Tag: psychiatry

  • FSW: On the Couch

    (Trevor lies on a couch, while behind him Mary sits in a chair taking notes. She is wearing a suit and glasses. Her hair is in a bun held together with a pencil.)

    MARY
    How are you feeling today, Trevor?

    TREVOR
    I’m okay. A little sluggish. Didn’t get a good night’s sleep.

    MARY
    Yes?

    TREVOR
    Restless. My dreams were too vivid, I think. Probably shouldn’t have had that burrito before bed.

    MARY
    Tell me about the burrito.

    TREVOR
    You don’t want to hear about the dreams?

    MARY
    I haven’t had breakfast yet. (BEAT) And sometimes a burrito is just a burrito.

    (They both chuckle at her bad joke.)

    Alright. Tell me about your dreams.

    TREVOR
    They started out like they always do. I was thirteen and mowing the lawn. It’s July and I’m working up quite a sweat. Now, our yard was pretty small, maybe a quarter-acre of grass to mow, but in my dream it’s this huge expanse. It’s at least three, four acres. And it feels like I’m pushing uphill in both directions.

    MARY
    (Furiously scribbling notes) Mmmhmm…

    TREVOR
    I keep thinking I’m going to run out of gas and need to fill up the tank, but it keeps going. Engine sputters a few times, but it just keeps running. The sun’s beating down and I’m sweating a ton.

    MARY
    What are you wearing?

    TREVOR
    Wearing? I guess I’m in shorts. I’ve never thought about…no, wait…I’m wearing my uniform from my first job.

    MARY
    What job is that?

    TREVOR
    I was the guy in the El Pollo Loco costume who held the sign down by the road. Terrible job. I lasted a month. I think that was a record. That costume smelled like cigarettes and puke.

    MARY
    So you’re mowing the lawn in the costume. Do you have on the chicken head?

    TREVOR
    No. Just the rest of it. The feet are huge, too.

    MARY
    (More energetic notetaking) Mmmm…

    TREVOR
    And then suddenly, I find myself lying by a pool.

    MARY
    Are you alone?

    TREVOR
    My mother’s there, feeding me grapes. It’s kind of weird.

    MARY
    Are you still in your costume?

    TREVOR
    No. I’m in swim trunks. And you’re there, too, painting my toenails.

    MARY
    (Notes) I’m there? Hmm. What are your mother and I wearing?

    TREVOR
    She’s in one of those old-timey swimsuits. You’re dressed like you are now. Suit, hair up, glasses.

    MARY
    Very interesting —

    TREVOR
    — I love you, Mary.

    MARY
    No, no, no. You’re just projecting your feelings onto me.

    TREVOR
    No, Mary, really I do.

    MARY
    (More notes) Mmmhmm. (BEAT) Tell me more about your mother. How does it make you feel when she feeds you these grapes.

    TREVOR
    I guess it makes me feel good. I was hot and thirsty, and the grapes are cool and moist in my mouth.

    MARY
    And what do you think the grapes represent?

    TREVOR
    Represent? I don’t know.

    MARY
    Okay, we’ll get back to that. Let’s move on to something else. Last time you said you were having some performance issues. How is that going?

    TREVOR
    I, I just can’t get excited anymore.

    MARY
    Does anything excite you? Any fantasies?

    TREVOR
    Um, this is kind of hard to say…

    MARY
    This is a safe place, Trevor. You can say anything in here.

    TREVOR
    When I woke up from the dream I was pretty excited.

    (Mary flips pages, she’s taking so many notes now. Her pencil breaks and she pulls the one out of her hair to continue unabated. Her hair falls around her shoulders.)

    MARY
    I think we’re about to have a breakthrough–

    (The door opens and Sally, a teenage girl, comes in.)

    SALLY
    Mom? There’s a call for you from the hospital. Something about seizures, or something? One of your patients.

    MARY
    (Getting up) Thanks, Sally.

    SALLY
    Dad? Can I borrow the car tonight?

    BLACKOUT