What do I do to ignore them behind me?
Do I follow my instincts blindly?
Do I hide my pride from these bad dreams
And give in to sad thoughts that are maddening?
Do I sit here and try to stand it?
Or do I try to catch them red-handed?
Do I trust some and get fooled by phoniness,
Or do I trust nobody and live in loneliness?
Because I can't hold on when I'm stretched so thin
I make the right moves but I'm lost within
I put on my daily facade but then
I just end up getting hurt again
By myself (myself)

I ask why, but in my mind
I find I can't rely on myself (myself)
I ask why, but in my mind
I find I can't rely on myself

[Chorus]
I can't hold on.
To what I want when I'm stretched so thin.
It's all too much to take in.
I can't hold on.
To end things watching everything spin.
With thoughts of failure sinking in.

If I turn my back I'm defenseless
And to go blindly seems senseless
If I hide my pride and let it all go on
Then they'll take from me 'till everything is gone
If I let them go I'll be outdone
But if I try to catch them I'll be outrun
If I'm killed by the questions like a cancer
Then I'll be buried in the silence of the answer
By myself (myself)

I ask why, but in my mind
I find I can't rely on myself (myself)
I ask why, but in my mind
I find I can't rely on myself

[Chorus]

How do you think
I've lost so much
I'm so afraid
I'm out of touch
How do you expect
I will know what to do
When all I know
Is what you tell me to

Don't you
I can't tell you how to make it
No matter what I do
How hard I
I can't seem to convince myself
I'm stuck on the outside
Don't you
I can't tell you how to make it
No matter what I do
How hard I
I can't seem to convince myself
I'm stuck on the outside

[Chorus]
I can't hold on
(To what I want when I'm stretched so thin)
It's all too much to take in
I can't hold on
(To anything watching everything spin)
Without some failure sinking



Lyrics submitted by Matt

Track duration: 03:10

"By Myself" as written by Mike Shinoda, Brad Delson, Chester Charles Bennington, Joseph Hahn, Robert G. Bourdon

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group

Lyrics powered by LyricFind


By Myself song meanings
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110 Comments

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  • 0
    General Comment:Of of LP's songs mean different things to different people but they usually have a main theme. For this song its "fate" and "failure." The song basically describes feelings of someone who completely cannot control something that is very impotent to him or something that greatly affects his life. This could be social anxiety, bullying, career, relationship, friendships or a combination of things etc.

    He feels that he is always fated to to fail or have things go wrong in life when it comes to anything important to him. This is strengthened by his past where he has seen everything he has cared about fall to ruin. So much so that now he expects everything that he wants in the future is destined to go wrong. This is regardless of his ability or talents. He feels no matter how skilled he is or how much effort he puts in things will always go wrong. He has become an eternal pessimist and his world has lost all color and excitement.

    This is an amazing song that I can completely relate to.
    Flag griffon651on March 31, 2013   Link
  • +1
    General Comment:The () is my interpreation

    What do I do to ignore what's behind me?
    (He knows that he worries too much about what they think about him, and he don’t know how to ignore theirs opinion, so he just like everyone else tries to fit in)

    Do I follow my instincts blindly?
    (He knows that he just let his emotions, fears and worries take control of him, and he knows that he has to deny himself to be a part of the carousel)

    Do I hide my pride away from these bad dreams
    And give in to sad thoughts that are maddening?
    (He’s afraid that if he is laidback and go through his pain and is himself a bit more that it will makes him feel that it’s harder to put on the facade again, ´cause the more he goes through the pain the less energy and will he has to put on his daily façade to deny himself, so he doesn’t want to heal himself completely or else he just going to be wrapped up thinking about the pain he caused himself and not be able to forgive himself)

    Do I let it go and try to stand it?
    (He’s afraid that the pain will be so huge that he will not be able to go through it, ´cause he’s already so used to being in denial and set his real emotions on fire so he can at least have a little fun without being himself, he wants to be flawless)
    Or do I try to catch them red handed?
    Do I trust some and get fooled by phoniness,
    (He’s afraid that if he trust someone with all his real thoughts and go through his real pain that they are just going to use his insecurity and then ditch him, he should know that if they did that, they ditch him ´cause they have the same pain as he does, and that they are ditching him to conceal their own pain)

    Or do I trust nobody and live in loneliness?
    (So he wonders if he have to go through the pain by himself without any other involved even though he wants someone with him ´cause he’s afraid of going through all that by himself)

    Cause I can’t hold when I'm stretched so thin
    (He feels like he’s afraid of being himself on his own, ´cause he don’t like who he really is, that’s why feels like it easier to most of the time deny himself)

    I make the right moves but I’m lost within
    (He knows that everyone thinks he do the right things, he gets popular for it but he still have the same pain and worry and lack of independent inside of him)

    I put on my daily facade but then
    I just end up getting hurt again
    (He feels like it’s sad that he needs to put on a daily façade to be appreciated by others)

    By myself
    I ask why, but in my mind
    I find I can’t rely on myself
    (He realize that he’s afraid of going through it all alone, therefore it’s obvious that he can’t even accept himself and don’t want to acknowledge himself, and that what worries him, he leaves himself completely to please others and that’s because he needs others)

    I can’t hold on
    To what I want when I’m stretched so thin
    It’s all too much to take in
    (He feels like when he’s by himself, it’s all too much to take in, it’s like going from his daily façade, his dream personality, to his raw, ugly form, and when he sees his raw form, he once again wants to leave, ´cause he can’t let his illusion of his perfect self go, so he doesn’t know how to change himself, but in his mind he knows that he may be can be independent by going through himself and the pain, but he’s afraid of doing that, ´cause he feels like no one else is doing that and he feels like its too much burden to carry the truth on his shoulders)

    I can’t hold on
    To anything watching everything spin
    (He feels like he just follow the stream and watches everything spin)

    With thoughts of failure sinking in
    (He wonders if peoples going to found out how he really feels and is)

    If I turn my back I’m defenseless
    (He feels like he´s defenseless if he shows his real self to others, if he shows his vulnerability in front of his friends, and he’s afraid that they will hurt him)

    And to give in to fate seems senseless
    (He’s afraid of losing control and let things be as they are, and he’s afraid that fate will let him down)

    If I hide my pride and let it all go on then they’ll
    Take from me till everything is gone
    (He’s afraid that if he shows his vulnerability and his feelings that they will reject him and makes him more vulnerable than he was before, and if he get a rejection from them, he will be alone, and he’s afraid of being alone)

    If I let them go I’ll be outdone
    (He knows that if he let things be, he would care less about them, he won the deeper level but lost everything else)

    But if I try to catch them I’ll be outrun
    (If he tries to fit in with them again he knows that they will reject him for the rest of their life’s)

    If I’m killed by the questions like a cancer
    Then I’ll be buried in the silence of the answer
    (This can mean two things: One; They will not letting him go and tries to control him and tries to bury him mentally ´cause he has all the answers,
    Two; He consider to kill himself, his raw form, bury the answers and sell his soul so he can be with others)

    By myself
    I ask why, but in my mind
    I find I can’t rely on myself
    (He realize that he’s afraid of going through it all alone, therefore it’s obvious that he can’t even accept himself and don’t want to acknowledge himself, and that what worries him, he leaves himself completely to please others and that’s because he needs others)

    I can’t hold on
    To what I want when I’m stretched so thin
    It’s all too much to take in
    (He feels like when he’s by himself, it’s all too much to take in, it’s like going from his daily façade, his dream personality, to his raw, ugly form, and when he sees his raw form, he once again wants to leave, ´cause he can’t let his illusion of his perfect self go, so he doesn’t know how to change himself, but in his mind he knows that he may be can be independent by going through himself and the pain, but he’s afraid of doing that, ´cause he feels like no one else is doing that and he feels like its too much burden to carry the truth on his shoulders)

    I can’t hold on
    To anything watching everything spin
    (He feels like he just follow the stream and watches everything spin)

    With thoughts of failure sinking in
    (He wonders if peoples going to found out how he really feels and is)

    How do you think I’ve lost so much
    (He can’t lose anything but himself, ´cause he sacrifices himself)

    I’m so afraid that I’m out of touch
    How do you expect I will know what to do
    When all I know is what you tell me to
    (He doesn’t know how to do, so he do what other people do)

    Don’t you know I can’t tell you how to make it go
    (He is frustrated that he doesn’t know how to feel better)

    No matter what I do, how hard I try
    I can’t seem to convince myself why
    (He can’t go away from his daily facade)

    I’m stuck on the outside (x2)
    (so he’s stuck on the outside, ´cause he refuse to deal with his inner problems)
    Flag Monreflectionson April 25, 2010   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:Quite simply this song is about having very low self-esteem, that's why it rings true with so many of us. It's about being caught in that catch-22 of attempting to just be yourself but getting devoured for such vulnerability or otherwise faking it in order too impress the crowd but losing connection with yourself and compromising your own identity. Basically either being hated by the crowd or being hated by yourself but either way losing because you are aware of the problem but have no idea of the solution thus thoughts of failure sinking in. I don't know of another song that captures so well the private hell introspective people with such low self-esteem go through. If this song resonates with you then please read up on self-esteem and make it a focus of your study. I have done and am very happy to say that I have moved on from the feelings of this song. I listened to it today and cried over how much pain I used to be in. Don't worry even if you gain self-esteem you will still enjoy this song, it just won't indulge your anger as much.
    Flag happysappy21on March 19, 2010   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:some of the lyrics are wrong.
    1) Do I sit here and try to stand it?
    2)And to go blindly seems senseless
    This is an amazing song just thought I'd point that out
    Flag heronothingon July 05, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:This Song mean alot for me i was bullied in middle school its like when ppl laugh at you or make jokes u
    and it bother u and hurt so i think that is the first verse do i ignored them behind or do i follow inticts blindly ( get mad and fight with them) do i hide my pride from these bad dream do i sit here and try to stand it ( do nothing while others keep bothering you or should try to cacht them red heande (fight with them and to show them dont fuck with me)do i trust the person and get fooled by phonines is like i trust this guy but only make fun of me or should i have not friends and be alone, i put my daily facade is when u got home and u dont want to parents to know that u were bullied so u say was a good day
    and it hurt me cost i lying to my parents. i cant rely on myself because even i can stand out for myself even i cannot protect myself from these ppl. I feel this SONG meaning is someone who is being bullied and dont know what to do and is at the limit is a kick-ass song
    Flag derubianon February 09, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:It seems to me that the singer has trouble judging people's character because he has trouble trusting people and cant really tell if someone is trustworthy. One line i like is: "Do I try to catch them redhanded?" I mean paranoia sucks but what if the fear of betrayal is justified? Then again not finding anything would probably make a paranoid person more distrustful...

    Basically its a cautionary tale: you need to will yourself to be more open and be willing to take risks or you'll be suspicious of everyone and "live in loneliness"... thats my take on it anyway.
    Flag reddorothyon October 30, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:WooHoo! Twilight!
    Flag BabiiGurl2012on October 04, 2008   Link
  • +2
    General Comment:This song is about someone who has had many bad experiences and failures in his life. Even when things should have gone right for him, it went wrong.

    So now he feels that when he faces any new challenge in life he will fail at it no matter what. It could be anything from a job interview to a new relationship.

    He feels that even if he tries his best and does everything right, something will come along and ruin things. Or if he sits back and lets fate take control, he will fail anyway. So in his mind he is paranoid and very pessimistic. He is his own worst enemy and can’t rely on himself.


    So the song is describing how he feels when he is faces a new challenge in life. He is very pessismistic and thinks he will fail at this new task no matter what. It could be anything from a job interview to a new relationship.

    So he has become his own worst enemy. Because he think
    Flag almosteasyon September 26, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:i love this song!! lol this song tells me how indecisive and how it is to choose how we live our lives. How influential people are on us, and how hard it is to change from being someone ur whole life into someone your not really sure about.
    Flag Dani4evaon August 18, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I completely agree with ap1orian1ap and roses are red.That's the first thing I thought about when I first read the lyrics.That's why I downloaded it.And I can relate to it so much:'(.So here's my explanation, what this song means for me:
    What do I do to ignore them behind me?
    ^That means that you do whatever you can to ignore them
    Do I follow my instincts blindly?
    Do I hide my pride from these bad dreams
    And give in to sad thoughts that are maddening?

    Do I sit here and try to stand it?
    Or do I try to catch them red-handed?
    Do I trust some and get fooled by phoniness
    Or do I trust nobody and live in loneliness?
    ^That's the possible options you have, to protect yourself from having it more

    Because I can't hold on when I'm stretched so thin
    I make the right moves but I'm lost within
    I put on my daily facade but then
    I just end up getting hurt again

    ^That shows how hard is it, and even though you're trying to isolate yourself from feeling, you can't

    By myself, I ask why, but in my mind
    I find I can't rely on myself

    ^That means that you ask yourself why, why the fuck you, but can't find out

    I can't hold on
    (To what I want when I'm stretched so thin)
    It's all too much to take in
    I can't hold on
    (To anything watching everything spin)
    With thoughts of failure sinking in

    ^That means having other problems in life, and it all just gets too much, you don't believe in yourself, and think you are just a failure

    If I turn my back I'm defenseless
    And to go blindly seems senseless
    If I hide my pride and let it all go on then they'll
    Take from me till everything is gone

    If I let them go I'll be outdone
    But if I try to catch them I'll be outrun
    If I'm killed by the questions like a cancer
    Then I'll be buried in the silence of the answer

    ^Whatever you do, it will just make it worse for you

    How do you think, I've lost so much?
    I'm so afraid, I'm out of touch
    How do you expect, I will know what to do?
    When all I know is what you tell me to

    ^That means it makes other things in live bad, or you used to be happy, and have friends and everything and lost it, that you're scared, you accept what they say for true, because no one says something else

    Don't you know, I can't tell you how to make it go?
    No matter what I do, how hard I try
    I can't seem to convince myself why
    I'm stuck on the outside

    ^You don't know to change it, make it go, you don't know why, so you're stuck on the outside all by yourself

    So that's just the way I can relate to it, other explanations can be true too.

    Btw, it's amazing song, my second fav, right after Numb
    :(
    Flag ScaryGirl666on July 19, 2008   Link

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