anaphylaxis at 12 p.m. on a monday

i have trusted

myself.

i have trusted

my body.

i have believed

it will not bite back

that it will not feel the roaring rush

of danger in what is safe.

i have thought

i would swallow it away.

you thought wrong,

said the syringe,

said the white room.

you can't fool me,

said the haze,

said the flush.

you cannot fight

the fist closing around your throat

except it is not a real fist

and it is closing around your whole life

until adrenaline jolts

its grip away.