At only 17 years old, this month’s fierce woman, Brittany Kanovsky might not yet technically be a woman, but she sure presents herself as one when it comes to speaking about a topic that is near and dear to her heart and the highlight of “A Gift of Love,” Maxim Hygiene’s latest educational campaign – Toxic Shock Syndrome (TSS).
Brittany is a TSS survivor with a miraculous story of triumph about how she fought the illness and how she so bravely shares her story. After three days of flu-like symptoms, rashes and changes in skin color, Brittany checked into a hospital where she fell into multi-organ failure and was quickly diagnosed with TSS. She spent five weeks in recovery (10 days on life support and 3 weeks in critical care) and had to have surgery to remove all the black dead tissue on her toes, one of the many results of TSS. Brittany’s fierce spirit not only helped her beat the odds with TSS but is the driving force behind her bold and brave effort to share her story with others and head into her next phase of life as a college student.
I had the great pleasure of meeting Brittany at a taping of the television talk show The Doctors, where Brittany, along with her family and previously featured fierce woman Lisa Elifritz, were brought on as guests to speak about their experience with Toxic Shock Syndrome. Maxim Hygiene’s products were also scheduled to have their first nationally televised feature on the show as an example of a safer tampon option that is less likely to cause TSS. This claim is based on extensive research conducted by Dr. Philip M. Tierno who was also interviewed for the clip. What looks like cotton in some tampons is not always 100% cotton, rather a blend of synthetics, like rayon and viscose, materials that can not only cause TSS, but a slew of other health and environmental risk factors of concern to Maxim Hygiene, like irritation.
Unfortunately, the products were cut from the episode due to time constraints, but the experience of supporting Lisa and meeting the Kanovsky family was invaluable. It contributed to the launch of our Gift of Love campaign, where a percentage of product sales through the end of the year will be donated to You ARE Loved, a non-profit committed to TSS Awareness and Menstruation Education.
Brittany’s calm, cool, collective and inspiring attitude shined through during her interview with the Doctors. We wanted to give you a more detailed look at this fierce woman with an interview of our own:
It’s about a year and half since your terrible experience with TSS. How’s your health now?
My health has been improving, I still have to be careful with my feet because they are still sensitive. I am not sure if I am allowed to have children when I am older but only time will tell.
Will you need to go undergo surgery again or are you a part of any recovery programs to deal with the aftermath of TSS?
The Plastic Surgeons have suggested that I could have another Surgery to have my nail beds replaced, but as of right now, I don’t think I am going to have that surgery.
How do you overcome the painful memories of your experience with TSS to share your stories with others?
To overcome the painful memories of my experience, I tell students and adults my story.
What were you thinking when The Doctors called to feature your story on their nationally televised show?
When the doctors called I was overly excited and I wanted to be on the show to make others aware of TSS as its getting out there more and more.
How have your friends been supportive of all that you’ve been going through?
My friends have been with me every step of the way, and I think that is one of the reasons I have been so successful. They push me to do bigger and better things. I really appreciate everything they have done for me being visiting me in the hospital like my best friend Bryce or to just making posters. I love each and every one of them.
Maxim Hygiene defines a Fierce Woman as “a glorious female creature whose idea of beauty is hinged upon the idea that she can change the world with each choice, each moment and each breath of her life.” Who in your life would you describe as a fierce woman and why?
In my point of view, I believe that one of my friends from school is my “fierce woman.” She is 17 years old with a 2 year old son. She has missed out on all school events, never been to one football game and she comes to school, always has a smile on her face and I really admire her. Even though she struggles, she is “fierce” and she is one of the strongest girls I know.