Holding It Together

Are you okay?

How do you feel?

I ask myself,

But never heal.

The nights are long,

The hours steep,

I trade my health

For others’ peace.

When crowds are gone,

And silence stays,

I fill the gaps,

Hide the fray.

I cover shifts,

I carry weight,

The burden mine

To compensate.

Sleep slips away,

A fleeting ghost,

I’m here for them,

I need it most.

I promise this

Will be the last,

But every year

Repeats the past.

No one must see

How much I’ve lost,

The quiet toll,

The hidden cost.

I hold it in,

I keep it whole,

For everyone else,

I play the role.

But in the dark,

When no one’s near,

I ask myself—

Are you still here?

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This poem is really personal to me because it captures how it feels when you’re constantly stretched too thin, trying to do everything for everyone else and hiding how much it’s costing you. I wrote it for anyone who knows what it’s like to push themselves past their limits, not because they have to, but because they don’t want to let anyone down.

I’ve always struggled with setting boundaries. I take on too much, and even when I know I’m running on empty, I still say, “It’s fine, I’ve got this.” But it’s not fine. It’s exhausting. You tell yourself, “Next time, I’ll take care of me first,” but then next time comes, and it’s the same all over again. You just keep going because you feel like you have to.

For me, it’s not about being seen or appreciated—it’s about holding everything together, even at my own expense. And I don’t want anyone to see how hard it gets sometimes. It’s easier to hide it than admit that you’re struggling. But I think a lot of people can relate to that feeling of giving too much and forgetting to take care of yourself.

This poem is for people like that—for people like me. It’s a way of saying, “I see you, I get it, and you’re not alone.”