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She glanced at the wall behind me, then sighed. “We’re about to the end of our session, but I do want to see you once a week for a little while, if you think you can manage that with your school schedule. I think we have a lot to unpack. You’re definitely experiencing some post-traumatic stress from your assault, but I think it might go even further back than that. I can’t say this with certainty because your mom isn’t my patient, but from what you’ve told me, she exhibits a lot of traits of narcissistic personality disorder. And I think you’re dealing with some post-traumatic stress from her abuse as well, plus the trauma of the continued bullying and harassment you’re being subjected to.”
My eyes went wide as I processed what she’d just said. I already knew that I had PTSD from my assault, but I’d never even thought about the fact that the way my mom treated me had left its own scars. Scars that went even deeper and had been there even longer.
I nodded. “Is it okay if we keep the four-thirty time? That way I don’t have to worry about missing my appointment if there’s a traffic jam getting out of the school parking lot.”
“That works great for me. Are Wednesdays okay for you?”
“Yeah, Wednesday’s great. I have A/V Club on Tuesdays and Thursdays, so then I don’t have to miss that.”
“Oh, yeah? You make movies?”
“Mm-hmm,” I murmured self-consciously. “I’ve, um…I’ve actually started filming a sort-of documentary about what happened to me and the process I’m going through now after reporting it.”
That made Christine smile. “I think that’s an amazing idea. I’m sure you’ve already found this, but there’s power in speaking your truth. And making a documentary is a way for you to speak your truth exactly the way you want it to be heard.”
“That’s what I thought,” I agreed.
“So, I’ll put you in for next Wednesday at four-thirty. And I’m also going to make a recommendation to the medical doctor on staff in this practice to prescribe a low-dose anxiety medication for you. You don’t have to take it unless you feel you need it, but a common symptom of post-traumatic stress is anxiety attacks, so I want to make sure you have something to take if that happens.”
“Okay. Thanks,” I said, letting out a long exhale as I stood up. “I’ll see you next week.”
