Jay's Journal: Notes on Resilience

Jay’s Journal is a weekly reflection about life with a disability, written by someone who's living it, fumbling through it, and finding meaning in the mess.

I’m Jay Armstrong, a writer, poet, and former high school English teacher turned full-time storyteller after a progressive neurological condition called cerebellar atrophy rerouted my life. I walk with a cane, sometimes a rollator, and always a sense of humor.

This Substack is where I share essays, reflections,, and poems about the emotional, absurd, beautiful, and brutally honest sides of living with a disability. It’s not just for the disabled community—it’s for anyone who’s ever felt stuck between who they were and who they’re becoming. If you’ve ever had to let go of an old life to build a new one, you’re in the right place.

What you’ll find here:

• Personal essays and poems on resilience, hope, and acceptance

• Resilient guest voices

• Caffeinated honesty at 2AM levels

• Encouragement for anyone navigating change

• Witty, big-hearted truths about disability and hope

Whether you're disabled, caregiving, healing, or just curious—this is for you.

Subscribe if:

• You crave honest, hopeful writing

• You want a weekly reminder that resilience doesn’t mean perfection

• You appreciate a good laugh while staring into the existential void