NEW MEDS

when the pills stop working
and the scalding hot baths and showers
are too often interrupted with flashbacks
and you eat until you are sick or you starve yourself empty
remember you are supposed to feel that way
when you cut your hair in a rage or dye it
and the temptation to put out your cigarette on your arm
gets too strong remember that is the thing that eats you slowly
every moment of every day
but not today
today we’ll find a new way
a safe means of self-medicating
red wine and an OTC painkiller
keep the gin and the opioids on standby
for the staff lunch
or the family visit
for the days when
the edge is too close

NUWE MEDS

NUWE MEDS

as die pille nie meer werk nie 
en die scalding hot bad en showers 
word te veel interrupted met flashbacks en
jy eet tot jy naar word of
jy starve tot jy leeg voel
onthou dat jy supposed is om so te voel 
as jy jou hare in ’n rage knip of dye 
en die temptation om die sigaret op jou arm 
dood te druk raak te veel
onthou dié is die ding wat jou stadig opvreet 
elke oomblik van elke dag 
maar nie vandag nie 
vandag vind ons ’n nuwe way 
’n safe vorm van self-medicating
rooiwyn en ’n OTC-pynpil
hou die Gin en die opioids op standby
vir die staff lunch 
of die family visit
vir die dae wanneer
die edge te naby is