Wearing A Mask Poems

Published: August 2017

Poems About Wearing A Mask To Hide The Pain

Collection of poems about how we create a mask to hide our pain from other people.

12 Poems About Wearing A Mask To Hide The Pain

  1. We Wear The Mask

    Famous Poem

    Both of Paul Laurence Dunbar’s parents were slaves, and he was born less than a decade after slavery became illegal. “We Wear the Mask” was published in 1896. Dunbar wrote about what it was like to be African American during the late 1800s and the pain experienced by the black community. In this poem, he writes about how the truth is not always what it appears to be when a mask is used. In addition to applying to race and society, this poem can be applied to any situation where someone uses a mask to hide the truth.

    in Famous Sad Poems

    We wear the mask that grins and lies,
    It hides our cheeks and shades our eyes,—
    This debt we pay to human guile;
    With torn and bleeding hearts we smile,

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    A wonderful poem Paul Laurence Dunbar wrote many years ago, after slavery was abolished. How it must have hurt to know his parents had been slaves... Imagine the pain that slavery...

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  2. Behind The Mask

    • By Melisa Bernards
    • Published by Family Friend Poems February 2015 with permission of the Author.

    This poem is about the smile we let the world see while inside we are dying a little every day.

    in Depression Poems

    Hiding the hurt, hiding the pain,
    Hiding the tears that fall like rain.
    Saying I'm fine when I'm anything but.
    This ache in my soul rips at my gut.

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    Thank you so much! I'm so happy my experiences can have an affect on others. I always felt so alone, but it's time for all of us to realize we aren't alone, and we need to stand together and...

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  4. Mask

    • By Matt
    • Published by Family Friend Poems October 2008 with permission of the Author.

    This was a poem originally composed by my loved one as a child. When she showed it to me, I immediately fell in love with it, so we worked on it again. This is dedicated and should be accredited solely to her. I love you.

    in Alone Poems

    Analysis of Form and Technique

    I was once sad and lonely,
    Having nobody to comfort me,
    So I wore a mask that always smiled,
    To hide my feelings behind a lie.

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    Poem About Wearing A Mask That Always Smiles, Mask

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    I know you don't know me, but I want you to know I care about you and what you are going through. I know how bad bullying can be, and I also know how dear a Gran can be. Mine won't be with us...

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  5. Just My Mask

    This is a poem about my day-to-day life. I go through my days, pretending nothing is wrong. I am protecting my family and friends from what I feel. Every time they ask how I am, I always reply, "Fine." I never am fine, never good or well. I wear a mask of happiness and joy so they won't suspect the depth or severity of my pain.

    in Hurting Poems by Teens

    Of course I'm fine, why do you ask?
    Oh, don't mind this, it's just my mask.
    It hides the grief, it hides the strife.
    I wear this mask to escape the knife.

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    Thank you for your story. When I was nine years old, I was raped. And it continued for two years. I never told anyone because the man threatened to hurt my family. When I wrote this...

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  7. The Mask

    • By Kasi
    • Published by Family Friend Poems November 2009 with permission of the Author.

    A poem written by a teen who had most everything yet was still very, very depressed. She was hopelessly afraid to tell her parents, even though they probably would have been very understanding. She had this problem for a few years.

    in Depression Poems by Teens

    I'm great, fine, spectacular. In a way
    I relish every night, and I live every day.
    I live, I laugh, I write, I sing.
    I wonder what the new days will bring.

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    Yeah, I know depression sucks. I put on a mask, and when I get home I break down, wanting to die. It hurts going through school pretending to be okay, and when someone asks if you're okay,...

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  8. Happy Girl

    • By Anjali Velani
    • Published by Family Friend Poems June 2017 with permission of the Author.

    I started feeling depressed when I was 8 years old. At first I didn't know why I felt so down all the time, but as I grew up I started to realize that it wasn't normal. So I decided to hide my depression and promised myself that I would always keep smiling, no matter what. As I grew older, that promise became harder and harder to keep. I am now 13 years old and still dealing with depression. I wrote this poem originally when I was 10 and found it recently, so I edited it and decided to put it up here.

    in Depression Poems by Teens

    When you look at me,
    What do you see?
    Do you glimpse a happy girl,
    Or do you see the real me?

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    Heart touching poem. I've suffered from severe depression since I was 12. I am 15 now, and I understand how it feels. It might be different as well. Most presume males don't go through this,...

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  9. I Will Wear Masks

    • By Joe Dirt
    • Published by Family Friend Poems May 2011 with permission of the Author.

    I have beat cancer twice and am presently fighting again along with the effects of a stroke. The attempt on my life erased 42 years of memories. I have fought and won a battle of addiction. Friends have been leaving my life, and some others have gone as far as to convince people none of this happened. I can't find the strength to reach out again in fear of what will happen if I do. Losing friends and your identity is a lonely place made only for me. JOE DIRT JUNE/2010

    in Dark Poems

    In times of trouble and insanity,
    I carry masks to disguise
    the pain I carry
    secure behind my eyes.

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    This poem truly spoke to me. It's so accurate on so many levels. Life has been hard, and I've had to grow up fast. I've had to be strong and show no panic so my mother would think everything...

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  10. My Mask

    • By Ellie Nazza
    • Published by Family Friend Poems June 2011 with permission of the Author.

    Three people who were very close to me and my family suddenly died. I felt like I had to help my family get through this and be positive, so I pretended to be happy and never told anyone how I felt, and now 6 years later I'm still crying most nights because I've never properly dealt with their death, and still nobody knows. This is also my first ever poem and I'm only a kid, so take that into consideration when you read it.

    in Grief Poems

    Every morning I wake up and put on a mask.
    The mask makes everything seem all right,
    But they don't know I cry at night.
    The nightmares just won't go away.

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    Featured Shared Story

    First, I am profoundly sorry for the loss you've had to endure. Please take comfort in knowing you are not alone. Yours is the only poem that spoke clearly to my heart. So well put. The...

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  11. The Ruse

    • By Annabel Sheila
    • Published by Family Friend Poems July 2008 with permission of the Author.

    No one can truly understand depression unless you either live with it or love someone who lives with it. This poem is dedicated to my beautiful daughter who has been suffering from depression for so long I don't remember when she wasn't depressed. All I can do is try and love her through her pain...

    in Mental Illness Poems

    She's beauty, style, poise and grace,
    At least she appears to be.
    But no one knows the girl who hides
    Behind the face they see.

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    I myself have a daughter that is now going to be 26 in a little over a month. She doesn't leave the house at all, she comes to my house and to her Dr's appointments but not by choice. They...

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  12. A Mask

    • By Jordyn Alberts
    • Published by Family Friend Poems July 2013 with permission of the Author.

    People don't know who I really am. My mask covers my true feelings.

    in Depression Poems

    I smile, I laugh, I joke around,
    but my feelings no one has ever found.
    They see me every day with a smile on my face,
    but when I get back to this place

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    This is so relatable. People always think I'm happy all the time; they think I never feel pain and they try to never make me feel pain. The thing is, I already do. Whenever I do feel pain and...

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  13. I Am Alone

    • By Ariana Nicole Butler
    • Published by Family Friend Poems May 2011 with permission of the Author.

    This is a poem that I wrote a few months back. From the outside I look like that kind of girl who seems to never feel sad, but on the inside I hurt really bad. You can't always see the pain someone is feeling.

    in Hurting Poems by Teens

    The yells,
    yells and screams,
    unwanted dreams,
    I'm never wanted,

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    Featured Shared Story

    Even when I am alone, I feel this way. I have scars on my wrist from the times I couldn't take the pain of living with people who tell you you're not good enough. that no matter what you do...

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  14. The Masks

    • By Nancy Crosskill Longanbach
    • Published by Family Friend Poems June 2015 with permission of the Author.

    My husband passed away just before his 44th birthday. After the dust settled, bills paid and left with very little, I found it hard to put up a "false front." My son has a way with words and gave me some good advice. He had just turned 12.

    in Husband Death Poems

    I have so many different masks.
    I wear them one by one.
    I see them in a pile
    When my day is finally done.

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