And Then There Was Us

CHAPTER ELEVEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

BERTRAND

I was headed to my dietitian's clinic. This time I was driving on my own. I finally got that license. My appointment was around two PM. After that, I had a meeting with my therapist, that appointment was at four.

I really like the feeling of driving. It feels like free therapy.

Whenever I find myself stressed, nervous, or anxious I just go for a drive.
In the past three months, a lot has happened. After I got discharged from the hospital, I got sent home. I was delighted to be sent home and not to a mental hospital.

I also started going to therapy, again. After I got discharged I stopped therapy thinking that it's not important but with time I understood it's importance. Actually, therapy helped me a lot. That's where I learned that my body, in order to function properly I needed food. My body deserves food.

That's why, during my ED I was sleeping in every morning. Due to my ED, my body needed more sleep and since I wasn't eating my body didn't have energy.

The last three months have been good and bad. I didn't struggle with eating again.

I did skip meals though, nonetheless, with the help of my dietitian and my therapist I got through it all. Currently, I'm doing better than ever.

I was blasting Taylor Swift all the way, windows rolled enjoying the air brushing through my hair.

When I arrived I was greeted by the assistant Samantha. Samantha and I had a lot in common. She also struggled a lot with food and eating.

Samantha, however, didn't struggle with food or eating because of an ED, she was actually homeless and didn't have any money to her name. Due to her lack of liquidity, Samantha didn't eat. That's when Sandra, my dietitian, found her in the streets. Sandra is a really loving and caring person. She reminded me of Daisy in a way.

Sandra took Samantha under her wings. She gave her a job, a house and helped her with her recovery journey.
" good afternoon" Samantha said.
"Good afternoon Sam" I reply smiling.
"So, how's my favorite patient doing?" Sandra inquired.

" I bet you tell that to everyone, don't you?" I retort
"No just you." She said in response.
" Debatable" I reply.

"How we're the last two weeks? Did you skip any meals? How have you been feeling?" Sandra asked.

" I actually didn't. I ate three meals a day and on some days, occasionally, I had some snacks." I respond.
" That's wonderful to hear. I'm really proud." She asserted. " Can you take of your shoes off and step on the scale, please?" she added.

I follow her orders. I stepped on the scale and waited for the body scan to be done. Sandra gasped.
" Oh My God Berty. I'm so proud of you." I could tell she was starting to tear up. That's when I knew I had made it. I wasn't underweight anymore.
" I'm not underweight anymore" I screamed so hard that Sam thought something had happened.

"what's going on? Is everything fine" Sam asked weirdly.

I run up to her and scream. " I'm not underweight anymore." I start jumping up and down as I start to tear up.
"Okay now. Calm down, Berty. Sit back down. We're not done yet. Just because you're not underweight doesn't mean that we're done."

REALITY CHECK.

I finished my appointment and then headed over to Chipotle where I got a chicken burrito with some chips on the side. It was three-thirty at that point. I started heading to my next arrangement, therapy, it was about a twenty minutes drive.

My therapist, David, was such a nice guy. He was a tall black man, really fit. He was married and had a one-year-old named "Sophie." David was such a help during this journey. Even though Sandra delivered a lot of help that I'm so thankful for, David was the reason I made a lot of progress. I was so happy to have David as my therapist. As a matter of fact everyone needs a David in their lives.

"Good morning Berty. What's the reason behind that big smile of yours?" He inquired
" Well, I was just at my dietitian and I found out that I'm no longer underweight."

"That's amazing news Bertrand. I'm really proud of you. You accomplished a lot that showcases how interested and motivated you are. I'm so happy for you." He retorts.

I finished up with my therapist and headed to the grocery store. I needed to get some ingredients that I need to make dinner since Eleanor was coming over tonight. It was our "study date" night. I bought some cheese, pepperonis and pizza sauce.
It was pizza night.