#recovery poems on Hello Poetry

Michael Jones Feb 12

I wake up to the sound
        of empty halls
        ’cause your not here
The phone’s not ringing like it used to.

I know that you’re not coming home.

I found myself
        sitting on your empty bed.
I swear I heard your voice inside my head.

...

Then I felt the darkness come
        and cover my heart…

                                        the day the truth grew up.

I see the things I’ve done
        with a different point of view
        because of you.
And I’m not saying that I’m thankful.
                                        In fact...
        I’m mad as hell
        because you’re not coming home.

I was managing a halfway-house years ago. Three guys that went through the recovery facility snuck out of the house on a Monday morning a little after midnight. They were drinking and had a horrible accident, rolled their van and two did not survive. The one that came in the same day as I did 6 months prior was put on life support with a broken neck. He survived and is paralyzed from the neck down.

These three guys were very dear to me, as we grew together in this new way of life, and I can’t begin to express the storm of emotions I encountered. But I realized that is what this is for me, selfishly. A storm.

From a blog I used to write the day after the accident:

THERE WILL ALWAYS BE BRIGHTER DAYS AFTER THE RAIN WASHES THE PAIN AWAY
02/26/14

Today I woke up and talked with a few clients at the facility before going to work. I genuinely listened to what each person had to say. I saw my fiance and when I looked her in the eyes, I cherished that light in her eyes I fell in love with, My father called me and I didn’t get off the phone until both of us had run out of things to say. I felt more alive today than I have in I don’t know how long.

This has been a tragic shake in my personal world, but it has also been a great eye opener for me. For today, that does not have to be my outcome. I will cling to each moment I am granted as best I can. I am mourning for the families of my brothers. May angels lead them in.

#loss #tragedy #recovery #hope

Michael Jones Feb 12

To Quell The Desire

I’ve spent the day estranged
Wishing for a brighter day
The clouds were lined with silver
And the sun was gleaming over the river
But the moments I skipped over
We’re the chances I left smoldering
And if silence was the captain
Then my tongue was her right hand
And I left us both apart
And blamed the wind for my faulty sails

So without words I sold my soul
I stole a goal just to stay cold
In the heat of this mid-spring afternoon
I spent blaming myself for this lack of you

I dream in shapes, not sounds,
That bleed together to shed the ground
Of any shadows I left around
My mistakes are making waves
But I won’t leave the drag of the undertow

So, today, I made mistakes
And blamed the way the earth could quake.
Instead of seeking out the calm,
I built a storm and blamed the rain.

There are many things that I fall short on
And not getting up seems to be what haunts me.

I am grateful for the sunset
So I can start again anew

#recovery #hope

Elle MB Feb 6

hate wraith

so very long you have haunted me
a wraith of hate
hung in my bones
on my hollowed back
clinging wretchedly
with razor nail thoughts of my failures past
your sly whispers fog me
as a poisoned vapour
seeping into my mind
your vile spectre oozes
with wretchedness and self-doubt

So I breathe deeper
an inhalation of revelation.
Steel myself
to a torrent of queries.
Probing, piercing you
with razor sharp inspection of my various fiascos.
A thrilling rumble strikes me
as a sharp realisation
courses into my intellect.
In my intellect your insanity slowly dissipates
with reality confronting me.

I destroy me by my self-loathing.

Nobody sees me.

So I stand taller.
More solid now.
My ***** spine.
My soaring spirit.
Confronting bravely my past deeds and human errs.
An ignited spark lights me.
Your sinister face slowly fades as my audacity grows.

Beautiful impressions flutter into my soul.

haunt me no longer
hate wraith

it's possible to recover (slowly) from a life of self-hatred, sending hope **

#sefhatred #hate #recovery

Thomas W Case Feb 4

Mushrooms

Psilocybin silly when the
cops arrive.
Sitting on the couch naked,
laughter, aching jaws.
They ask where my wallet is?
I ask, where are my pants?
Even they laugh.
I can't say mushrooms are
all bad.
They are the catalysts that
brought me back to the
hospital to deal with the
real killer...
*****.

True Story.
I recently did an open mic via zoom at the writer's workshop in Iowa City. Here's a link.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKnpk9OMWXg&t=25s

#mushrooms #humor #recovery

Key the Creative Jan 31

Let go of the photo

Let go of that photo,
For that's not who you are.
It is merely a frame of time
But you are timeless.
I know time hasn't always
shown you kindness,
But let go of that hurt
For that's not who you are.
Those scars don't describe
What's underneath the skin
To discover who you are,

You need only look within.

A little light blank verse that I hope acts as a catalyst for those who need to let go or move on.

#identity #hope #advice #healing #wisdom #recovery #actualizing #reflect

Joshua Phelps Jan 22

reach for the stars

Cross that bridge,
Because there's no reason
To continue this way.

You've given all the
Reasons,

And I can't let it
Take over your
Life.

You've come so far,
Blossomed like a
Flower,

Survived the storms
And rose towards
The stars.

So please,
Tell me what's keeping
You awake at night?

Is it the past
Plaguing your
Head?

Are you
Desperate to
Forgive and forget?

You say
Letting go is the
Hardest part.

And you know
You gotta

Let the past be
The past,

And live and
Let live.

Just know,
It's okay to
Feel this way.

This is only
Temporary.

You don't have
To hide anymore.

Because at the
End of the tunnel,

I'll be your guiding
Light,

Getting you back
To where you were
Before:

A flower reaching
Towards the stars.

#healing #resilience #trust #overcoming #recovery #growth #hope #poetry

Chloe Jan 19

alone with me

It’s no secret, my want
for someone to take care of me
without their back to the wall
of a sunk cost fallacy
Don’t let me be a burden -
if you don’t want to, then quit
I miss the way you loved me
when you were mostly lying

Be alone with me again,
like when we were friends
and the benefits were worth it -
naked but not always *******
You’re never a burden
My identity is erased
It’s hard to love you or anyone
when I have nothing for myself

Hopefully this is the last one and I’ll see everyone in a few months, I’m exhausted. Happy New Year.

#postpartum #depression #*** #trauma #recovery #support #family #love #marriage