For a while now I have wanted to write a poem that encapsulates what it feels like to have depression, and last week I finally managed to put in words what I have been battling for over a year. It’s rather, well, depressing, but honestly there aren’t many happy things about depression. Allow this poem to be a glimpse into the life of someone struggling with mental illness.

Depression

The ground beneath me is quicksand,
And I am pulled under, weighed down.
The farther I sink, the more the sand
Grips me, and the less I believe there is
A way out. 

Fighting for breath, I cast my gaze upward,
Searching for any signs of life.
Darkness forms in the corners of my vision,
Blackening the blue sky until only
A pinhole of light remains. 

As long as there is light, I hope.
But the sand is filling up my lungs,
Filling every crevice, every fold of skin,
And it won’t be long until there is
No way out. 

-Erin Mount, 2019

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