Empathy No. 158

04/16/03, Brawney off. 3:09 PM

DR. BRAWNEY: The school year is almost over, correct?

RODERICK: I guess so.

DR. BRAWNEY: Have you given any thought as to what you'll do over the break?

RODERICK: There's lots of time for that.

DR. BRAWNEY: I suppose Prom comes first. Do you plan to attend?

RODERICK: I know where this is going. You can forget it.

DR. BRAWNEY: What do you mean by that?

RODERICK: You want me to talk about Carlie. I'm not talking about Carlie.

DR. BRAWNEY: Can I assume that she-

RODERICK: Forget it. I'm not talking about Carlie.

DR. BRAWNEY: Roderick, it is apparent that Miss Anderson is very important to you, and if you are still seeing her-

RODERICK: I said no.

DR. BRAWNEY: Very well, if this uncomfortable then we can revisit it later. I would actually like to discuss your research into your paternity. I understand-

RODERICK: No, I'm not talking about my father. I'm not talking about Lloyd, either.

DR. BRAWNEY: Is there something you would care to discuss?

RODERICK: I'd like to walk out that door right now.

DR. BRAWNEY: These sessions are voluntary, Roderick. We can certainly discontinue then, but we should discuss that first.

RODERICK: I don't think they really are voluntary. I've told you that I want to stop, I've told Mom...there's always someone to talk me out of it. If I had more guts, I'd quit telling people and just skip.

DR. BRAWNEY: If you feel that there's nothing more to gain, then I will talk to your mother about discontinuing the weekly sessions. You could always resume if you feel that it would be helpful.

RODERICK: That's fine.

DR. BRAWNEY: would you mind telling me why you wish to end these sessions?

RODERICK: Because I don't trust you. You said once that this was about trust and I just don't trust you.

DR. BRAWNEY: I see.

RODERICK: Do you mind if I ask you a question?

DR. BRAWNEY: Of course.

RODERICK: What do you think is wrong with me?

DR. BRAWNEY: The nature of what we do-

RODERICK: Don't talk around it. When Mom and Lloyd sent me here, it's because everyone thought I was wounded. I don't know, maybe they were right, and...but I'm not wounded now, am I? Everything is going well, I mean...I'm better off than I was a year ago, right? So you must think there's something wrong with me. Why can't you just tell me?

DR. BRAWNEY: I believe you are intelligent enough to understand this, so I'm going to speak to you like we're equals here. Mental health, psychotherapy, these things aren't always about finding specific problems - "wounds," as you've put them. Sometimes we look for patterns of behavior that can cause further problems in the future. You went through a big change in the last year and it put stress on you. In another year or so, you will face another change, and we want to be sure that you can cope with that. This is about overall behavior, not a certain defect. Do you understand?

RODERICK: I think so. But I still want to step back from this.

DR. BRAWNEY: Would you consider reducing the frequency of your sessions?

RODERICK: Fine.