Character Work: An Exercise.

Patient with Depressed/Suicidal Symptoms

You are a 25-35 year old male or female. You have no personal physician, but have walked into a medical clinic recommended by a friend. You begin by stating your reason for coming to the clinic (chief complaint), "I'm not feeling quite right. I'm not really sure what's wrong."

Over the past several weeks you have become increasingly preoccupied with the idea of killing yourself. You have been looking into your medicine cabinet and eyeing the bottle of Tylenol, which you think would kill you if you took the whole thing. You would figure you would wash it down with alcohol (in whatever form you prefer), and then drink yourself into sleep/oblivion (i.e. you have a PLAN) - you've actually found yourself standing at the medicine cabinet with the bottle of Tylenol in your hand, but stopped short.) You are depressed and in emotional pain to the extent that thinking about ending it all represents an option available to you that would put an end to your suffering. This plan, in an odd way, gives you the feeling of some control.

Past Psychiatric History

You took an overdose (three tablets of Valium 5mg), half-heartedly, while drunk during your freshman year in college. You had felt overwhelmed during your first semester exams. The Valium has been prescribed for you at the student health service for insomnia. The result of this episode was that you slept through the dreaded exam,

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