I’ve been putting this column off for a while. While I’m perfectly fine with sharing some things, I generally don’t like to talk about the people in my life. But this is something most, if not all, SMA patients deal with at some point, and I…
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 “Death and the Blade,” a romance-forward adult fantasy novel with #OwnVoices disability representation. Find her online at briehalbers.com and on social media @briehalbers.
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You know you’re in trouble when your orthopedist uses words like “sclerosis.” After several excruciating months of pain, I was exactly where I needed to be: Gillette Lifetime Specialty Healthcare in St. Paul, Minnesota. I’d been dealing with hip and lower back pain since early…
My head has been feeling pretty good lately, thanks to the humidifier I recently started using. So, today I walked into my ENT appointment pretty optimistic. The nurse was actually the same person who administers my allergy shots, so it was nice seeing a friendly face.
The first time one of my personal care assistants (PCAs) brought her daughter, I was kind of in awe. She was only a few months old at the time. She slept most of the day and could be trusted to lie on my bed, staring up…
My oldest cousin is getting married this weekend, and my youngest cousin is engaged. Two of my best friends are in long-term, committed relationships and talking about marriage. I turned 23 recently. All in all, I don’t feel any older, but I do feel more prone…
It’s ironic. I’ve been sick my entire life, but only in the past few months have I really felt chronically ill. I’m slowly, if not reluctantly, coming to terms with the fact that my sinus issues are chronic. A round of antibiotics and a hot…
It’s easy to forget how inaccessible the world is, especially when you’ve spent the last week and a half scrolling through social media feeds and catching up on sleep. Even when I was in Indiana, surrounded by people who were smarter than me, I found myself…
I meant to write a column while I was in Indiana. I even imagined what it would be like to sit on campus, enjoying the sunshine and pleasant bustle of the counseling center with my new Pixelbook sitting on my lap tray. The reality of the…
I’ve been struggling to get back into the swing of things now that my friends are gone. And not just with schoolwork, either. Basically, anything that isn’t Dungeons & Dragons, “National Treasure,” or self-insert role-play is having a hard time keeping my…
I’m writing this the night before my best friend’s plane lands in the U.S. I’ve been working nonstop the past three weeks to make sure everything is ready for her arrival, so this installment of my column probably won’t sound as nice or be…
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 that my mom inherited ready to sell. Other than painfully slow Wi-Fi and a less-than-comfortable bed…
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. I learned at a young age to let my parents talk for me. Even now, at…
Those of you who follow me on Twitter may have noticed that I’ve been posting a lot of selfies lately. I’ve written about my complicated relationship with selfies before, and I’m forcing…
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