Futility
This poem is about depression19 total reviews
Comment from Sandra du Plessis
A very well-written free verse poem about depression and the fight against the darkness we cannot see. We fight and struggle to see and find the light that should help us out of there.
reply by the author on 22-May-2017
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A very well-written free verse poem about depression and the fight against the darkness we cannot see. We fight and struggle to see and find the light that should help us out of there.
Comment Written 22-May-2017
reply by the author on 22-May-2017
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Thank you Sandra du Plessis. Most encouraging feedback. Yes it IS a battle with that nippy nasty black dog.
Comment from Cindy Warren
That's so sad, and so real. I fight depression myself from time to time, and it makes it impossible to do anything. Fortunately it's not a futile battle. It can be won. Good luck in the contest.
reply by the author on 22-May-2017
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That's so sad, and so real. I fight depression myself from time to time, and it makes it impossible to do anything. Fortunately it's not a futile battle. It can be won. Good luck in the contest.
Comment Written 22-May-2017
reply by the author on 22-May-2017
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Thanks Cindy Warren for reading and commenting. The way depression indeed renders you paralytic is awful but when one comes through it by god life is more wonderful each time.
Comment from MaggieF
How great though that such a great poem should come out of it, reminds me of W.H. Auden's war poems. Great imagery, you described it wonderfully. 'some cried out in helpless fear' very moving. MaggieF
reply by the author on 22-May-2017
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How great though that such a great poem should come out of it, reminds me of W.H. Auden's war poems. Great imagery, you described it wonderfully. 'some cried out in helpless fear' very moving. MaggieF
Comment Written 22-May-2017
reply by the author on 22-May-2017
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Maggie F your comments are most encouraging. Wrangling with the black dog surely is like a fearful battle and so the words write themwelves almost. Thanks again.
Comment from Dean Kuch
I could relate to your authors notes just as well as I could your poem, Anio.
Hopefully you are not in that dark, despondent place still today.
I sense that you're not.
Still, some of the best therapy there is for being in a depressing state-of-mind is to write about it. You soon learn that you're not alone; that many feel just as you do.
Misery does love company.
reply by the author on 22-May-2017
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I could relate to your authors notes just as well as I could your poem, Anio.
Hopefully you are not in that dark, despondent place still today.
I sense that you're not.
Still, some of the best therapy there is for being in a depressing state-of-mind is to write about it. You soon learn that you're not alone; that many feel just as you do.
Misery does love company.
Comment Written 22-May-2017
reply by the author on 22-May-2017
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So, Dean Kuch, have you been there too? Thanks for reading and thanks for your feedback, most appreciated. I'm 70 and I still have communications with that nasty black dog and its mate The Panic Attack. But by the time you're my age you've gotten stronger and tho you bruise more easily you also walk more steadily with the mongrel until it goes away to it's own dark place.
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I suffer from PTSD, Anio, so yes, I guess you could say the black dog hounds me too from time to time.
That's why I often write the things I do.
You are very welcome.
~Dean
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Yes Misery, after the need for Isolation that I have during Depression, does love company. So the good therapist/teacher, friend, and website pay their role for us, hey?
So sorry you Suffer from PTSD. I've experienced elements of at at the worst of times. Hard Work isn't it? Stayin' alive? A
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Sometimes, it's okay
Sometimes it's much worse.
And when the night terrors come, I pray for death...
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You know what Dean, there was a time when I was so sick, physically as well as depressed, that I wished for death to come to me at night. Then it happened again, this coupling, and I had the means for suicide. I seriously thought of it.
I know how deep the pain is that leads you to that door with a 'D' on it with a hopeful heart.
Oh man, do you have any support or release from it?
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I hope this isn't a repeat. I think I forgot to press the 'save ' button.
I know that feeling. I know it well. There have been times when physical illness and pain coupled with depression have left me asking my god to take me in me sleep. I've knocked on that door marked with a 'D' several times. And into my hands when I was suicidal fell the means, but I had a loving friend who held me tight through all this fright.
Do you?
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I have my writing and my friends here who care enough to encourage me by reading it and giving me their feedback.
I have my kids, for whom I'm very thankful.
And, I'm still alive and kickin', so that's worth something.
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Yes, I'm fortunate to have many friends and a supportive family, Anio.
I'm also very busy with my writing, and that keeps me up almost 20 hours out of a 24 hour day, everyday.
I review professionally for Amazon.com (yes, they do pay people to review), post here semi-occasionally, and have lots of fans (friends) here who actually seem to care.
So, it's not all doom and gloom.
But, those night terrors...they're a bit difficult to deal with sometimes.
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Yes it is my friend. PTSD is a HUGE load to carry. I am an Educational Psychologist and have worked with people since I was 17. I didn't get my degree 'til later in life. It was only at the time that I was studying part-time that 'stress' started to stop being a laughing matter and people were reading, teaching and talking about it. The Vietnam Vets were the first in my State to bring PTSD to attention. A sailing friend of mine was one. So sad but at that time the 'world' didn't have therapists ready yet. Do you have any therapy or meds that help apart from loving friends and kids?
Comment from zlp22
Very good, I know what you are going thru, but you have to keep going even if you don't want to. Life seems to always go on no matter what you feel, you can never just snap out of it. Good luck to you.
reply by the author on 22-May-2017
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Very good, I know what you are going thru, but you have to keep going even if you don't want to. Life seems to always go on no matter what you feel, you can never just snap out of it. Good luck to you.
Comment Written 22-May-2017
reply by the author on 22-May-2017
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Thanks for connecting and giving your feedback zlp22. I'm 70 as I've said in another reply, and you know there comes a time when even when that bastard black dog and all its mates, anxiety, panic attacks flashbacks unwanted memories and all that stuff whirling through your head , there comes a time when you know it will be over and you will be out of it somehow, therapy, medication, just retreat or whatever, and you become stronger and stiller and just walk through it without fighting.
Comment from Mustang Patty
Living with depression is a constant battle, and your words did a great job of describing the mental bombardment of images, words, and unwanted memories. Thank you for sharing, and I hope that in writing it, you were able to rid yourself of some of the pain,
~patty~
reply by the author on 22-May-2017
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Living with depression is a constant battle, and your words did a great job of describing the mental bombardment of images, words, and unwanted memories. Thank you for sharing, and I hope that in writing it, you were able to rid yourself of some of the pain,
~patty~
Comment Written 22-May-2017
reply by the author on 22-May-2017
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Yes it is Mustangpatty1029. Your feedback is much appreciated. As a fellow traveller you describe what happens very well. I'm 70 now and be assured that if you work at it through therapy, meditation, maybe medication and have loving friends , you only need one or two as I have, to accept you as you are in the bad times, you will learn how to walk gently ane quietly with the black dog until it slinks away to its kennel and leaces you alone again.
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patty, that Big Black Doggie he can smell you out the whole of your life. But as you grow older you grow stronger, hopefully, and become a bit of a warrior. It gets easier as time goes on to remember that the nipping creature at your heels will be gone sooner or later, it will just take time. You learn to wait it out better especially with the help of loved ones or friends.
Comment from oliver818
I enjoyed your poem, I'm sorry it was written during such a hard period of time for you. The rhythm and flow is very good and the imagery is nice too. Thanks for sharing and have a great day
reply by the author on 22-May-2017
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I enjoyed your poem, I'm sorry it was written during such a hard period of time for you. The rhythm and flow is very good and the imagery is nice too. Thanks for sharing and have a great day
Comment Written 22-May-2017
reply by the author on 22-May-2017
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Thank you for your feedback oliver818, and thanks for your empathy. I'm glad you enjoyed the piece and found those elements satisfying. Thanks again.
Comment from KyColonel Randal
Thank you for sharing. This is an interesting poem that made me think of Tennyson. I too wrote a poem recently about depression, and I have seen others recently as well. Did you serve in a war zone? This also made me think of PTSD.
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reply by the author on 22-May-2017
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Thank you for sharing. This is an interesting poem that made me think of Tennyson. I too wrote a poem recently about depression, and I have seen others recently as well. Did you serve in a war zone? This also made me think of PTSD.
This rating does not count towards story rating or author rank.
The highest and the lowest rating are not included in calculations.
Comment Written 22-May-2017
reply by the author on 22-May-2017
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+Thank you KyColonel Randal for reading and your most encouraging words! Wow! Yep that's a mean dog alright, I bruise easily now and I hate when it nips at me like it does.
I was born in a Displaced Person's camp in Germany just after WW11. My parents were refugees from Northern Europe. I believe that my brother's generation who were born during the war, and mine, immediately after, carry in some form, the bitter scars, horrendous subconscious scenes and guilt from our parents. And when I suffer from depressive episodes , panic attacks and other stuff , if I write about it war and fighting images and words come flowing. And the actual experience is just like that. Yes.
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Comment from Sis Cat
An excellent poem about depression--something I know from personal experience. You use the metaphor of a man besieged by an invading army to good effect. I love the sound of your free verse and the way your words and imagery bounce around, reflecting inner chaos and distress:
They come at me with mighty force-
My mind's befuddled
My voice is hoarse
My eyes are bulging -
There's no release
There'll be no feast of victory here.
Yes, depression is relentless and is like being in a war zone.
Thank you for sharing your imaginative poem about a condition that inflicts many people. I wish you much success in the contest with your flowing free verse poem.
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The highest and the lowest rating are not included in calculations.
reply by the author on 22-May-2017
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An excellent poem about depression--something I know from personal experience. You use the metaphor of a man besieged by an invading army to good effect. I love the sound of your free verse and the way your words and imagery bounce around, reflecting inner chaos and distress:
They come at me with mighty force-
My mind's befuddled
My voice is hoarse
My eyes are bulging -
There's no release
There'll be no feast of victory here.
Yes, depression is relentless and is like being in a war zone.
Thank you for sharing your imaginative poem about a condition that inflicts many people. I wish you much success in the contest with your flowing free verse poem.
This rating does not count towards story rating or author rank.
The highest and the lowest rating are not included in calculations.
Comment Written 22-May-2017
reply by the author on 22-May-2017
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Thank you for your close reading and specific feedback Sis Cat. Rumbling with the black dog IS like a battle. it's a monstrous beast and leaves one truly feeling wounded and exhausted.