What happens when patience wears thin—not from anger, but from pain?

Beyond the Nerve is a raw, lyrical poetry collection written from inside the daily reality of chronic nerve pain, emotional exhaustion, and becoming someone new when the life you knew no longer fits. With honesty and tenderness, Kisha Battle Houston gives voice to the quiet battles many endure in their bodies, relationships, and faith.

These poems explore the frustration of living with constant pain, the grief of losing the ability to do work you once loved, and the strain that suffering places on communication, romance, and intimacy. Yet woven through the ache is hope—hope that adapts, joy that arrives in small portions, and love that learns how to speak gently again.

At the center of it all is God—not as a distant answer, but as a steady presence in hallways, hospital rooms, arguments, and late-night prayers whispered under breath. Beyond the Nerve is not a book about fixing pain; it is about living faithfully inside it.

This collection is for anyone who has:

• Struggled with chronic pain or illness
• Felt their patience thinning while trying to remain kind
• Grieved the loss of an old identity or career
• Faced miscommunication and strain in relationships
• Searched for God in the middle of exhaustion
• Needed permission to rest without guilt

Beyond the Nerve is a companion for the hurting, a balm for the weary, and a declaration that becoming—slow, imperfect, and faithful—is still holy.

You are not broken.

You are not behind.

You are not alone.