white wine and cigarettes | jason todd
003 | coping skills
in this shirt | the irrepressibles

Jason didn't reach out at all that week. It didn't surprise Macy, he was probably busy or just too afraid to not like most of her patients. She didn't see him until Thursday night when he startled her.

"What are you looking for doc?" Jason spoke before sitting on one of Macy's chairs in her office.

Macy jumped, being lost in thought as she looked over Jason's file assuming he would be coming over tonight. "Jesus, you scared me Jason." Macy clutched her chest in fright.

"Sorry, Macy, I brought some more wine and cigarettes. I figured we-I would need it." Jason gestured to the bottle of wine and new packs of cigarettes that were placed on the table.

"Thank you, I appreciate the thought." Macy said before grabbing herself a glass and poured some wine before doing the same for Jason. "Are you okay with beginning the session with where we left last session at?" Macy questioned, receiving a nod from Jason.

"Last session we were discussing your tendency to have fear induced outbursts that come across as misdirected anger, and you agreed to this, correct?"

"Yeah, sounds about right."

"Instead of having those outbursts, what you should really do is deescalate the situation by walking away, and once you calmed down go back and express your concerns without ruining any relationships or coming across as angry. Is this something you would be willing to try? Me and you can work on coping skills as we dive deeper into your trauma that may help during these situations but right now this is something that I think is more manageable for you." Macy explained.

"I-I think I can try this, the only problem is Batman isn't really a guy you can just walk away from." Jason attempted to explain.

"Okay, how about we go over some coping skills right now, that can work in place of you walking away if you aren't capable of doing that. Some coping skills are easy like counting down from a hundred in different ways, some people count down from fives, sevens, nines. It can easily distract you causing you to be more focused on that instead of what's around you. This one somewhat goes along with another coping skill where you count to a number of your choice, calming yourself before speaking. It's pretty self-explanatory." Jason liked those two, they seemed easy enough.

"What are the others?" He asked.

"There is focused breathing where you concentrate on your breathing. When you're angry or anxious your breathing changes. It becomes more shallow when angry, and rapid, when anxious, focusing on your breathing calms you down because you're trying to keep it steady. This is a good skill to have if you experience panic attacks. Have you ever had a panic attack?" Macy felt as if she had to ask that question even though she felt as if she knew the answer.

"A few times, a couple recent ones." Jason admits before drinking wine.

"Thank you for being honest. Another coping skill would be focusing on something positive. Imaging yourself in a different place could be something you could do. Remembering a positive memory is another thing. Just imagining or remembering something positive to calm yourself down. If you remember or imagine something negative it's not going to help you at all."

"I understand, so either count to a number or count down from a number before speaking, remember something good, and focus on my breathing. Got it." Jason listed the shorter versions of what Macy was saying. Macy sipped her wine, nodding her head as Jason spoke making sure he understood what she said. Thankfully he did, she didn't really feel like explaining it all over again.

"Pretty much. How about we begin to dive into your trauma?"

"I'm an open book, Macy, have at me." Jason felt vulnerable, something that only these sessions made him feel.

"In our first session you briefly mentioned your childhood. How about we start there. However, before we do I want to warn you that our sessions will reopen wounds you think would have healed by themselves. It may cause you distress which is why I shared those coping skills and if at any point you need me I will be here every night if you wanted to stop by something before Thursday, and I'm just a phone call or text away." Macy warned.

"I think I can manage Macy but thanks for the heads up."

"Then let's begin Jason," Macy started.