One year later, a mysterious mouth injury strikes again
I’d just survived a car accident in Phoenix while road tripping with my parents from our home in Minnesota to the 2022 Cure SMA conference in Anaheim, California. (Long story short, my…
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
I’m learning nonattachment in my course on world literature
Words always come to me when I need them. Lines by Ada Limón, Anne Boyer, and Marie Howe act as life preservers, guiding me back to my center. When life gets tough, I…
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Embracing my wolf chronotype helps me forgive my body
In another world, I am my mother’s daughter, waking with the sunrise and heading to bed no later than 9 p.m. But in reality, I take after my father, who sees early risers as…
How an interruption in SMA treatment affected my quality of life
Note: This column describes the author’s own experiences with Evrysdi (risdiplam). Not everyone will have the same response to treatment. Consult your doctor before starting or stopping a therapy. On our way home…
Seeing my younger self in the new blockbuster ‘Barbie’ movie
I didn’t even know about the “Barbie” movie until I saw people talking about it on social media. I watched the trailer and thought, “That looks like a funky little movie.” But…
‘A Whole New World’: Celebrating the SMA community at EPCOT
The older I get, the more easily I cry. It never used to be that way. I didn’t cry at movies. I definitely didn’t cry when I was happy. Crying was terrible, and I…
Regular exercise is helping me prepare for a trip to Florida
It didn’t take long for my mom — who, in her own words, is not “retired” but “reliving” — to take advantage of her surplus of free time. Days after settling into the…
Living with SMA means my body is like a jigsaw puzzle
As hopeful as I was when starting naturopathy, I didn’t actually expect anything to come of it. Desperate for relief and having tried everything else, I decided it was worth a shot. At…
Project Gameface has arrived: New tool makes gaming accessible to me
I woke up to a text from my friend Sherry: “Babe, you should try this new accessibility tool that just came out. It might help you game!” When it comes to video games,…
Yet another insurance obstacle on my journey with Evrysdi
Note: This column describes the author’s own experiences with Evrysdi. Not everyone will have the same response to treatment. Consult your doctor before starting or stopping a therapy. I was expecting my insurance to…
Rewatching a TV series is helping me get through a quarter-life crisis
My dad and I have a long-standing tradition of rewatching old TV series. We’ve binged everything, including “Merlin,” “Stargate SG-1,” and “Star Wars Rebels,” over the years. Right now, we’re savoring every single episode…
An unexpected Evrysdi denial brings me back to the fight
Note: This column describes the author’s own experiences with Evrysdi. Not everyone will have the same response to treatment. Consult your doctor before starting or stopping a therapy. I never thought it would…
The truth about living with your middle-aged parents
If it’s not my mom rocking out to “The Final Countdown” by Europe, it’s my dad reminiscing about all the cartoons we used to watch. Shows like “Arthur” and “Dragon Tales” were mainstays in…
