If You Only Knew... -poem

If you only knew what depression feels like

Then maybe you wouldn't be so quick to stereotype

If you only knew how exhausting and defeating it is

Then maybe you wouldn't be so quick to say "Just get over it"

If you only knew...

The pain I go through,

The racing thoughts that go on in my mind,

The feeling of depleting energy,

The battle of choosing to continue and not give up,

The doubt that sometimes creeps in my soul

If you only knew what it feels like

Then maybe you wouldn't be so quick to criticize and call me "weak"

If you only knew...

What it feels like to feel as if your trapped in a cage

That is swinging to and fro in a pitch black cave

If you only knew what this kind of loneliness really feels like

If you only knew...

The betrayal I've experienced,

The rejection I've faced,

The feeling of having invisible knives being stabbed in my back by the ones I once trusted

And called family

Then maybe you'd be able to comprehend and understand how I feel

So before you judge me

Take a walk in my shoes

If you only knew...

-Nick Wolf 5/5/2014