Coming up for Air

There are people who do not cope
Who feel roped in
Because of the system
That feeds them
Clothes them
Holds them

Tight at night
Inside their rooms
Box springs zoom
In and out
In and out
The walls contract

The symptoms begin
It becomes hard to breathe
It becomes hard to be
Fight or flight
There is no turning right
Because there is no right left
Only circles upon circles
Questions upon questions

The mind expands
Our culture has so many demands
They ask too many questions
So they become patients
No answers are prescribed
There are pills to buy

It might take
Lexapro for depression
Seroquel for too much imagination
Klonopin for anxiety
Keppra for sleep
Talk therapy to go deep

The mind still laps
Making map upon map
In the past people would
Try to drink it all away
Run ten miles a day
Put their bodies through hell
Try to get their minds to swell
And contract
To get off the looping track

It might take
Meeting someone who is there
Who is not dismissive
Who actually listens
When the mind is spinning
When the words come out
Both come up from despair
Knowing someone cares
Where there is no air
Makes all the difference