Humor Gets Me Through the Bad SMA Days
My parents and I have been traveling to Iowa every weekend for the past few months. We recently bought a vacation home in Wisconsin, and we’ve been getting the farm…
The Wolf Finally Frees Itself
— Brianna Albers
Brianna Albers (she/her) is a crip-cyborg storyteller living in Minneapolis-St. Paul. She was diagnosed with spinal muscular atrophy type 2 in 1996 and lives with co-occurring physical and mental health conditions. By day she works as an advocate, bridging disability and mental health awareness to empower people to live their best lives; by night, she dabbles in imagination, and is currently writing “An Angel in the Garden,” an adult space fantasy with #OwnVoices disability representation. Find her online at briannahopealbers.com and on social media @briehalbers.
Featured Post
How my new BedJet device helps me avoid sweating at night
If you have SMA or care for someone with the disease, you’ll know what I mean when I say we get sweaty. At first I thought it was just me, but then I read…
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Self-acceptance in the Form of Class Assignments
I’ve never liked my voice. I went to speech therapy as a child, and people have struggled to understand me for as long as I can remember.
Twitter Hashtag Leads to Disability Activism
Those of you who follow me on Twitter may have noticed that I’ve been posting a lot of selfies lately.
Waiting for the Sun to Rise
Those of you who’ve followed my column for a while know I try to be honest about what I’m going through. I don’t pretend my life is perfect for many…
Selfies Help Me Overcome Anxieties
I deactivated my Facebook account a while back, so I’m trying to be more active on other social media platforms. This is partly to keep in touch with people and…
Mindfulness, Radical Acceptance, and the Effects of SMA
When I started grad school earlier this year, a friend told me that I could not, under any circumstances, start to psychoanalyze the people in my life. I…
A Friend’s Diagnosis Leads to Reflection on My SMA Past
I’m lucky that I was diagnosed at a young age, too young to remember anything that happened. I was talking to my father about it the other night,…
Possibility of Straighter Teeth Brings Risks of Surgery
You know how sometimes a comment can stick with you? That’s been my life this past week. It was something my dad said a while back. I don’t…
Kicking the Door Open
I’ve never been all that interested in the Oscars. I prefer TV over film and, anyway, I can trust social media to keep me informed of the fashion…
New Therapist, New Goals
I recently switched therapists. I’ve only seen her a few times, but I already have a good feeling about it. She’s survived two different types of cancer and…
Living on Borrowed Time
I officially graduated with my bachelor’s degree in December, but I only just received my diploma in the mail. I’ve been expecting it for weeks now, but it…
Different Bodies, Still Equal
I realized the other day that I am missing a collarbone. It’s something I’ve been thinking about lately. Parts of the body that appear in my…
