Book I - Husband, I Love You (Completed)

Part 25

"All cool. Meet my wife Madhu. Madhu this is Dr. Sameer Kocher"

"Hello, Doctor."

"Pleased to meet you pretty lady" Sameer grinned and stretched his hand for a shake. Madhu shook his hand slightly blushing.

"Please sit." Sameer said and then he walked back to his swivel chair.

"I have heard a lot about you from your husband and even I have seen your past medical records." Sameer went straight to the point. "Your report says you have undergone cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and Functional analytical psychotherapy (FAP) right?"

"Yeah, that's right. That therapy really helped me in changing my thoughts and emotional behaviors. Helped me to recognize and deal with problematic and dysfunctional ways of thinking, emoting and behaving." Madhu said holding her husband's hand tightly.

"Good."

"But then I don't know why I just couldn't come out of my shell."

"I have heard about your various fears from your husband in the recent days but I would like to hear it from you as well." He said, placing his hands on the desk, interlinking his fingers and resting his chin over them.

"It's a long list." She let out a nervous laugh.

"We have all the time to discuss, madam. I have cleared my entire schedule for today just to attend you." he gestured her to go ahead.

"Thank you, Dr. Sameer."

"Anything for my friend and his beautiful wife." Sameer said with a huge grin.

"Sameer, you can cut the adjectives you use to describe my wife." Rishab growled.

"Chill dude" Sameer laughed. "Okay back to the topic. Your fears or terrors or angst or whatever you name it. Tell me about it?"

"I have fear of darkness." She said fidgeting with her fingers. Rishab draped his arm around her shoulder and gently rubbed her arm with his two fingers.

"Scotophobia" Sameer muttered and noted it down on his note pad.

"I have fear of being in dark places"

"Lygophobia" Sameer said it out loud. "What all symptoms you get when you are pushed into a dark place?" he asked

She thought of the symptoms she got yesterday when she was alone in the dark restroom.

"I start sweating... excessive sweating, my heart rate goes up rapidly, shortness of breath... um and nausea. If I couldn't come out of the darkness in time I don't know what will happen next... guess I just pass out."

"Okay." He took notes of whatever she was telling.

"I have fear of heights. Acrophobia" she herself named the right term. Sameer fondly smiled at her. "Even in our apartment I won't go near the balcony when we had only a glass railing. I forced Rishab to put a full length iron grill but still I just stand and look at horizontally but never dare to look vertically. I'm sure I will faint if I do."

"Yeah, Rishab told me about the elevator incident you guys faced a couple of days back"

Madhu sharply turned to her side silently asking her husband "You told this too?" and he just gave a shrug.

"So what else terrifies you?"

"I have claustrophobia" she said her next fear. "I can't stay enclosed in a small room or in a confined space for long."

"So it's not only staying in dark places then?"

"Yeah."

"Mrs. Kundra, please tell me the coping up techniques you are using so far to get rid of all these perturbations?"