I tell her "no thanks,
I think I’ll be OK".
I hang up the phone and
call the Crisis Team.

I speak to a lady who knows me,
although I cannot recall her.

She talks me through it and
tells me to watch a bit of TV or
listen to some music and
to occupy myself until
later in the night.

My mini-crisis passes
as I follow this advice throughout the night.

Was it because I did all of
the "right things" or
was it simply that my "medication"
was taking effect ?

***

The above episode
was only a small tremor,
but it still scared me a bit.

I guess that I took it better
than I otherwise might have
because I have been there before
and done it all before.

But that doesn’t make it
any less scary at the time.
It’s only with the benefit of hindsight
that I can see that I could cope with it.

An Abecedarian Story