Chapter 85

MELISSA'S POV
Therapy? For a 9 year old? I exchanged glances with Daniel as we sat in the doctor's office waiting to get Stacey's discharge form. It had been two hours after Jay's call came in and the doctor had said Stacey was fine and free to go home. What was this mention of therapy?
'Its just a suggestion, Mrs Duke. Your child is suffering from PTSD, her reaction earlier was due to shock" the doctor said pointedly as he scribbled on the discharge form. I wasn't understanding the message he was putting across,
'You're saying she fainted out of shock?" I asked with yet another glance at Daniel who squeezed my hand reassuringly. I knew the whole encounter with Ken would leave it's mark on the kids but this much? I wasn't expecting it at all.
The doctor was actually patient with us, 'It's just a suggestion, like I said. It will help her in the long run, it's best you take the necessary steps before she gets older" he pointed out. 'Trauma based disorders ruin more lives than you can imagine"
Trauma based disorders. Post traumatic stress disorder. All these for a child of 9, all because she had a dead beat harassing asshole for a father. My children deserved better, I deserved better.
Daniel sensed my disengagement and turned the doctor, 'How do we go about the whole process?" He asked with a slight edge to his voice. He was enjoying the whole conversation as much as I was.
'I could give you a few recommendations but I'd suggest you do it quickly. Traumatic disorders always finds a way to stick themselves to their victim without their knowledge and the consequences are sometimes worse than others"
'Consequences? Like what are we talking about exactly?"
'PTSD usually evolves into more profound disorders like ADHD, DID, or even worse, most times, it actually turns into OCD. You just have to know when and how to tackle it before it gets to that stage"
'There isn't any other option asides therapy?"
'On rare occasions, the patient ends up outgrowing it or better still, it just stops on it own with maybe care and the right amount of attention but in your daughter's case, it has latched onto her badly. It would be bad for her heart if she keeps having faint spells like this, so I'd suggest you go ahead with therapy"
'Is there anyone you could recommend for us?"
'As a matter of fact, yes"
I watched the exchange between Daniel and the doctor silently with my mind both in the room and outside it. Amber had told me the consequences of sticking to Ken could end up not being my cross to carry but I had waved it off. I had thought, how bad could it be? But as I watched the doctor hand the therapist's pamphlet to Daniel, I knew who had ended up carrying my cross.
'You can call with my name and fix an appointment. She's very nice, your kid would feel safe with her" The doctor sounded reassuring and flashed me a smile. 'You're going to get through this, Mrs Duke. Your daughter is a strong little girl, she'll get through it" I tried to place his words in my subconscious, she was going to be fine, right?
Daniel acted more like the parent than me, 'Thank you so much for your help, doctor. We'll place the call tonight so we can see if an appointment would be possible tomorrow" he said as he bowed slightly while he shook the doctor's hand.
The discharge form had been signed and we proceeded to the ICU to get my daughter out of the hospital and away from the death like feeling that accompanied it. I still couldn't stop replaying what the doctor had said as I walked into the room where Stacey was.
My shy but bright little girl had a gloom look on her face, she looked pale and fragile. I was glad she could muster up a smile as she saw me but it wasn't enough to melt the block of pain that had welled up in my heart. If only I could take a trip back in time, I would have stopped myself from falling in love with the same guy my best friend had warned me about.
Love comes in diverse ways and with diverse impacts but maybe I had been blinded by a life that was safe and perfect or I had just been too scared to aim for something other than what I had gotten already. Either ways, I had grown to regret the decision I made the night I found out I was pregnant for Ken Duke.
'I'm fine mum, everything is alright" Stacey's voice brought tears to my eyes as I held on to her and wept. Children really suffered the consequences of their parents actions, it had happened to me whole I was growing up and as much as I had told myself it wouldn't get a repetition in my life, the exact same thing had happened to my daughter.
I allowed Daniel lead me out of the room with Stacey holding on to my hand, towards the waiting room where everyone was anxiously waiting for any news at all. Ken had dozed off on Jay's laps and Amber was resting on one shoulder while Maddie used the other shoulder as she slept also.
My heart felt warm as I took the picture in, smiling briefly I thought about how the past had invaded the present no doubt, but it had done so in a totally different light and it was way more than I could have prayed for.
Glancing from the little gathering in the waiting room to Daniel holding on tightly to my hand as I rested on him and then to Frankie who had griped Stacey in a huge hug as soon as he saw her walk into the room, I said a quick prayer in my heart.
A prayer for my daughter, for my best friend, for our children, for our past that had made it way back to our present and made it brighter and lastly, for the strength to hold on long enough for everything to get better. A war was coming and I needed the strength to see it through.