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Post by Michael Blackwood-Hardt on Apr 12, 2010 19:43:56 GMT -5
"What?" Michael asked, confused, before he came over and sat by Dare. "He's been losing weight, yes, but you're only anorexic if you think you're overweight, right?" He didn't know much about the disease, but everything he did know was centered around the person believing they were overweight even when they weren't, and purposefully starving themselves to fix that. Just losing weight wasn't anorexia, was it?
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Post by Katia Medina on Apr 12, 2010 19:57:49 GMT -5
"His tests do not lie. His blood pressure is dangerously low, as is his heart rate and body temperature. His weight is well below the range he should be in, and when I ran more advanced tests his body is showing signs of malnutrition. He has not been getting enough calories. Dare himself told me he was getting dizzy, sick if he ate more than a little bit, and could not sleep. All point to anorexia, especially since he told me it's been months that his sleep has been interrupted."
How it connected to non-weight related issues was different. "Anorexia is normally weight conscious related. In rarer cases it can be cause by a stressor or traumatic event that someone cannot control. These cases people may not know they are sick, rather they are just trying to control something in their lives. Food is often the easiest thing to control."
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Post by Dare Blackwood-Hardt on Apr 12, 2010 20:04:47 GMT -5
Dare reached for Michael's hand as soon as it was close enough. He wanted to argue, but it was hard to form an argument. His mind just flew back to that first time Ivy had brought him food. What if she'd been trying to poison him? He'd refused it, and he'd refused every bit of food or drink she'd offered him the entire week he'd been there. His jaw tensed, his gaze dropped, and he was silent.
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Post by Michael Blackwood-Hardt on Apr 12, 2010 20:19:23 GMT -5
Michael threaded his fingers through Dare's as he listened to what Katia was saying. Still, anorexia just seemed too extreme. "So it's not really anorexia," he tried. "He's stressed out and losing weight." It was hard to find any connection between losing weight over stress and starving to lose it on purpose. He looked over at Dare, wondering why they hadn't looked for a fix for this sooner.
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Post by Katia Medina on Apr 12, 2010 20:30:48 GMT -5
"No. It still is." Katia sighed, "it is hard to explain. The amount of weight lost, compared to previous records of his weight. The symptoms, the level of malnutrition on the tests. It has been months, months in which Dare's body has been telling him it was sick. He is starving his body. It is not a virus, a worm, or anything like that. Stress does not stop us from eating. Not on this basis. I am not a counselor or a psychologist. All I know is the facts of the test. The same results that are equivalent to an anorexic. His bone mass is deteriorating. Much longer and he might develop arthritis."
She sighed, feeling that what she was saying wasn't getting through. It was hard to explain. "Even people who are anorexic eat. They eat less than they should, most are obsessed with calories and such. But some, stop eating because something hurt them. They intend to start eating again, but never eat quite enough. They know they should eat more, but they've trained their bodies not to be hungry. The smell or sight of food might make them sick, and it only enforces the pattern. He may not have intended to be anorexic, but the pattern is the same."
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Post by Dare Blackwood-Hardt on Apr 12, 2010 21:21:25 GMT -5
Dare squeezed Michael's hand lightly, the only sign he could show that any of this was affecting him. Otherwise his head was down and his colorful hair shielded the pensive look on his face. He'd stopped eating because he was afraid of being poisoned, but that was only part of it. Or was that it at all? Had he ever truly thought that she'd intended to poison him when she could have killed him a hundred different ways, a thousand different times? He could refuse to talk to her. He could refuse to acknowledge her presence or that she was hurting him, he could refuse to take anything to her, proving to her that he was stronger than she could have imagined, that she couldn't really hurt him. She couldn't. He'd be fine.
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Post by Michael Blackwood-Hardt on Apr 12, 2010 21:39:20 GMT -5
Michael hated thinking that something so serious was wrong, but could he really argue with her? It was her job, she was the nurse. His eyes shifted over to Dare again and he returned the light squeeze. "How can he get better?" he asked after a few long silent moments, then brought his gaze back to Katia. There was no point arguing, especially if she had something that would make Dare better.
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Post by Katia Medina on Apr 12, 2010 21:57:25 GMT -5
"It is not a quicky fix. It is going to take Dare a long time, with a lot of support from those around him. I can help him out, starting with a stay here over night. At least tonight, maybe longer. I need to monitor and strengthen some of the vital organs in his body. He might need to stay here for a week. His body is in starvation mode. I will have to start pumping nutrients into his veins to flood his system. As well I need to monitor how much he eats."
All in all it was going to suck for Dare. "We will start small, supplementing with the fluids. Increasing the amount of food he gets a day. He will need to participate in some physical therapy to recover from the damage that has been done. For the next month or so I will need to monitor his heart to make sure he does not have an arrhythmia. I am going to heavily suggest visits with Kane in conjunction with his appointments." Katia tried to smile in encouragement but failed, "it is going to be a long road.
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Post by Dare Blackwood-Hardt on Apr 12, 2010 22:06:55 GMT -5
Dare was in too much shock by this point to say or do anything. A week. Starvation mode. Monitor his heart. Visits with Kane. All this because he hadn't felt like eating? Dare tried to think of if he'd ever told Michael anything that had happened during that week, but he didn't think he had. Michael would have just beat himself up worse about not having come for him. That had been the main issue they'd dealt with when he'd come back. Dare's cheating or leaving or just swearing he wouldn't leave again, and Michael's guilt for not having come.
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Post by Michael Blackwood-Hardt on Apr 12, 2010 22:13:22 GMT -5
She just kept talking and talking, and with every thing she said that she would have to do, Michael felt worse for Dare. How had he thought that it wasn't serious? Well, when did he ever think there was anything seriously wrong with Dare? Michael brought his other hand over to smooth over Dare's. "He'll be okay, though, right?" In the end? He was so glad they had talked about this the previous night.
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Post by Katia Medina on Apr 12, 2010 22:20:08 GMT -5
"I hesitate to say yes. I want to say yes. But this is going to be hard. It's mental and physical. We have to break the pattern, much like we would have to if he was addicted to potions. Physically I can fix him, as long as mentally he is healing too. It will take a lot of work physically, but if there is a setback and he falls into this pattern again..." Katia closed her eyes. "I want you to realize how serious this is, if he falls back into the pattern the likelihood is that he will die. With susceptibilities from this near catch, it would take much less time to get to that point."
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Post by Dare Blackwood-Hardt on Apr 12, 2010 22:50:04 GMT -5
Dare gave a sharp huff of a sound at the phrase addicted to potions. If she didn't know, that was one hell of an example for her to pull out of the air. He was chuckling, softly at first, but by the end, by the time Professor Medina had stopped talking, the laughter didn't have a trace of humor in it. He was crying, leaning into Michael and turning just enough for his free arm to cross Michael's body, giving the pretense that he was holding him. If he falls back into the pattern... A pattern he'd held with one thing or another for three years.
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Post by Michael Blackwood-Hardt on Apr 12, 2010 22:56:58 GMT -5
Michael pulled a hand from Dare's to slide his arm around Dare's waist, holding him close without a care that someone else they barely knew was watching. His attention focused on Dare. "It'll be okay," he said softly. "We'll get through it, and you'll be healthy again." He had to believe it. He just hoped this didn't become some horrible pattern they had to look forward to every spring.
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Post by Katia Medina on Apr 12, 2010 23:37:25 GMT -5
"Do I have your permission now Dare? To start the fluids? I would like to get Kane in here to talk to you this evening too, about how to deal with this. If it is to soon though, we will wait." Katia could see the love between them, and hoped it was a type of love that would carry them through this, not a type of love that would hold them back.
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Post by Dare Blackwood-Hardt on Apr 13, 2010 9:12:05 GMT -5
Dare could hardly hear Professor Medina through the roar of his thoughts and the uneven catch of his breath against Michael's shoulder. He nodded without being fully aware of what she'd said. Whatever she wanted to do, she could do it, he didn't want to die! How had it gotten this bad? How could he not have known? How could not wanting to eat be that bad?
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