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Newly Paralyzed Writer Takes Twitter by Storm

February 2, 2023

On the day after Christmas, renowned British writer Hanif Kureishi suddenly collapsed while on a vacation walk in Rome.  The fall caused a spinal cord injury that left him unable to move his arms or legs.

The prominent playwright, a prize-winning screenwriter, filmmaker and novelist was suddenly unable to “scratch my nose, make a phone call or feed myself”—or, of course, hold a pen.  So he began to dictate a series of daily posts on Twitter narrating his experiences with paralysis.

The candid tweets– brave, thoughtful and often funny—attracted strong interest right from the start.  They struck a nerve, and people responded with love, encouragement and advice.  His Twitter following quickly grew to 58,000 with re-tweets reaching as many as 1.7million.

His followers are gaining a new and heightened understanding of what it’s like to cope with a spinal cord injury.

Some sample tweets:

Kureishi was moved to a specialty rehabilitation hospital in late January. After an operation to reduce swelling around his spinal cord, he regained small amounts of movement in his legs and the tip of his fingers.  Doctors say the extent of his recovery is uncertain.

You can find Kureishi’s tweets here and a Substack newsletter.

One response to “Newly Paralyzed Writer Takes Twitter by Storm”

  1. Ada says:

    Hi!!!!., I’m from Puerto Rico., I had a stroke and I can’t move my arms or legs!!!. But I understand., It’s not easy., One day you are walking and the next you don’t know what the fuck happened…it’s been a long year.,it’s not easy.,hardly no fisica help..just thank to Google I been trying to learn..don’t give up..take care

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