KNEE BRACE PRESS

A place for stories about chronic illness, disability, mental health, and neurodivergence.

arthritis

  • A sepia photo of a white man with white hair, a goatee, and wire-frame glasses. He wears a suit and tie and is smiling at the camera.

    Mr. Snuggles goes to the Zoo

    By

    Jane Clayton and her dog, Mr. Snuggles, decide to have a great adventure together after they both receive the same diagnosis.

  • A white woman with short, white hair sits on a black couch with two small dogs in her lap. She wears a tank top with a leaf pattern and turquoise pants.

    Elastic Woman Stretched Too Far

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    For poet Diane Funston, aging means she can’t always catch loved ones from falling the way she used to, but maybe that’s ok.

  • A white woman with short, white hair sits on a black couch with two small dogs in her lap. She wears a tank top with a leaf pattern and turquoise pants.

    Darkness Visiting

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    In her newest poem, Knee Brace veteran Diane Funston writes about arthritis, family, and the darkest time of year.

  • A person in a brown tanktop and a white helmet climbing a rope and smiling at the camera.

    Hiding in Plain Sight: Life With and Without Masks

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    “I feel faint. Even a common cold leaves me sick for months and sometimes lands me in the emergency room. I have been assiduously masking since the beginning of the pandemic and so far, to the best of my knowledge, have avoided catching COVID. I will not be able to wear my mask for the…

  • A white man with ginger hair and a beard speaking into a microphone.

    Still Life With Pain

    By

    In his first essay for Knee Brace Press, Lev Raphael writes about the connections he shares with his late mother, including her coffee habits, her love of languages, and her arthritis.

  • A person with long, dark hair smiles as she looks off to the left. She wears a pink shirt with pink, purple, and blue flowers on it.

    Submergence

    By

    “You are born drowning. At the bottom of the ocean, your lungs fill with saltwater and sludge. Anglerfish light the immutable night, bright white spots catching on their jagged teeth and misshapen eyes.”