Posted by Lieutenant Shock (Chief of Security) in Meeting the Counsellor for Boarding Psych Eval

Posted by Lieutenant Junior Grade Janna Kingston (Counsellor) in Meeting the Counsellor for Boarding Psych Eval

Posted by Lieutenant Shock (Chief of Security) in Meeting the Counsellor for Boarding Psych Eval

(snip)

While the example questions that Kingston gave were questions that Shock could easily and readily answer, the final question was harder to reply to. What was relevant was what Shock believed was relevant. But what did he really believe was relevant for himself?

If Janna looked at Shock, she would now see the pupils of his eyes moving up slightly and then to the side, as if Shock was searching in his brain for a memory file that would give him the answer. While for him, the pause between hearing the question and formulating a response was long, it was perhaps not perceived as long for the seasoned counsellor: they were a mere few seconds.

He began speaking, in a clear voice, devoid of emotion, but with prosody that made what he said seem engaging to the listener. It was a rhetorical skill he had learnt – it was logical, after all, to manipulate his voice to keep the attention of his non-Vulcan listener intact.

“What I believe is relevant for a psychologist to know about me? That is a question I have never had posed to me before,” he answered, honestly. “I believe that I am psychologically sound. I am Vulcan, in both biology and culture, and I meditate to keep a lid on the experience of emotions within me. Still, I sense the emotion as it is coming, and my meditation has allowed me to tune in and try and understand the message of that emotion, before I quickly suppress it, and I can be restored to a state of serenity.”

Janna could attest to his sense of calm. She herself could feel it from him. Gentle waves of presence, nothing to cause ripples. It was honestly rather pleasant to be around given her newfound intuition and empathic sense. And if she were honest there was a bit of pride that she had gotten him to consider things he had not had to before in a conversation like this. When this happened, the conversations inevitably became more interesting.

Shock sensed a mirroring of peace from Dr Kingston. It helped strengthen and reinforce Shock’s assessment of the room as in a state of serenity.

He paused. What else might it be relevant for a counsellor to know? He remember reading on attachment theory, and the way John Bowlby’s and Mary Ainsworth’s work on childhood attachment influenced centuries of paedagogical and psychological changes in society – bringing Earth, and the Federation, at the point where they were now. It would probably be logical to include a snippet on his attachment too, even if he had not considered it much before:

“I grew up in a family consisting of my mother, my father, and my elder brother by seven years. We were geographically closer to my maternal grandparents than my paternal ones, and thus my maternal grandparents had a bigger influence on my life than my paternal ones. My brother was a patient guide for me as I was young and learning to regulate my emotional suppression. I consider him my mentor. My parents were often busy with work – but I do remember them as good as they are. I’ve always been fascinated by emotion, and the interaction between emotion and logic, which I found most pronounced in human cultures. That brought my interest for humanity at large and the history and cultures and religions of Earth.”

She nodded slowly, leaning forward ever so slightly as she listened, both a learned and natural reaction.

Kingston’s reaction appeared to Shock as natural, yet it provided him with a sense of being seen and listened to – which in Shock’s experience was not all too common for humans to actively listen to him and his own life. Humans would interject, ask irrelevant and illogical questions, make jokes or puns, and try and diffuse anything sensitive. Somehow, in his moment, she seemed Vulcan to him. Her mirroring appeared genuine, it provided a sense of security in Shock. Here he was safe to explore his inner self.

Speaking of the religions of Earth made him realize that he had not mentioned anything of his own religion. It was best he continued with that:

“I do not consider myself a religious person, but I partake in rituals for the sake of tradition and sense of identity. However, I have chosen not to take a mate. I was betrothed to a third cousin of my own age, and upon my first pon farr, at the age of 13 Earth years, we found…”

He stopped himself. He leaned forward to the counsellor, and spoke softly yet flatly: “I will stop here, I have spoken enough already without respecting turn-taking. Perhaps you would like to ask some questions on the material I have orally produced so far?”

– Lieutenant Shock (Security Chief)

While sometimes, yes, she would interject or pause a bit of conversation to circle back to something that could be key, in this moment Janna was more interested on what he had been about to say. “Not just now, but I appreciate the consideration. I’d actually like you to continue your thought about your betrothal, if that’s alright?”

~Janna Kingston, CNS

Shock understood why Dr Kingston would like to circle back to it. He had found himself surprisingly open with her to that point, only realizing after he had ventured thus far that he had disclosed more than he had ever done to a counsellor before. Perhaps, he thought, it was something to do with the unique interpersonal skills displayed in Kingston. He found her empathetic – and in an odd way too, as if he in a way sought her empathy. But why would he seek it out? Was it not illogical? Was there an emotional need, that had not been sufficiently suppressed, that she awoke in him? Perhaps, in time, that could be explored too.

“I assent,” he said, understanding her proposition as an invitation to continue with his narrative. “We found ourselves…”

Why did he stop? Why could he not pronounce the word? He noticed a small ripple of frustration in his heart. He quickly suppressed it, and pronounced the adjective, a little louder and a little more forceful than his other peaceful tone so far had implied: “… incompatible!”

Janna tilted her head and gazed deeply, inwardly surprised by the emphasis placed on his revelation.

He sensed an urge to explain himself. “And as such,” he said, returning to his normal emotion-less yet rhetorically skilled prosody, “it was logical to absolve ourselves from the commitment that our parents had done on our behalf, when we were much younger. Neither of us – for myself I am certain, for hers, I can only speak from what she had told me – discussed the reason of the dissolution of our betrothal with our respective parents and family, and they struggled to find logic and serenity in the situation.”

Shock paused for a second or two.

“She and I remain friends, we speak to one another once or twice per quarter of year. She, too, remains unbetrothed and unmarried.”

– Lieutenant Shock (Security Chief)

Janna smiled lightly. “Then it seems to be the best outcome for you both, even if your families do not understand fully. Does it bother you that you could not make it work?” She didn’t intend to remain on the topic very long but it was interesting to see how he viewed the situation after some distance.

~Janna Kingston, CNS