Posted by Ensign Noah Astor (Doctor) in Counseling Suite - Ensign Astor Check-In

Posted by Lieutenant Junior Grade Janna Kingston (Counsellor) in Counseling Suite - Ensign Astor Check-In

(snip)

“Retreating to something familiar can be a tactic, yes. But you wanted to try something different, yes?” Janna said. “So let’s say one of this humiliating moments does happen. What does the aftermath look like? Stop and consider what you think people will do and say, and how much of that do you have evidence for that it would actually happen?” It might seem an odd exercise but Kingston was never one to go down a path pointlessly. As she often did, she had a reason for it all.

~Janna Kingston, CNS

“Yes, you’re right,” he agreed, trying to remember that the whole point of this exercise was change, “I honestly have no evidence to support that people would be anything other than gracious. I mean certainly if I saw someone trip I would move to help them rather than laugh at them. I think in my educated brain I am aware that these fears are irrational, where I am having trouble is moving that knowledge into practice.”

He repositioned himself in the chair slightly to try to organize his thoughts, “I ‘know’ that we are all Starfleet officers here and are trained to be polite and diplomatic. But my… heart I guess? That tells me that people can be mean spirited and as soon as they help me up and I turn my back on them what’s to stop them from whispering to everyone else that I’m some sort of uncoordinated mess? Of course, even if they do say that, why should I care? I know that I’m not an uncoordinated mess.”

-Ensign Astor, Medical

Janna smiled. “Indeed. Though I agree that not caring is easier said than done. If we didn’t care about what others thought of us, then we’d all walk about life selfishly. Caring to a degree is what allows for a cohesive community. It’s okay to want people to think well of you, but of course the trouble comes when it causes you pain or indecision.” She rested her arm on the arm of the chair. “What if you go to the lounge tonight and simply give yourself and everyone else the benefit of the doubt? Try an experiment and see what happens. Don’t hinge anything on it, just take a step back emotionally and see what happens?”

~Janna Kingston, CNS