The Wicked Doctor

47: The Limbic System (Revised)

The limbic system, also known as the paleomammalian cortex, is a set of brain structures located on both sides of the thalamus, immediately beneath the medial temporal lobe of the cerebrum primarily in the forebrain. It supports a variety of functions including emotion, behavior, motivation, long-term memory, and olfaction. Emotional life is largely housed in the limbic system, and it critically aids the formation of memories.With a primordial structure, the limbic system is involved in lower order emotional processing of input from sensory systems and consists of the amygdaloid nuclear complex (amygdala), mammillary bodies, stria medullaris, central gray and dorsal and ventral nuclei of Gudden. You can find the structures of the limbic system buried deep within the brain, underneath the and above the brainstem. The thalamus, hypothalamus (production of important hormones and regulation of thirst, hunger, mood etc) and basal ganglia (reward processing, habit formation, movement and learning) are also involved in the actions of the limbic system, but two of the major structures are the hippocampus and the amygdala.

________________________________________

I went home to Terrence.

I didn't tell him I would come home so I don't really expect him to be here today. Umuwi ako dahil sigurado akong ako lamang ang tatao dito sa mga susunod na araw lalo na't may isa pa naman siyang bahay na inuuwian at may asawa siyang buntis na naghihintay sa kanya.

Pathetic.

"Welcome home." I told myself. The whole house was quiet. I think it would mostly be this way now since he has his priority, the woman he married and the unborn child he made with her. Kahit pa man buntis ako sa anak rin niya, I will never be the priority.

I will never beg for attention. I will never ask for his time. I will never stoop low just to ask for a little bit of affection. Not anymore. I told myself before that I will never let go unless he does first. But everything has changed when I found out that I am carrying his child.

He deserves to know about the life that I created with him but whatever he does and however he reacts is out of my grasp. Sasabihin ko na sa kanyang buntis ako pero nasa kanya na kung gusto niyang makihati sa responsibilidad ng pagiging magulang sa anak namin o hindi.

This little life inside of me was half me and half Terrence and he has the right to know about its existence. The only question is he would acknowledge it now that he has a lot going on in his life.

Umakyat ako patungo sa kwarto namin at nagulat ako nang makita ko siyang nakahiga sa kama. He shot up and sat on the bed as soon as he heard the door knob click when I closed the door. His eyes were wide and approached me as fast as his reflexes allowed him. He embraced me tightly and kissed the top of my head. I stayed on my place and just sighed on his chest with my hands lying lazily on my sides, refusing to hug him back. He held me at arms length with hands on my shoulders as he stared at my face. I just gave him meaningful smile.

This is it.

I went straight to the closet to take some clothes before going to the bathroom to freshen up. Nang matapos akong maligo, nadatnan ko lang siya sa gilid ng kama at nakatingin sa sahig. He opened his arms as he saw me coming and motioned for me to lay down beside him. Humiga lang kami sa kama nang tahimik. We laid on the bed as he spooned me while we were facing the balcony door.

"I missed you."

"I missed you too."

"Just hold on, An. Hold on. I'll get us both out of this mess."