In through the nose,
Out through the mouth.
In through the nose,
Out through the mouth.

That’s what they tell you to do.
They tell you to breathe.

Deep breaths,
Deep breaths.

But it’s not that simple.
You can’t simply take deep breaths.

When you can feel your heart
Beating inside your chest,
And you can’t speak.
When you feel like the world around you
Is slowly closing in,
And you’re trapped.

You’re scared.
Really scared.
Something happened
To make this happen.
Maybe you know what is was,
Maybe you don’t.
But it doesn’t matter.
It happened,
So now this is happening.

Is this what drowning feels like?
I mean,
Drowning is when your lungs fill up
With water and you can’t breathe.
This happens when your head fills up
With stress
And fear
And anxiety
And thoughts
And heartbreak
And lots of confusing emotions.

All of this is happening inside you
And all they tell you is to
Breathe