I Can't
David and the Bear Lyrics

While you wait with arms wide open
As you eagerly anticipate something or someone, you keep your arms figuratively open, ready to accept what comes next.

Fading in against the tide
You feel like you're disappearing slowly, like a ship in the distance as the waves get higher and higher.

Holding on, but we're still broken
You're attempting to persevere or endure but the distress continues to wear you down despite your efforts.

It's different on the other side
Things are dissimilar or altered in contrast to how they are right now, but you're not sure if it's better or worse.

I can't breathe
You're struggling to catch your breath, emotionally or physically, under the weight of your circumstances.

All you want to feel is misery
You're seeking to experience negative emotions because they feel familiar, easier to handle, or you believe you're undeserving of happiness.

But everything that I believe
The principles, ideas, or values you hold dear, that guide your actions, are being challenged or disregarded.

You've taken from me
You feel as though someone or something has robbed you of the beliefs, people, or possessions that you hold dear or that you are entitled to.

You're all I need
Despite other shortcomings, you remain reliant on this one thing or person for support, comfort, or direction.

We both know That all our dreams are underneath Below our feet
Collectively, we acknowledge that our aspirations lie below us, unrealized, and seem out of reach.

And now I can't breathe
The previous thoughts, emotions, and sensations become too much to bear and it feels as though they're suffocating you.

Day by day we never notice We're waiting for our world to change
We're going through the motions of life, doing our daily routine with little thought, yet simultaneously waiting for something to change.

Acting on all that you told us Expecting things to stay the same
We've taken advice or guidance and followed it, but we still anticipate things to remain constant or to progress smoothly without deviations.

Now I can't breathe
It's become even more difficult to take in oxygen, either from a heightened emotional state or a worsening situation.