Brianna Albers (she/her) is a crip cyborg storyteller living in Minneapolis-St. Paul. In 2016, she founded Monstering, a magazine for disabled women and nonbinary people. She consults as a patient ambassador for SMA My Way and writes the column “The Wolf Finally Frees Itself” for SMA News Today. She is currently revising THE SAINT AND THE SPIDER, an adult space fantasy with #OwnVoices disability representation. Find her on social media @briehalbers.I knew I was in for a treat when a friend texted me in all caps: “BRIE BRIE BRIE!” I was so into the book I was reading that I took a while to check my notifications. But once I did, it didn’t take me long at all to scream…
When it comes to vendettas, I have two. One is against Sigmund Freud. Freud, the “father” of psychology, who’s known for his unbelievably misogynistic views. Google “Freud misogyny” and you’ll get a laundry list of jeremiads decrying his influence on the mental health profession. Some of my favorites include…
Every August, I sit across from a nurse and prove that I am, in fact, still disabled. Disclaimer: I completely understand why assessments are necessary. I’m the beneficiary of countless government programs, from Medicaid to much-needed support funds. I’m not just blessed, I’m privileged as all get-out. I dislike the…
Weeks ago, when my friend Sherry and I started brainstorming topics for Disability Pride and SMA Awareness Month, we talked about choice. Specifically the hypothetical kind. In an ideal world, with free healthcare and radical accessibility, would we choose to stay disabled? It’s a question I’ve asked myself numerous…
I want to see myself on the big screen. Or, more accurately, I want to see my people on the big screen — folks with stubborn bodies and obstinate minds. I want to build a world in which disabled people are no longer relegated to the role of two-bit…
This month, I’m celebrating SMA Awareness Month the only way I know how: by recognizing that SMA is full of contradictions. Last year, I wrote an entire jeremiad on my ambivalence toward SMA Awareness Month. I didn’t hate it, but I didn’t like it, either. I recognized the benefits…
The problem with disability pride is that it’s a little bit mythical. It’s not something you can describe or explain. It’s an enigma. A paradox. It shouldn’t exist, but it does, and the illogic of it — valuing something the world abhors — makes the concept seem impossible. You…
It’s no surprise that I love seeing myself in my favorite stories. Take “Mass Effect,” for example, a science fiction media franchise by video game developer BioWare. One of my best friends, Sherry, has written several columns about the franchise, which she recently played from beginning to end. Every…
When thinking about disability pride — specifically the content I wanted to create for Disability Pride Month — I found myself returning to a quote from “Care Work: Dreaming Disability Justice” by Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha. “[A] core part of disability justice work [is] making the next world, the…
I know that self-talk is important, including the words we use and our tone of voice. We’re usually trying to look out for ourselves, but more often than not, our good intentions are swallowed by feelings of shame. But it doesn’t matter how many posts I like on Instagram…
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