childhood trauma poem – ‘i grew up too quickly’

i grew up too quickly.

i had to learn to suppress my feelings.

i got told i was mature,

too independent,

have “an old soul”.

i learnt how to wear a mask.

say what people wanted to hear,

act correctly in different settings.

i was a little girl,

growing up in a broken family,

a broken home.

i got told i gave the best advice.

that i am understanding,

i am caring.

i was a little girl fighting to be loved.

fighting to be cared for.

i was a little girl stuck in my room.

reading to escape reality,

to create a different world in my brain,

i grew up too quickly.

and now that little girl is an adult,

and she has to teach herself.

05/06/2023

– MAO

photo of parents finger touching childs finger with poem title 'i grew up too quickly' in the middle

don’t give trauma the power to control you, you deserve to live how you want. take control of your trauma.

-life advice from one survivor to another