Not Poetic

I wrote this poem for my speech club.Enjoy

My pain is not poetic.

People who don't know

Shouldn't write about it.

I can't just forget about it

The nights I can't breathe.

The fear and sadness

That take over me.

Too many people

Make it seem cute.

How would you feel

If this all happened to you?

The mornings

I force myself out of bed.

Telling myself

It is all in my head.

It is in my head because,

That is where mental illness lies.

It is not a joke,

People need to realize.

It isn't cute,

It ruins our lives.

How long must it take for everyone

To figure out no one should want this.

That fear and emotion

That takes over and makes it impossible

To do even the simplest things.

Those hard-to-get-up mornings

And hard-to-sleep evenings are things

I would never wish upon anyone else.

I never wanted this.

Why would anyone want this?!

Mental illness is not a quirk,

It is real and terrifying

And utterly like ruining.

Anxiety to the point 

I can't enjoy football games,

Watching the boys.

I had to take pills

To chase away the shakes and chills.

To chase away the fear of crowds.

Fear of anything that made me uncomfortable.

My illness left me unable,

But people throw their self diagnosis

Onto the table.

Like a card game,

Winning over pity.

What a shame.

If you are physically sick,

Everyone rushes to help with it.

But if it is something in your mind,

People can't care to share their time.

I was suffering alone with my anxiety

And no one cared what happened to me.

The fear and pain still eats me alive.

I am so numb, I feel like I've died.

My pain is not poetic.

And anyone who doesn't know

Should never write about it.

Author's Note

Again, this was for a speech club. I just made a title for it.

Reviews

[Phill Oz O'fee]

This is a brave share - bravo for poetically tackling a subject not everyone wants to discuss. And yes, when an issue is behind a mask people do not understand; they shy away from the sufferer and miss opportunities to support. I think this is a poignantly important piece and encourage you to keep writing, as your potential is great ... :-)