Bellyache: Poems for Sensitive Souls

by Brianna M. Pastor

From the author of Good Grief, an intimate collection of poems and prose which offers a glimpse into the mind of a highly sensitive person, or empath.

In a world that has become increasingly difficult to navigate—physically, mentally, and spiritually—having empathy is more important than ever. But what if you have a highly sensitive mind? Highly sensitive people, known as empaths, have an expanded capacity to feel not only one set of emotions but also those of others. They experience life more deeply than the average person, leaving them more susceptible to nervous system dysregulation, emotional trauma, and abuse.

Divided into three parts—Body, Mind, and Soul—Brianna Pastor’s intimate collection of poems invites us to explore what it’s like to discover high sensitivity in adulthood and view life through an empathetic lens. Hopefully, by deepening our understanding of sensitivity and how it affects others, we can move one step closer to a more connected, healed world.

I have a bellyache

from constantly absorbing

all this pain.

 

I’d ask you to refrain from telling me,

but your eyes already have.

Genres: Poetry

160 pages, Paperback

Published February 24, 2026

Reviews

[Miss✧Pickypants ᓚᘏᗢ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Poetry collection of
heartfelt internal thoughts and
supportive affirmations
from a deeply sensitive, deeply sad, deeply empathic soul.
Made me think Hang in there sad little kitten;
you can do it, you are doing it!
yes

Rate 3.5 Stars Rounded Up to 4

[Ravi Shah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brianna Pastor is one of my favorite modern poets, and I’ve been captivated by her work for a few years now.

Beautiful, accessible, and soothing, her poetry deepens our grasp of sensitivity, guiding us toward a more connected, healed world.

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this slim collection of poems about living in the world as a highly sensitive person. Relatable and told in three parts about how the author's anxiety and empathy affect her bodily. Great on audio too read by the author herself. A great read for both National Poetry Month and Autism Awareness Month. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio copy in exchange for my honest review.

[Nathaniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

My thoughts on Bellyache is that this is a collection best enjoyed in small chunks. Many of the poems are short and it’s tempting to just read it all at once (which I did), but I definitely would enjoy it more if I digested it piece by piece.

I do enjoy Brianna’s poetry and the topics she writes on. I’m excited to see what comes next.

[Rebecca Schaeffer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I felt a lot of these poems deep in my bones. She beautifully created art that highlights what it is to be a deep feeler ❤️

[Nikki Holbrook · Rating 4 out of 5]

Found a lot of myself in these words.

[Tammy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you Goodreads for sending this book to me. This author centers her poetry around mental health & trauma & what it means to heal with sensitivity.

[yana · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this age where everyone's consuming and promoting insta-poetry (with words that made zero sense and have unnecessary amounts of paragraph breaks), this is a gem. Not to put anyone down, but remember the internet in early 2016? Almost all celebrities were gushing online about Rupi Kaur and were spotted posing with her books on the gram?

God, I was such a fool to presume that may be I was stupid to not understand poetry since everybody else on the internet were giving raving reviews. Bellyache made me realise that there are some poems out there which speaks to me. The sheer volume of annotations and highlights I've added for this book would leave anyone shocked if they glanced at my e-reader.

I've been trying to savour this experience by reading a maximum of three poems each night. Putting one of my favourites here:

"Every time you held my hand,
you'd turn your head the other way.
You'd roll your eyes to the back of your head
and take a deep sigh disguised as a breath.
I want you to know,
I could feel that."

These poems feel like a warm hug. I've been trying to detach from my corporate anxiety post works hours and who knew I'd find it here? ♡

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this book in a goodreads giveaway, merci Harper Collins. Although I found the description a bit pretentious I ended up quite enjoying it and plan on using a few excerpts in my yoga class. It was readable and a good mix of embodied and abstract.

[Dorothy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Divided into parts- Body, Mind and Soul- the Mind section had me in tears and bookmarking every other page- who is surprised though? I thoroughly enjoyed reading this in a single sitting over a mug of coffee in a local shop as poetry month comes to an end.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

5 stars for the poems I loved, 4 stars overall.

“Compassion goes
both ways. I give you mine
but I always have to ask
for yours. I want to be
human enough for you.
I want the grace of
taking off my mask
and falling short.”

[Morgan Burnham · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this book!!! Usually not a huge fan of poetry, but so many of these poems resonated with me. I wish I could gift a copy of it to all my friends. Super accessible and simple enough for everyday moments. Read this one in a hammock at Bonnaroo music festival which was such a dream.

[Tina · Rating 5 out of 5]

This author took the worlds out my soul and wrote them on hard pages. SO relatable and sometimes tearful. ( in a good way!) I resonated so much, I felt so not alone in this harsh world.

[Ron Frampton · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautiful book of poems

[Tina Florance · Rating 3 out of 5]

My favorite prom in this collection:

“The birds talk to each other and
to our ears, it sounds like singing.

Don’t tell me that isn’t
some sort of inexplicable magic.”

[Emma · Rating 2 out of 5]

Felt like I was getting emotional whiplash while reading the poems. It went from total sadness to profound awe back and forth.

[Alison Nardini · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved everything about this collection 😭

[mrsbluestocking · Rating 5 out of 5]

i am a sensitive girl that years up over the smallest argument; this was made for me

[Amanda Perry · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really good collection that hits me deep. The poems are unnamed, so I will list the page numbers of my favorites: 7, 16, 51, 61, 81, 85.

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars rounded up. Thank you NetGalley for the eARC! I related to so many poems in here. It’s a great collection for the empaths and those that feel all the things deeply.

[Emily Moss · Rating 4 out of 5]

An empaths guide to healing through the recognition and appreciation of self worth

[Emily H ☀️ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wanted to love it as much as her first, but some great poems nonetheless

[Danielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! Boy did these poems resonate with me.

[Alaina P · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars ⭐️ I’ve always been someone who feels & loves deeper than most. I’ve always been a worrier and an overthinker. Reading this made me feel a lot less lonely than I usually do ❤️

[Sarah Rendell · Rating 2.5 out of 5]

very personal and vulnerable. felt rather self serving, embraced a very negative outlook of others.

[Klara Sandlin · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.75 ⭐️ Some lines in this book were remarkably insightful, but overall, this was straight up cliches in the form of bad motivational quotes. I felt like I was scrolling on Pinterest or Instagram and finding quotes from a person who thinks poetry is saying ”Thought: A weight. A mirror. A choice.”, and yes this is an actual poem from the book. From beginning to end I found myself longing to finish this book and put it back in my bookshelf. I was also thinking about whether it deserves a place there at all. It baffles me how a beautiful line like ”I sometimes wonder if I exist solely / to teach others what it is like to / lose unwavering love.” can exist in the same collection as obvious sayings like ”Sometimes / sometimes stepping back is helpful / in making a / great leap forward.” If this is what people think good poetry is like, I understand that many view it as awkward and cringe.