Teddi Mellencamp has described the conversation she had with her father John Mellencamp about her burial plans.
The RHOBH alum, aged 43, facing stage four cancer, disclosed that her father contacted her to inquire if she was interested in being part of their ‘group family mausoleum’ in Indiana.
Teddi was not feeling pressured to decide quickly on the somber matter, but her father pointed out that she ‘might as well’ secure a spot since she was currently working on her will.
The Jack & Diane singer assured his daughter that their family mausoleum could also accommodate her three children with estranged husband Edwin Arroyave – Slate, aged 12, Cruz, aged 10, and Dove, aged five.
‘Yesterday my dad calls eleven times in a row. Finally I answer, I’m like, “I’m in the bath. Let me live a little,”‘ she recalled on the latest episode of her podcast, Two Ts In A Pod. ‘He goes, “I just want to make sure you’re going to be in our group family mausoleum.”‘
‘I said, “I have kids, so where are they going to go?” He’s like, “Well, there’s going to be the top five and then we’re gonna have little areas around it, and then that’s where everyone’s going to get buried.”‘
Teddi Mellencamp has described the grim conversation she had with her father John Mellencamp about her burial plans
‘I go, “Do I need to make this commitment right now,” and he goes, “You’re doing your will right now, so you may as well put it in there,”‘ he said.
The morbid conversation also included the possibility of her entering a vegetative state.
Teddi told her father she has no desire to ‘be a vegetable’, prompting her father to state he plans on being ‘in charge’ of that particular matter.
‘I said… “This is a reminder. I don’t want to be a vegetable. I’m good to fight, fight, fight, but if I become a-” and he’s like, “I’m going to be in charge of that.”
‘I’m like, “Well, I’ll change my will right now then if you’re not willing to-” He’s like, “Vegetable is dependent.” I’m like “what do you mean? If I’m a cucumber or a…this is not a dependent. It is what it is.”
Teddi, whose sister will soon be visiting her followed by their father, said she believes she ‘agreed’ to join the mausoleum.
‘But either way, I think I agreed to be in the mausoleum and I’m gonna have to work on my sister next week. The kids will be right behind me.’
Mellencamp was initially diagnosed with melanoma in 2022 but it has now metastasized to her lungs and brain, she recently confirmed to USWeekly.
Days after her interview she discovered she had four new tumors on her brain.
The Jack & Diane singer even told his daughter that their family mausoleum will be able to accommodate the three children she shares with estranged husband Edwin Arroyave, Slate, 12, Cruz, 10, and Dove, five
Teddi is now confronting the reality that her daughters may have to face life without her in the very near future.
Stage 4 cancer is the most advanced and serious stage of cancer and indicates that the cancer has spread beyond its original site to other parts of the body.
She told Us: ‘I had six brain tumors and two lung tumors; they all came from melanoma that metastasized into these tumors inside of my body.
Given her grim prognosis, Mellencamp’s treatment plan has changed, with the star saying: ‘I find out for sure exactly where we stand on June 1. If you need to do another round, if there’s any other surgery, if it’s the end. It’s a hard pill to swallow.
‘It’s got to be extremely difficult to think about the end.’
Mellencamp was initially diagnosed with melanoma but it has now metastasized to her lungs and brain, she confirmed to USWeekly last week
‘This is definitely the hardest thing [I’ve faced in my life], but now it feels less hard. When I was in the ICU, it was incredibly difficult because I had no memory. One day, I realized it was my daughter’s birthday, and I couldn’t be there for it; it was really sad. It’s still sad when I can’t be there for my kids the way I’d normally be.’
Mellencamp has undergone immunotherapy and radiation treatment in an attempt to beat the cancer.
This comes after the star revealed the Real Housewives Of Beverly Hills castmate who has abandoned her as she fights brain cancer.
Teddi revealed Garcelle Beauvais has not reached out once.
However, she said Kyle Richards has been there for her from the start of her cancer battle in 2022.
Teddi explained that she was having migraines earlier this year which led her to seeking professional medical help and she was diagnosed with six brain tumors and two lung tumors which came from melanoma that had metastasized into the tumors.
The RHOBH alum needed an in at premiere medical facility Cedars-Sinai hospital so she turned to one of her former castmates as she said: ‘We call Kyle [Richards], and we’re like, ‘How do we get into Cedars?’ And she called around and found a way for us to get in. Kyle saved the day.
Teddi revealed the health battle back in February after several brain tumors were discovered
‘I believe it was within 24 hours that an incredible surgeon was able to remove four tumors from my brain. I didn’t know they had been there for six months to a year, and we had no idea.’
Teddi has had many Bravo stars support her through her battle, however, she revealed one who has not even sent her a message and another who put their feud aside to reach out.
She said: ‘Garcelle [Beauvais] has not reached out. Dorit [Kemsley] has now. I’m good friends with Erika [Jayne], so she said, ‘Dorit does want to reach out to you now, can she?’
‘I [said], ‘don’t know how quick I’ll be to forgive, but sure.’ But then her message was so nice that I have to say we’ll probably be fine.’
