“I’m Jack, I’m twelve, and honestly, I feel suffocated. Not like someone’s got their hands around my neck, but more like I’m buried under this huge, heavy blanket. The kind you can’t push off. My mom and my aunt—they mean well, they really do—but sometimes they’re just too much. It’s like they’re always there, watching, checking in, asking if I’m okay a million times a day.
They think it’s helping, I guess, but it actually makes me feel trapped, like I can’t even take a breath without them noticing. My mom has to double-check my homework, my aunt has to make sure I’ve eaten every bite at dinner, and they’re constantly worried about whether I’m “okay.” Sometimes I just want to say, “Back off a little!” but I know they’ll get all worried, like they’re the ones who did something wrong.
I know they love me, but it’s like they can’t see that I need some space. And the more they try to make me feel “safe,” the more I feel like I can’t breathe. I just wish they’d trust me to figure things out on my own a little bit, but for now, I guess I just have to deal with it”
They think it’s helping, I guess, but it actually makes me feel trapped, like I can’t even take a breath without them noticing. My mom has to double-check my homework, my aunt has to make sure I’ve eaten every bite at dinner, and they’re constantly worried about whether I’m “okay.” Sometimes I just want to say, “Back off a little!” but I know they’ll get all worried, like they’re the ones who did something wrong.
I know they love me, but it’s like they can’t see that I need some space. And the more they try to make me feel “safe,” the more I feel like I can’t breathe. I just wish they’d trust me to figure things out on my own a little bit, but for now, I guess I just have to deal with it”
Feeling suffocated is like being overwhelmed, but instead of being overcome by a chaotic situation, a suffocated person feels as if they are covered in heavy affection of well meaning people who simply don’t know when to stop.