What We Deserve

Part 21: A Change Of Pace

If you would have told me years ago I was going to be residing in a psychiatrist placement home with five other people, I would've called you a daft numpty and been on my way to the pub.

However- after fully experiencing such an...odd environment for the last few days, I must say...maybe I belong here.

Penny insisted I try to work solely on my own courses of treatment in quiet areas of the home instead of joining the other five in their day to day activities which seemed less like treatments and more like...babysitting.

However, I found myself engulfed in doing the doctor thing. Trying to help treat them instead of working on my own issues.

For example- the other day, I sat and observed everyone in the garden as they worked. The information I gathered was rather...peculiarly intriguing to me.

For starters, June- who Pence stated enjoyed coloring and tormenting Doc- is actually a very classic case of RAD. Reactive Attatchment Disorder- in which it is suggested her parental figures neglected her as a child and therefore any proper form of guardian is subjected to her immense displays of aggression during directives, she doesn't bond or connect well with anyone and is very manipulative for no other reason than to see if she can get away with it. There are many more forms she has yet to display- but she is a fine early twenties example of RAD product.

Doc- or Tic Toc- as they refer to him was once a doctor as well. He in fact does not have Tourette's, but Tardive Dyskinesia. Tourette's syndrome is genetically based and causes tics and um other involuntary movements or verbal outbursts. Holding in their tics cans be painful and certain stressors or over stimulation can exacerbate them. When looking at Tardive Dyskinesia, it is a drug induced tic disorder that develops from the drugs used to treat other mental disorders. Doc was diagnosed with Delusional disorder halfway through his residency at university. To treat it, his doctors put him on a dopamine-receptor blocker medication and though it quelled most of his delusions, it sadly is causing him involuntary movements such as the finger tapping and sometimes the repetitive circles he does. His verbal repetition is the psychosis itself. Causing him to hear and see things and act in a child like state for half the day. He has lucid moments- which is how I learned most of this information, but once the lucidity is gone- he's back to minding his own business and repeating things or tapping and twitching uncontrollably. And now, he most recently found out through Parnell and other doctors he sees outside the facility- that he has the beginning stages of early onset Dementia. Which is just terrible.

Rosa suffered from selective mutism brought on by PTSD of being at the Manchester Arena Bombing back in 2017. The only way she speaks is when she takes part in music therapy alone- with just Parnell inside. She doesn't speak to anyone and will very rarely smile or go out of her way to acknowledge any of the other persons around. It's sad and I wish there was someway I could help her, but I've yet to figure it out.

David the Scot- is in fact Bipolar with Schizoaffective disorder. Both rely heavily on mood changes and yet instead of what we normally think of when we think schizophrenia, where people may not be aware of their psychosis or hallucinations- Schizoaffective tend to be more mood based and mentally are more aware of their symptoms. David was really just playing a game when I arrived- telling me his 'time lord' break- when according Pence- David really just snapped about being laid off and got overly verbal and slightly physical with some people he worked with. They gave him the ultimatum of get it treated better or become jobless and essentially homeless, since his own landlord was having issues with his manic episodes-not understanding that David has different needs and finds it harder to find ways of expressing himself appropriately. However, in watching him, I'm a tad curious if they didn't misdiagnose him because he does at times seem to be having hallucinations and wangs on about his 'trips' and though this facility does use LSD and THC treatments neither are the cause for the lonely Time Lord's adventures.