The lights are too bright The sounds are too loud The fabric on my skin Feels like sandpaper violence I'm counting down Ten, nine, eight Trying to hold it together Seven, six, five But the room is closing in (Voice cracking) Everyone's talking But it sounds like screaming Everyone's normal But I'm drowning In sensory input I can't process fast enough I need the quiet room I need the dark I need silence like oxygen Before I fall apart Too much input System overload I'm short-circuiting About to explode I NEED TO GET OUT I NEED TO GET OUT I NEED TO GET OUT TAKE ME TO THE QUIET ROOM WHERE THE WALLS DON'T SCREAM WHERE THE LIGHTS DON'T BURN WHERE I CAN FINALLY BREATHE THE WORLD IS TOO MUCH TOO LOUD, TOO BRIGHT, TOO REAL TAKE ME TO THE QUIET ROOM IT'S THE ONLY PLACE I FEEL LIKE I'M NOT DYING Your perfume is attacking me The fluorescent lights are drilling into my skull Someone's chewing and I want to scream The tag on my shirt might as well be glass I'm trying to look normal Smile and nod But inside I'm counting tiles Counting breaths Counting seconds until I can escape You don't understand This isn't preference This isn't being picky This is my nervous system In full revolt Against input I can't control Every sound is a knife Every light is fire Every touch is violence And I'm trying not to cry In the middle of the grocery store Because the music is too loud And the lights are too bright And I can't FUCKING BREATHE Sensory overload Meltdown incoming Three, two, one— TAKE ME TO THE QUIET ROOM WHERE THE WORLD SHUTS OFF WHERE THE NOISE STOPS HURTING WHERE I CAN COME UNDONE SAFE IN THE DARKNESS SAFE IN THE SILENCE TAKE ME TO THE QUIET ROOM BEFORE I LOSE MY MIND BEFORE I BREAK [Bridge - everything STOPS] I'm in the bathroom stall Sitting on the floor Hands over my ears Rocking back and forth The world is still there On the other side of the door But in here In this quiet room I made The lights are off The sounds are muffled My heartbeat is slowing This is survival This is regulation This isn't weakness This is my nervous system Protecting itself The only way it knows how I'm not broken I'm not dramatic I'm not "too sensitive" I'm autistic And the world wasn't built For nervous systems like mine And sometimes The only thing Between me and a complete meltdown Is a dark room Where nothing NOTHING Can reach me I NEED THE QUIET ROOM I NEED THE DARK I NEED THE SILENCE TO RESTART MY HEART TO CALM MY BRAIN TO FEEL LIKE A PERSON AGAIN TOO LOUD TOO BRIGHT TOO MUCH CAN'T BREATHE CAN'T THINK CAN'T FUNCTION SENSORY OVERLOAD NERVOUS SYSTEM SHUTDOWN THE LIGHTS THE SOUNDS THE TOUCH THE SMELL EVERYTHING'S A TRIGGER EVERYTHING'S HELL I'M NOT BEING DIFFICULT I'M NOT BEING DRAMATIC I'M LITERALLY DROWNING IN INPUT MY BRAIN CAN'T MANAGE GIVE ME THE QUIET ROOM GIVE ME THE DARK GIVE ME SILENCE BEFORE I FALL APART TAKE ME TO THE QUIET ROOM IT'S NOT GIVING UP, IT'S SURVIVAL TAKE ME TO THE QUIET ROOM WHERE I CAN HAVE MY MELTDOWN IN PRIVATE WHERE I CAN STIM WITHOUT JUDGMENT WHERE I CAN ROCK AND CRY AND SCREAM TAKE ME TO THE QUIET ROOM IT'S THE ONLY PLACE I'M FREE Take me to the quiet room Where I don't have to perform Take me to the quiet room Where I can just exist [Outro - settling into actual quiet, peaceful for the first time] [Music fades to almost nothing - just ambient sound, breathing] [Sung softly, finally calm] In the quiet room The world can't reach me In the quiet room I remember how to breathe In the quiet room I'm safe In the quiet room I can finally Just be
