By Micah Schuttler

Bipolar 2 disorder is mental illness categorized by bouts of hypomania and long periods of depression (WebMD). At the age of 21 I was diagnosed with this disorder. For a long time, I went down a very dark road. Through therapy and medicine, I am much better today. For those of you who wish to know, I have written a poem about a day in the life with bipolar disorder.

How do I explain to you

The way it felt 

To be watched every day 

Allow me to demonstrate 

You watch your mother die again 

Nightmares on repeat 

You wake up and vomit 

Pure nerves and stomach acid 

You fall into the car 

On your way to school 

You have a test to take 

You could not sleep

And yet here you are 

Wide awake 

How do I explain to you 

That I nearly fell apart 

That I overdosed on sleeping pills 

To make the nightmares stop 

Class is a blur 

Work goes on 

Your day is on repeat 

You count down the hours 

Until you go to sleep 

How do I explain to you 

The fear in my veins 

The chronic anxiety 

Causing chronic pain 

Nightmares and flashbacks 

Thunderbolt and lightning 

You live in a perpetual dream