hands clasped around your neck
choking, cutting off your voice
your breath, your being
how can you ask for help
when every word, every scream
gets trapped, caught
inside the cotton in your throat
stuck in it like glue
without even a whisper slipping
through the cracks
your world is a whirlwind
your mind a battleground
desecrated, razed
a concoction of sin and lies
that you can’t explain
and you can’t admit to anyone
not even yourself
the hands are tightening
strangling out your free-will
your sanity, your personality
wringing you dry and barren
barricading every thought
locking it up, throwing away the key
leaving everything imprisoned
just beneath your lips