Chapter 5: Therapy II: Bluey
"But I don't want to go to Dr. Ted's!" Bluey shouted as Bandit dragged her through the lobby of the medical building.
"I understand that mate, but you have an appointment."
"But I was just here a few days ago!" Bluey stomped her feet as her father guided her into the elevator that took them to the 8th floor.
"Yes, but considering you almost broke a boy's muzzle at school on your first day back, I think you need to have a little chat with him." Bandit stated. According to Calypso a new boy had made fun of her for being a daddy's girl and had ended up getting more than he'd bargained for. Bandit growled slightly at the memory of having to apologize to the boy's mother and offer to cover any expenses for his care, It was about the only thing that kept Bluey from being expelled.
"He had it coming." Bluey grumbled.
"Bluey, he was a year 1." Bandit sighed.
"So? He was still a cunt." She crossed her arms, mad at missing an afternoon of doing nothing at home.
Bandit's eyes shot wide at the use of the word. "Excuse me? He was a what?"
Bluey tensed, knowing she shouldn't've used the word. Granted, she'd heard plenty of grownups use it, but from what she knew it wasn't something nice, even if sometimes it sounded like it was a joke when people said it. No, I meant it. She doubled down. "I said he was a cunt."
"Bluey Christine Heeler, that is not something we say in our family."
Bluey huffed. "Uncle Rad said it at our last cookout."
Bandit rolled his eyes, "Your Uncle Rad doesn't count." Especially when he's absolutely pissed after having enough grog for all the rest of us adults put together.
The elevator dinged as the doors started to open.
"Come on, you have some talking to do."
***BCH***
"Bluey, it's nice to see you again, although your father did mention that there is a reason why we're meeting today." Ted stated, adjusting his glasses.
Bluey rolled her eyes, "Yeah. I guess."
"He said that you got into a fight with a boy at school, and apparently you had to be pulled off of him by three of your classmates."
"Wasn't much of a fight." Bluey muttered.
Ted cocked an eyebrow, "Either way, would it be accurate to say that you ended up using physical force against him?"
She nodded, refusing to meet his eyes.
"Can you tell me why you decided to attack him?"
"I felt like it."
Ted jotted a few notes on his pad before he continued questioning. "Can you explain what you mean by 'I felt like it'? Do you mean that you felt like you had to do it? Or do you mean that because of your emotions you did it? Or something else?"
Bluey was quiet a minute before she responded, "I guess both. He was being a jerk and he made fun of me because Dad dropped me off and he hugged me and said he wanted it to be a good day because it was my first day back at school. So when Augie, which is a stupid name anyway, said that stuff it made me feel angry and upset and like I missed mum because he kept saying that I was a daddy's girl and I used to be my mum's girl too, and then I guess I decided I wanted to hit him. So I did. I didn't even realize I was still hitting him until Coco and Snickers and Mackenzie pulled me off him."
Bluey's eyes started watering as she pulled her feet up into the chair. "I wish I didn't have any feelings at all, then I wouldn't keep making these stupid mistakes and that way I wouldn't have to miss mum all the time and dad wouldn't get all disappointed in me for getting in trouble or getting angry."
"Bluey, your emotions are important. Right now you're feeling some big feelings, feelings that even grownups struggle with." Ted sighed. "Do you remember some of the strategies we talked about last time?"
"Belly breaths and the 5 countdown."
"Good. Did you try either of those when Augie was making fun of you?"
"No. I tried to go away, but he wouldn't stop bothering me."
"That's okay; sometimes it can be hard to remember them when things are happening. Let's do a bit of practice with them right now, so if you have to use them in the future it'll be easier for you. Let's do our 5 countdown first."
"Okay. Um, five things I can see-I can see you, that chair, some toys in the corner, the floor, and your desk. Four things I can touch-I can touch my fur, this chair, the wall behind me, and the table. Three things I can hear-I can hear my voice, the air conditioner, and the lady at the desk typing something. Two things I can smell-I can smell your coffee and the plant on the window. One thing I can taste-my tongue? I'm not really eating anything right now." Bluey exhaled slowly as she completed her list.
"Do you feel a bit better?"
"Yeah, I do."
"Good. Remember, doing that can help you when you start to feel overwhelmed. Let's do some belly breaths now." Ted held up his paw, "In, two, three four… Hold, two, three, four… Out, two, three, four…" He paused. "Feel your belly rising and falling as you breathe in and out. Let's do two more of those…"
A minute later Bluey was feeling the most calm she had felt in days. "Thanks Mr. Dr. Ted."
He smiled, "You're welcome Bluey, my pleasure. Remember, when you feel those big strong feelings we can use these skills to help manage them, that way you don't lose control." He paused, "It can also help to have someone to talk to about how you feel. Do you ever tell anyone how you feel?"
"My teacher sometimes used to have us tell them, but I'm not in Miss Calypso's class anymore."
"Did you like talking about your feelings?"
"I guess, sometimes."
"Do you think you could try talking about them with your family?"
"Why?" Bluey asked, a surprised look crossing her face.
"Because I bet your dad and sister and feeling a lot of the same things you are, even if they're showing it different ways. If they know how you're feeling, I bet they can try and help you feel better."
Bluey looked down, "Why would Dad or Bingo want to hear how I'm feeling? They have enough problems without me talking about how I feel."
"Bluey, your family loves you a lot, and I know they want to make sure you're okay. And if you aren't feeling okay they'll want to try their best to make you feel better."
"Alright, I guess I can try it."
"Good." Ted smiled.
***BCH***
"Dad, Mr. Dr. Ted says I should talk to you and Bingo about my feelings." Bluey shared after dinner that evening.
"Okay. I think that's a good idea." Bandit said as he started the dishwasher. He glanced at the empty jars of pasta sauce and got an idea. "Go get your sister and have her come here, I have an idea to share with you two."
Bluey went to the girls' room and got Bingo, soon the two were back in the dining room. Bandit was standing at the end of the table with the two empty jars.
"Dad, what are the jars for?" Bingo asked, looking at the two containers on the table.
"We're going to start two feelings jars. One for bad feelings and one for good. Every day we can write down all the good and bad things that happened to us and we can think about how they made us feel. For the bad ones we can talk about why we felt bad."
"But sometimes I don't know why I feel mad or sad." Bingo said. "I just feel that way and I don't know what to do."
Bluey looked at her sister, surprised at the admission.
"Sometimes there isn't a reason we can think of, and that's okay." Bandit said. "Sometimes we just feel things that have been stuck inside us for a while."
"And that's okay?" Bluey asked.
"It's normal. Feelings are complicated; even I don't understand how I feel all the time." Bandit admitted.
"For real life?"
"For real life." Bandit replied. "For the good feelings we can celebrate why we felt good, and we can save them up, so that if we feel bad we can remember the good things."
"Can I write something for the feelings jar now?" Bluey asked.
"Sure. Here, let me get some paper first."
A few minutes later the two jars were on the counter of the apartment's kitchen. One with a frowning face and the other with a smiling face. Bluey dropped a piece of paper into the smiling jar.
"Well, aren't you going to read it?" She asked.
Bandit pulled it out and read, "Dad and Bingo and me had a nice talk about feelings."
He smiled, "Bluey, remember, we're here for each other. If you ever need me to talk about something, I promise I'll do my best." He hugged his two girls, and for the first time in weeks they giggled as he held them tightly.
"Thanks dad." Bluey said, her tail wagging.
"Thanks dad." Bingo echoed, hugging tightly as her own tail started to wiggle.
