The Quiet Room

Do not read anything in here. Just tell me what it is.

What is it right now?

I'm spiraling

Feet on the floor. Both of them.

You are not in the future. You are in this room, and this room is fine.

Breathe with the light. In while it grows. Out while it fades. The out is longer on purpose.

Good. Anger means something is wrong and some part of you still expects better.

You are not going to talk yourself out of it and I am not going to ask you to.

Put it somewhere. Then we will deal with what it is measuring.

Hand on the wall. Not the doorknob yet.

Three breaths. You do not have to feel better. You just have to go in level.

Whatever is on the other side of that door is not happening to you on purpose.

I'm up too.

3am lies. Everything is worse at 3am and none of it is truer at 3am.

Nothing has to be decided tonight. Not one thing on that list is a tonight thing.

Ten minutes. The house will hold.

Put the phone face down where you can still hear it.

I will tell you when it is over. Until then it is not your problem.

Then do not stop. That is not a malfunction, that is a body finally getting a turn.

You have been holding it for a long time and it has to come out somewhere.

I am not going to try and fix this one. Sit here as long as you need.