Author Archives: Brianna Albers

“Sometimes I pretend I’m dead.” This sounds like the lead-in to a particularly macabre joke. But in actuality, it’s a personal practice with the potential to revolutionize our approach to self-care. My friend Andrea Hannah calls it a “ghost vacation.” “Sometimes I pretend I’m dead,” Andrea likes…

Three years into my collaboration with biotech company Genentech, and I still feel like a fish out of water. This is what professionals call impostor syndrome (IS), defined by Lexico as “the persistent inability to believe that one’s success is deserved or has been legitimately achieved as…

I could tell you about Old Santa Fe, New Mexico. Cobblestone streets, framed by blooms of green. The town jail turned bookstore — a refuge from the heat, and a haven for my mom and me. St. Francis’ cathedral, with winding, tranquil gardens. I could tell you about the Painted…

In reply to Blake Watson. Right?! Glad you enjoyed 💜…

In reply to Keishla. Good luck! Hopefully you get to CA without issue – I don’t blame you for being nervous. Hope to see you at the conference!!…

For the first time in three years, I’m on the road again. By the time you read this, I’ll be a day out from Anaheim, California. This isn’t the first time my parents and I have made this trip — in 2019, we spent two weeks road-tripping across…

My parents’ dreams revolve around the middle of nowhere. You probably think I’m joking. But the fact remains that I’m writing this column from a tiny town in Wisconsin with a population in the 800s. They’ve been nurturing this dream for as long as I can remember. Looking back,…

No matter how hard I try, there are things I continually forget. Take, for example, the few times I’ve hosted parties. I’m an introvert through and through, so hosting isn’t exactly my forte, but I love spending time with friends. I was so excited for my very first dinner…

In my mind, Luke Skywalker was in love with me. For context: I was never much of a Lego girl. But I was a “Star Wars” girl. It stood to reason, then, that the Lego Star Wars games were right up my alley. I loved everything to do…

When it comes to healthcare, I’ve had remarkably good luck. There are, of course, bad apples. See, for example, the gastroenterologist who rambled about “The Odyssey” as he punctured my stomach lining. Or the surgeon who, in my young, still-developing mind, undeniably had it out for me. (A…