Anxiety and Depression — Summary

ShortGirl7Anxious

I know my depression and anxiety worry him; he tells me that I'm all he worries about. But sometimes....I wonder if my depression will make him want to leave. I don't think that will happen.

But that's what anxiety does to a person....

Learn Poems app

Try the Learn Poems app

Everything from the website trainer, and more: new exercises, voice recording and sharing, reminders, quick review.

The speaker begins with something reassuring: her partner knows about her depression and anxiety, and he tells her she's all he worries about. That should be comforting. But the poem quickly turns on the word "But," and a quieter fear comes through. She wonders whether her illness might eventually push him away.

Notice how she tries to talk herself out of it. "I don't think that will happen" sounds calm, almost like a reminder she is repeating to herself. Then the final line, "But that's what anxiety does to a person...." undercuts that calm. The trailing dots make it feel unfinished, as if the worry doesn't really end, it just fades out for a moment.

The mood is tender but uneasy. There's real love in the poem, yet also doubt that even kind words can fully quiet. The speaker seems to recognize her fear as part of her anxiety, and still can't switch it off.

Read also

More by ShortGirl7

All poems
SadShortGirl7

The Ring

It wasn't just a fling He gave me the ring Together for four years Then it all just disappears...
SadShortGirl7

Alright

People keep asking, "How are you?" I can't say that I'm good. I can't say that I'm fine.
AnxiousShortGirl7

The Woman

The woman upstairs There is no woman up there I think she was raped.