KNEE BRACE PRESS

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

the anti-nightmares

By
  1. No one is chasing me, so I don’t have to run.
  2. If I do have to run, I have on seven-league boots from the fairy tales and can cover whole counties with each step.
  3. I fight back. First, I yell and cuss, and then I fight back.
  4. My boundaries are respected.
  5. If I lock a door, no one comes in anyway.
  6. I am not afraid of anyone. We have a dance party.
  7. Voluntary kissing happens.
  8. It’s okay that I am dreaming.
  9. I make friends instead of enemies.
  10. If I dream of my childhood home, it is a safe place.

Contributor

  • Naomi Stenberg acutely relates to the story of Persephone. She has spent months and years underground, in the shadowy realm of depression, which can feel like hell. Three years ago, spring finally came. With a series of ECT treatments, she got undepressed. Felt like a just-sharpened pencil ready to engage not only with paper but with the world. She still has PTSD, bipolar and anxiety but now encounters frequent moments of harvest, of joy.