"I don't see you as an enemy," House exclaimed, but even as the words were out of his mouth he realised how wrong he was. He threw his hands up and looked away.
Megan had been giving Cuddy an assessing look but when House spoke, she turned her attention to him. "You don't?" she pressed.
House looked at her sharply. He opened his mouth, ready to argue, but then looked away again with a relenting sigh. He remembered the time he'd confessed to Wilson that he didn't want to treat Cuddy like an enemy, the way he'd done to Stacy, and had told Wilson he was afraid he was doing the same thing. Just like he was doing now. He shrugged. "Maybe," he admitted in a murmur.
"Is Lisa your enemy or is she on your side, like we talked about?" Megan asked. It seemed like a stupidly simple question but the question wasn't asked for her benefit. It was for his benefit, to get him to talk his feelings out and to think rationally about his responses.
House refused to respond. He knew the answer. He didn't want to admit he was wrong - he'd done more than enough admitting of that in today's session.
When it became apparent House wasn't going to respond, Megan turned to Cuddy. "It probably seems a bit jolting to you to be experiencing Greg's rapid mood swings," she said. "Though, he's been unwell for a quite of a number of months, so perhaps you're used to them. I'm not sure how much you've read up on PTSD or how familiar you are with it as a doctor, but one of the major symptoms of PTSD is severe mood swings, along with heightened paranoia of others, struggles with relationships, major depression, physical symptoms such as jumpiness, nightmares..."
She ticked the symptoms off with her fingers as she spoke. "It's very difficult for a person suffering PTSD to control their reactions because the trauma that they've experienced has manifested in a way that affects their mental processing. Coupled with feelings of hopelessness and worthlessness that comes with depression..." She gestured to House. "This is largely why Greg reacts to you the way he does. And that's one of the things he and I are working on in therapy, with the aid of medication: so he can learn ways to better manage his mood and his responses to others, to cope and move past the trauma. Because while the trauma that happened to him is eight or more months in the past, for Greg it's still in the present."
She gave Cuddy a small, encouraging smile, hoping she'd understand what she was saying. "Obviously, it's your decision if you want to write it or not," she continued. "But I actually think writing that letter would be a good thing. It's good because you would have had time to think about what you want to say and you can say it without interruption, and it may actually help Greg understand your feelings if they're written down in concise order. There won't be any explosive emotions, no explosive arguments...
"I strongly urge you to reconsider my suggestion. It's obvious that this is affecting you, too, and you need to be able to work through it as well. The best way you can do that is to find a way to communicate with Greg, and if writing letters is the only way for now, then so be it. It's a start, just like you said."
no subject
Megan had been giving Cuddy an assessing look but when House spoke, she turned her attention to him. "You don't?" she pressed.
House looked at her sharply. He opened his mouth, ready to argue, but then looked away again with a relenting sigh. He remembered the time he'd confessed to Wilson that he didn't want to treat Cuddy like an enemy, the way he'd done to Stacy, and had told Wilson he was afraid he was doing the same thing. Just like he was doing now. He shrugged. "Maybe," he admitted in a murmur.
"Is Lisa your enemy or is she on your side, like we talked about?" Megan asked. It seemed like a stupidly simple question but the question wasn't asked for her benefit. It was for his benefit, to get him to talk his feelings out and to think rationally about his responses.
House refused to respond. He knew the answer. He didn't want to admit he was wrong - he'd done more than enough admitting of that in today's session.
When it became apparent House wasn't going to respond, Megan turned to Cuddy. "It probably seems a bit jolting to you to be experiencing Greg's rapid mood swings," she said. "Though, he's been unwell for a quite of a number of months, so perhaps you're used to them. I'm not sure how much you've read up on PTSD or how familiar you are with it as a doctor, but one of the major symptoms of PTSD is severe mood swings, along with heightened paranoia of others, struggles with relationships, major depression, physical symptoms such as jumpiness, nightmares..."
She ticked the symptoms off with her fingers as she spoke. "It's very difficult for a person suffering PTSD to control their reactions because the trauma that they've experienced has manifested in a way that affects their mental processing. Coupled with feelings of hopelessness and worthlessness that comes with depression..." She gestured to House. "This is largely why Greg reacts to you the way he does. And that's one of the things he and I are working on in therapy, with the aid of medication: so he can learn ways to better manage his mood and his responses to others, to cope and move past the trauma. Because while the trauma that happened to him is eight or more months in the past, for Greg it's still in the present."
She gave Cuddy a small, encouraging smile, hoping she'd understand what she was saying. "Obviously, it's your decision if you want to write it or not," she continued. "But I actually think writing that letter would be a good thing. It's good because you would have had time to think about what you want to say and you can say it without interruption, and it may actually help Greg understand your feelings if they're written down in concise order. There won't be any explosive emotions, no explosive arguments...
"I strongly urge you to reconsider my suggestion. It's obvious that this is affecting you, too, and you need to be able to work through it as well. The best way you can do that is to find a way to communicate with Greg, and if writing letters is the only way for now, then so be it. It's a start, just like you said."