Author Archives: Brianna Albers

When it comes to new wheelchairs, I’ve been known to drag my feet. My parents love to tell the story of how my last chair sat in our basement library for a year after I got it. In my defense, I was in the midst of a major depressive…

When it comes to new wheelchairs, I’ve been known to drag my feet. My parents love to tell the story of how my last chair sat in our basement library for a year after I got it. In my defense, I was in the midst of a major depressive…

It all started so innocently. Let me start with a clarification: I did not fall prey to a multilevel marketing scheme. I will not barge into your DMs with “an opportunity” — or, in other words, a “proposal” — that will benefit the both of us. I’m not trying…

Like most things when it comes to Sherry, it was a no-brainer. A few weeks ago, I woke to a string of messages in our shared Discord server. An SMA News Today columnist, she’d been asked to participate in this year’s Rare Disease Day (RDD) panel, organized…

I always knew I was rare. From the motorized wheelchair to the feeding tube, there’s no mistaking me for normal. No matter how hard I try to blend in, I always stand out, to the point where I’ve pretty much given up. Why pretend to be something I’m not?…

Every 28 days or so, I convince myself that I’m dying. If you’ve read my column before, you’ll know that I have a complicated relationship with death, which is to say I see it everywhere. Years ago, when I first started writing for SMA News Today, I thought I…

I never think about my life after 7 p.m. Years ago, I stumbled across this particularly helpful life tip. As someone with anxiety, I have a hard time shutting up my brain, especially after the sun sets. Depending on my mood, I can easily get wrapped up in…

Last January, I wrote about shoes. At the time, I was gearing up to get a new wheelchair. Those who are familiar with wheelchairs will recognize this process for what it is: absolute agony. From seating to driving to minuscule issues that you can’t pinpoint for the life…

In 2019, something wonderful happened. I got bit by the tattoo bug. If you’ve followed my column for a while, you’ll know my first tattoo was a big deal. First, it was finding an artist I vibed with. Then it was finding an accessible parlor — no…

As I write this, my room glows in the midafternoon sun. Sometime last year, I invested in a suncatcher, so there are rainbows everywhere — pastel sunbursts that are there, then gone. It’s unseasonably warm in Minnesota today, so the snow is melting, dripping steadily off the roof. According…