Late Night Visitors Uninvited

Summary

Natalie Frank, a clinical psychologist, author, and editor, reflects on the struggle with nocturnal anxiety and its personified torments in her poetic essay "Late Night Visitors Uninvited."

Abstract

In her essay "Late Night Visitors Uninvited," Natalie Frank delves into the tormenting experience of nightly psychological distress. She personifies emotions such as fear, anxiety, shame, rage, guilt, and grief as monsters that haunt her when the world quiets down. The narrative captures the exhaustive battle against these internal demons that intensify with the cover of night, only to retreat with the dawn. The author's background in clinical psychology lends depth to her exploration of the human psyche under duress, revealing the cyclical nature of these nocturnal visits and their impact on mental well-being.

Opinions

The author, Natalie Frank, uses vivid imagery and metaphors to convey the intensity of her nocturnal battles with anxiety and fear.
There is a sense of resignation and vulnerability in the face of overwhelming emotions, which the author portrays as both external and internal forces.
The essay suggests that sleep, or the lack thereof, plays a significant role in exacerbating the confrontations with these 'uninvited visitors.'
The personification of emotions as monsters adds a layer of palpability to the intangible nature of psychological turmoil.
The author hints at a cycle of emotional confrontation that resets with each nightfall, implying a chronic and challenging struggle.
There is an underlying theme of resilience as the author acknowledges the enduring

Late Night Visitors Uninvited

The monsters wait patiently at the door Talking quietly amongst themselves Until I can keep my eyes open no longer And with a resigned sigh Turn off the lights And pray that sleep steels in through windows That I leave just slightly cracked| Lest the others learn of it And up their game

But the heat is too great And sleep must be moving Slowly on it’s currents, Certain to arrive too late And being vulnerable and skittish Will bound away when it realizes, It has been preceded, Perhaps it will creep back again If it is feeling particularly brave

I hear the door Though they of course don’t need it But only want to call Attention to themselves And their entrance, For anticipation only, Which makes their jobs easier Ensuring I am already in a state Before they have begun their work

Fear douses me in ice water and Anxiety his twin ignites to set me alight As I lay on sweat swathed bier, Shame forces my eyes downward Teaching me to hide within, Lest I disappoint again Rage at the injustices I can’t correct, Even with truth’s arrows that Rips across the night renting sky and earth, Til the stars disappear and there is nothing Firm on which to stand.

Guilt arrives with knowledge of deeds undone, Knocked out of range and still he Dredges up the past until even silly Instances of childhood independence, From disguised cruelty makes me seek escape.

Grief supplants all else and cannot be avoided Or distracted from For it is all encompassing And it feels like I am drowning

Soon I’ll reach my breaking point. And run from all to hide The trail through the deep birch, Woods are overgrown, The way forward dims, But this liminal space Between darkness and light, Is a place of fear and wonder The mutually exclusive realized.

The monsters will remain til’ dawn, Politely taking turns, changing order To keep me off kilter, Then they will begin to depart Those that were most salient In the darkest hours, will be last, Only fading when chased away By mornings champion, Who comes on fiery steed To let exhausted sleep settle over me, Like a summer blanket keeping me safe, And resetting the score Til night falls once more And we begin the dance again.

Natalie Frank (Taye Carrol) has had work featured in Haunted Waters Press, Weirdbook Magazine, Siren’s Call Publications, Lycan Valley Press and Zero Fiction among others. Her poetry has been featured in several anthologies. She is Editor for 1-One-Infinity, The Partnered Pen and One Table, One World and is Editor in Chief for Promposity and Mental Gecko. She is also the Managing Editor for Novellas and Serials at LVP Publications.

You can follow me and find links to all of the articles, essays, fiction and poetry I publish on Medium here. Thanks for reading!

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