Dear Depression,

 

You pretended to be my friend.

Pretended that nobody else loved me except for you.

 

Don’t you know you suffocate me?

The way you hide me away from friends and family.

You keep me to yourself,

Whispering words that cut deeper than the knives.

 

People think you are a thing of beauty,

That you are to be romanticized.

Little do they know you scream bloody murder at any given second

MY bloody murder at any given second.

 

You remain unseen to those around me.

“I don’t see him,” they say.

Look harder I try to scream but you silence me.

You are a demon living within me

An unwanted visitor responsible for my unbecoming.

 

I am more than the thoughts you have ingrained in me.

I am more than the darkness that has flooded my thoughts thanks to you.

I will no longer turn to you for advice.

I will no longer tear myself apart for your entertainment.

 

Your ghosts will no longer haunt me.

Your vicious words will not linger still.

I am not yours to keep.

I am free.

 

With(out) Love,

 

Athena Nguyen