Disclaimer: I did not invent Friends and I do not own them, and if i did do you think the show ever would have stopped? NO!


"Mommy?" Ten year old Ericka said into the school office phone.

"What, honey? Do you need something?" Monica's motherly tone answered.

"Can you pick me up?" Ericka asked in a tiny voice.

"Yeah of course, why?"

"I feel tired and sick."

"Okay, I'll be there in less than five minutes."

Ericka took a seat on the nurse's bench. The nurse sat on her computer typing away, oblivious to the little girl's misery. Ericka had entered the day with a sinking feeling that she may not make it through. These calls to her mom around lunchtime had become increasingly more frequent over the last few weeks. Her doctor said she wasn't due for a physical for another few months, and the insurance wouldn't cover a doctor visit unless there was actually something wrong, so Monica had waited until now to schedule an appointment.

The lady at the computer answered her ringing phone. She began talking away with a friend, still barely noticing Ericka. Finally, Monica ducked her head into the nurse's office. She saw Ericka and smiled. Ericka smiled weakly back. Her mother always made Ericka feel better. Monica walked swiftly over to Ericka and picked her up with one arm. Monica signed Ericka out and carried her to the car. She lay her down in the backseat and buckled her in.

"So what's wrong, honey? Does anything hurt?"

"My head, a little. But mostly I feel really tired and dizzy."

"Okay, honey, I know you're tired, but I scheduled a doctor's appointment for after school today. They said they could take you earlier if I wanted, so we're headed there now, okay?" Monica asked pulling out of the school parking lot and driving away.

"Okay." Ericka usually didn't like doctors. They stuck you with stuff and made you gag with ice-pop sticks. But Ericka knew she was sick and if a doctor could make her feel better, then she wanted one.

They pulled up to the doctor's office. Monica unbuckled Ericka and picked her up. "Do you want to walk?"

Ericka shook her head and rested it back on her mom's shoulder. Ericka was very small and thin for her age. Monica was getting a little worried.

They walked up the sidewalk to the door and went inside. Monica signed Ericka in and sat down. There was only one other person in the waiting room, and since she looked like a mom, and this was a pediatrician's office, Monica had to assume that her child was with the doctor.

They called Ericka's name as a little girl of around Ericka's age walked out.

Monica held Ericka's hand as they walked through the door and into the wide hallway. The nurse asked Ericka to remove her shoes and step onto the scale. She measured Ericka's height next.

"Hmm," the nurse said. "4'1" and only 65 pounds? Are you eating enough?"

"I don't like food," Ericka said softly.

"Not even ice cream?"

"No, it's too sweet. I don't like sweet stuff. Or eating."

"Is there anything else you don't like?"

"Sometimes the smell of cooking food makes my head hurt."

"Okay. We'll get you in to see the doctor now. Tell her all the stuff you told me."

She led Ericka and Monica into a small exam room. The doctor knocked once and came in. She helped Ericka climb up onto the high hospital bed.

"Okay, Ericka, what seems to be the problem?" Asked Kathleen Melbourne.

"I'm tired all the time and I don't like eating." Ericka was staring at the olive and gray checkered tile floor.

"Okay. Anything else?"

"I hate the smell of food and when I touch something rough or scratchy, it makes my whole body tingle and I can't focus."

"Alright Ericka, it sounds like you may have something called Sensory Processing Disorder. It's a disorder where the senses, like smell and touch, aren't processed correctly in the brain. It's different for every child who has it. There is no known treatment, but I am going to have you see a therapist specializing in SPD, to make sure that my diagnosis is correct, and to help you deal with it, okay?"

"Okay."

"Wait, what about her being tired and dizzy all the time?" Monica asked.

"Well, I'm going to run some blood tests to check thyroid activity, but it could just be undernourishment." Seeing the look on Monica's face, that I-am-a-horrible-mother look, told the doctor that she should keep going. "Don't worry," She added. "This isn't your fault. There's nothing harder than trying to cook or supply for a child that doesn't want to eat. I suggest trying to find some food that she DOES want to eat."

"Okay, thank you, doctor."

"I am going to write up a lab slip for the tests. The lab is just up the street, and it's a non-fasting test, you you can go ahead and do it as soon as you get out of here. I'll be right back." The doctor left the room, leaving Ericka and her mom in silence.

Both were wondering what was going to happen next. Was Ericka going to be okay?