Picture of Usman KhanUsman Khan is a medical student in the Class of 2019 at the University of OttawaPicture of Tharshika Thangarasa

Tharshika Thangarasa is a medical student in the Class of 2019 at the University of Ottawa

 

 

Picture of a person lying down on the ground with a syringe besides the arm

You find me:
Sprawled across the cold, dark asphalt.
Incoherent, incompetent, “incapable”.
Hypotensive, bradycardic, cyanotic.

Overdosed.

For a moment, you pity me.
So young; likely to succumb to the effects
of the chemical concoction that I consciously
forced through my veins.

Overdosed.

Your pity subsides,
Making way for disgust.
For judgement.
How could I have chosen this path?

Overdosed.

You walk around my limp, lifeless body.
Assessing the patient,
As you have spent an eternity learning to do.
Through it all, my eyes stare right through you.

Overdosed.

Perhaps fentanyl isn’t solely responsible for my state.
Perhaps it was neglect—a faulty system.
But, judge as you may,
I overdosed.

Help.