Empathy

I was in a consult today whereby the parents were told they could expect their child to be in therapy for many years. It wasn't a quick fix, and the road ahead was long. Severe disorder, may not be completely resolved. And that was the truth as far as today could tell. And the mum started to cry. This is not the first time I've been involved in a case whereby a less than preferred prognosis was given and there were tears, but at some degree this was my first case whereby I play a significant role. I feel that responsibility as least. Today was preceded by the few years in which this battle has been fought, since birth. And I recently joined in. It's frustrating not being able to provide a cure. It's even more frustrating for the child, frustrating for a parent not being able to solve and alleviate the child's frustration. And even more frustrating knowing that the child understand what's wrong and is constantly affected by it at such an early age.

And then I got an email that a colleague's mum had passed away. A colleague not so far off in age from my own. I realized that times have indeed changed. It used to be grandparents that passed away, now it's parents. Friends don't live with their parents, they live on their own, independent decision makers.