their eulogies to each other on his podcast, A Lot To Talk About.
"It was incredibly emotional with my two mates and after hearing mine, Joe said he was glad we did this exercise because these were things we'd never get the chance to say if something happened to one of us," Mr Dryburgh said.
"I've never cried so much publicly, but it made me come back to the simple things in life and that's what I'm doing everything for."
Running brings new purpose
Although it is often fatal, cystic fibrosis is a chronic, and progressive, rather than terminal illness.
Mr Dryburgh said his parents were told by medical staff he would be better off with a terminal illness because the complications from cystic fibrosis would ruin his life.
He said his parents' sense of optimism and hope he would overcome the challenges of the condition shaped his own outlook on life.
That attitude prompted him to stare down the disorder that damages the lungs and take up long-distance running.
"Running is something I disliked for a long period of my life, but while sitting in a hospital bed in July 2020 with bleeding lungs, I saw an opportunity to share a journey with anyone who has battled chronic illness," he said.
"I set myself the challenge to run a marathon by the year's end. I've run three marathons, an ultra-marathon and I'm currently running 10km a day, every day for 47 days."
He said running had turned into a passion that became both physical and mental treatment for his condition.
"Running for me is more metaphorical than physical because it just reminds me of the blessing of life," he said.
"Every day is challenging, but you always find a way to get to the finish line and for me, that's more powerful than the physical nature of running itself."
