Slipping Through It All Poem by Angela Raine

Pre‑Chorus

I had questions I was scared to say out loud,
ghosts I carried from the past inside me.
Smiling like I had it handled,
while I was fading fast.

Holding pieces no one saw,
standing tall but feeling small.
Telling myself I'd be okay —

But I was slipping…
Slipping through it all.

Verse 1

I was sinking in the mess that I had made,
going nowhere fast at full speed alone.
Drowning in my own decisions —
the seeds of every choice I made.

Harvesting consequences I didn't understand,
watching regret bloom in slow motion,
caught in the undertow of my own mind,
arguments in my head I always seemed to lose.

Pre chorus

Running hard but losing vision,
barely surviving — just getting by.
Smiling in mirrors that didn't know my name,
learning how to fake a life.

Playing strong and independent —
But my heart was barely beating the same.

Chorus

I could feel it fading in the silence,
smiling wide while quietly breaking inside,
laughing loud just to blur the violence,
saying 'I'm fine' every time they asked —
hoping maybe I'd believe it too.

Wearing strength like it fits my skin —
while underneath, it's paper-thin.


Verse 2

I was breaking and I knew it.
I just didn't let it show.
I'd rather choke on silence
than let somebody know.

I called it independence.
Called it standing tall.
But real strength isn't hiding —
it's letting yourself fall.

I don't want to fake it anymore.
Don't want to wear that crown.
If I'm going to be honest —
I'm tired of not breaking down.

Pre-Chorus

I had questions I was scared to ask you alone,
pain I buried in my past.
Smiling like I had it handled,
while I was fading fast.

Holding pieces no one saw,
standing tall but feeling small.
Telling myself I'd be okay —
But I was slipping…

Slipping through it all.

Chorus

I'm hanging by a thread I twisted from my pride,
playing parts that don't feel like myself, wearing versions of myself I don't recognize.

Smiling through the fractures while I'm quietly asking for help.
I'm fine, honestly—if fine means breaking quietly.

If I let the truth come spilling out,
If I trade my strength for doubt —
Will you stay when I unravel?
Will you catch me when I slip through it all?

Verse 3

I don't know how to say it
without feeling small —
I'm not as strong as I pretend,
I don't have it all.

I've been carrying a version
of myself I can't sustain.
It's heavy trying to outrun
what's living in my veins.

If I put the mask down gently,
if I let the curtain fall —
would you still recognize me
without the strength at all?

Pre‑Chorus

I had questions I was scared to ask you alone,
pain I buried in my past.
Smiling like I had it handled,
while I was fading fast.

Holding pieces no one saw,
standing tall but feeling small.
Telling myself I'd be okay —
But I was slipping…

Slipping through it all.

Chorus

I'm hanging by a thread I twisted from my pride,
playing parts that don't feel like myself, wearing versions of myself I don't recognize.

Smiling through the fractures while I'm quietly asking for help.
I'm fine, honestly—if fine means breaking quietly.

If I let the truth come spilling out,
If I trade my strength for doubt —
Will you stay when I unravel?
Will you catch me when I slip through it all?

Bridge

No more drowning in the silence,
no more shrinking to survive.
I've been breaking just to hold it —
now I'm breaking to come alive.

I'm done begging for approval,
done performing for it all.
If I shatter, let me shatter —
I'm still standing through the fall.

This is courage in the open,
this is strength without disguise.
I don't need to hide my fractures —
they're the proof that I survived.

Outro

So if I slip, I won't hide it,
if I break, I won't pretend.
I don't need to hold the whole world
just to prove I can stand.

I'm learning I don't lose me
when I finally let it show —
Maybe falling isn't failure…
Maybe it's the only way to grow.

No more slipping through it all.
I'm here.
I'm whole.