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The head turns too quickly and
The room becomes a dizzying carnival ride
Mundane objects
pass in and out of vision like Dorothy's tornado
turn sinister in twisted vision:
Here's a stapler
Here's a desk chair
Here's a purse
Here's a window
Here's a pen
All fly by, ungraspable
Here is what you tell yourself:
It's all right
This feeling will pass
Hang on
You can get through this
Don't vomit
Calm down
Here is what you must do:
Lie down (the floor will do)
Close your eyes
Ignore the low hum/high ring in your ear
Breathe
Breathe
Breathe
Wait
When it's over:
Assess the damage
Sit up slowly
Drink some water
Walk a straight line
Listen
Keep your balance
Keep your balance.
submitted for Imaginary Garden With Real Toads, FB Friday, Recipe for...Poetry
6 comments:
You describe the vertigo-like symptoms so well, I felt alarmed while reading. It must be a terrible experience to go through. Your tips for coping could be applied to other situations in life - I'll take that away with me.
"to don't list". This should top it, sounds like. Yikes!
This sounds like such a difficult thing to have to face, but the voice that you use to tell yourself what to do sounds like such a calming influence, like you've got this, like you face this with courage and resilience and a sense of serenity. Your description gives the reader a peek into an insider's understanding for which I am grateful. Thank you.
Whew! And yet, a gradual finding of stability.
Good lord this is stressful! I wish to not learn about this personally, and for you to never experience it again.
real and scary, LM ~
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