Behind the Glass

Sometimes, even when I’m surrounded by people, I feel like I’m behind a sheet of glass. Present, but distant. Listening, but not really there. It’s like there’s static in the background of everything, muting things, dulling them, making it hard to feel fully connected. I’ve been trying to name that feeling lately. I think it’s burnout. Or loneliness. Or some mix of both. It’s not always fixed by talking to someone, though that helps. Sometimes it’s just giving myself permission to feel off. To admit that I’m in the fog again, and to trust it’ll lift. There are moments where my group of friends are talking to each other, tapos i'll try to join the conversation but I cannot. No matter how hard I try, may time talaga na naffeel kong di ako belong at all even if mga kaibigan ko naman yun. It's like there's an invisible barrier between us, na ako lang nakakapansin and non-existsnt sa kanila.

• Disconnection
• Loneliness
• Burnout