Two Voices

She silently drowns in her thoughts
On the surface, she's all smiles and laughs
In the back of her mind
a little voice whispers
cruel, horrible things

You're worthless
You have no purpose
No one cares about you
No one would notice if you disappeared

The lullabies never stop
Some days, she easily ignores the words
But others...

Other days, she will curl
into a ball and shed
her tears

She is tempted to give in
Often, she wants to fade away

But another voice, while soft spoken
speaks, she firmly tells her to STOP

Please don't
They see you, even if you don't believe it
You are loved, you are life
Don't give up

This second voice is a comfort
she is warmth and strength
Her love and guidance
keeps her charge safe

-ADF

May is Mental Health Awareness Month, while I haven't been diagnosed with depression, I do suffer some of the symptoms. Everyone goes through bouts of many mental illnesses, but depression and anxiety are the two that I suffer the most from. There are days where I don't want to leave my room, and I have been suicidal at various points in my life. Please know that you are not alone if you suffer the same way. One my triggers is self-harm and suicide, I can't watch it. I get knots in my stomach and my thoughts go down a dark road.

Even if you don't suffer from mental illness, please know that your words are impactful to others. Be kind in what you say. Treat all others with respect, because you don't know what they are going through in their own lives.