by Alison Holmes
“I thought I’d turned my back on you,
Yet here you are again.
To torture me and bully me
And feed off all my pain.
You promised to be done with me
And give me time to breathe,
I try to put you in my past
But you never really leave.
I wake up full of hope and joy
At last my world is bright
I’ve armed myself with many tools
To face another fight.
So go ahead and challenge me
I’m stronger this time round.
It will take you so much longer
To knock me to the ground.
I see through different eyes now
And my guilt I laid to rest.
There is no more that you can do,
But still you try your best.
You tried to take me over
You made me weak and sad,
And for a time you did succeed
My enemies were glad.
Then i met my angels
They all appeared to me,
I must have shouted loud enough
For help to set me free.
They wrapped their arms around me
And shielded me from harm.
They made me see what’s real and true
You began to lose your charm.
I used to wish they’d been there
To guide me as a mother,
To stop me sealing my own fate
From scars left by another.
But now i know that all my life
They were waiting for a time
For me to hit rock bottom
So they could help me climb.
Their wings are wrapped around me
Their words are so sincere.
I’ll never feel alone again
Now that I have them near.
And they will never let me down
They’ve given me the means
So that my life is good again
And i am full of beans.
So come on you Depression
And do your very best
To try and spoil another day
Put my well tools to the test.
I know I now will beat you
You can never win this fight.
You did your worst and battered me
But now I see the light.
Goodbye to you, good riddance,
Never show yourself to me,
That book is finally finished
The chapter set me free.
Each day I now am trying
To bury all the CRAP
Instead of all the crying
I smile again through WRAP!
WELLNESS RECOVERY ACTION PLAN = WE REPAIRED ALISON’S PUNCTURE!
Mary Ellen Copeland, PhD, developed Wellness Recovery Action Plan (WRAP) with a group of people with lived experience who were attending a mental health recovery workshop in 1997. She is the original author of the WRAP Red Book, as well as dozens of other WRAP books and materials. She has dedicated the last 30 years of her life to learning from people who have mental health issues; discovering the simple, safe, non-invasive ways they get well, stay well, and move forward in their lives; and then sharing what she has learned with others through keynote addresses, trainings, and the development of books, curriculums, and other resources. Now that she is retired, and that, as she intended, others are continuing to share what she has learned, she continues to learn from those who have mental health issues and those who support them. She is a frequent contributor to this site.