Emotional Wounds That Will Scar (Part 1) [Backpost]

Posted on Tue Apr 29th, 2025 @ 5:55am by Lieutenant Commander Kurumi Ebisuzawa & Yaeka Sakuragi & Lieutenant Commander Brennyn Scott M.D.

1,349 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: Indivisible
Location: Dr.Brennyn Scott's Office, USS Myogi

Placing the pitcher of lemonade on a nearby side table, Bree took another moment to straighten the crayons and pieces of paper on the coffee table in the center of the seating area. She had no idea if the young girl she was about to meet would utilize either item but she wanted to be prepared just in case. Following trauma, Bree understood people often felt more comfortable expressing themselves through art rather than words, and in her professional experience this was especially true for children, who often lacked the ability to put experiences and feelings into words even under the best of circumstances. By any measure, these circumstances were certainly far from ideal.

The last time she had seen Yaeka or Kurumi they had and near death, and although Scott was grateful the medical team had been able to save her life, Bree understood there was more to recovery than simple physical health. It was why she wanted to meet with Yaeka as soon as possible, but it was also why she was a bit nervous now. Understandably, the young girl was not about to be without her rescuer Kurumi, but Kurumi had been through her own trauma and Scott was somewhat concerned Kurumi would suppress her own struggles to do whatever she could to support and protect Yaeka. Of course, Bree had initiated individual sessions with Kurumi as well, but it was important to Scott that neither of them be re-traumatized in their efforts to help one another. It was a challenging balance to strike, but the counselor had found a way forward. Now all she needed was to sit across from both of them.

The chime from the door rang out. On the other side stood Kurumi with Yaeka, who was holding her hand tightly.

"Hello," Bree greeted gently, stepping back to allow both to enter. "It's good to see you both. Please, come in." Scott was under no illusions this would be an easy interaction, but she.also understood the importance of not treating people as if their traumas defined them and how others related to them.

"It's OK Yaeka. You'll be safe in here," Kurumi said as she felt Yaeka's grip strengthen on her hand. She led Yaeka in and sat down on the couch. Yaeka jumped up next to her and shuffled close to Kurumi as if almost trying to hide.

Bree sat down across from her visitors, taking note of Yaeka's understandable skittishness. "You're looking well, Yaeka. I'm not sure you'll remember me, but I'm Bree. I was one of the people who helped take care of you and Kurumi, and I just thought I'd see how you're doing. One of my responsibilities on Myogi is to help people feel comfortable here since sometimes it can be scary to be in a new place. I'm wondering since you're new here, how you're getting along?"

Yaeka didn't meet her gaze as she sat there quietly. "I like the food here," she said quietly.

"Oh really?" Bree replied in keen interest. "What do you like to eat here?" The counselor was unfazed by the young girl's lack of eye contact. That would come in time, but at least Yaeka was engaging with her.

"The rice is yummy," Yaeka said in a soft quiet voice.

"I can't say I make a habit of eating rice, but I do enjoy it, especially the white sticky kind. What type of rice do you like best?" Bree asked.

"Any rice." Yaeka said as she continued to look at the floor. "Anything is good if it fills my tummy."

Bree nodded at the mention of a full tummy. She knew the little girl had been starved nearly to death as well as physically abused. Her initial instinct was to apologize for and acknowledge some of what she had been through, but Bree decided it was best to continue getting to know her. "Besides the rice and being able to have a full tummy, is there anything else you enjoy about being here?"

Yaeka seemed to think for a second. "The stars go 'whoosh' out the window. I like to watch them from my bed." She said in response.

Bree smiled and her eyes shone with genuine delight. "I like looking at the stars from my window too. Sometimes staring at them makes me sleepy, especially if I'm already in my bed. How have you been sleeping since you've been here?"

Yaeka looked down at the floor avoiding eye contact. "I wake up a lot." She said in a sad voice. "I see bad things in my dreams. Scary things."

Scott nodded. "I'm so sorry about that, Yaeka. You did not deserve to be treated the way you were. I want you to know your bad dreams are not your fault, and I have a plan for helping you feel better. Would you be willing to hear it?" It was important to Bree to give the little girl as much control over the process as possible, as much to respect the autonomy that was denied her, but also to get her buy-in for getting better. Even though her client was young, that didn't mean she didn't have the right to have a say in what came next.

Yaeka sniffled then nodded slowly.

"Thank you, Yaeka," Bree answered. The counselor paused to gather her thoughts and then offered, "I'm guessing the last thing you want to do is think about or talk about the really scary things that have happened to you. I get that. I really do. The thing I've discovered is the more we try to tell our brains not to think about something, the more our brains remind us of those things. It's kind of like a volcano - eventually the pressure inside builds up and all the scary things we've been trying to keep down come out in a really big way that feels overwhelming." The counselor spread her arms to mimic an eruption and then continued:

"So the best way I know how to keep that from happening is to help you learn how to think and talk about the scary things as slowly as you need. We have lots of tools to help you too." Scott scooted the paper and crayons closer. "One of my favorite tools is drawing. Drawing can help get what's in here," and here Bree pointed to her head and then her heart, "out here where you get to be in charge. Does that make sense?"

"I like drawing," Yaeka said. "I used to have all sorts of different coloured crayons at home..." she stopped. Tears started to form in her eyes. "...At home..." she repeated as if looking far beyond the bulkheads and into the distance.

Bree swallowed the lump forming in her own throat before offering, "Would you like to try getting it on paper? Whatever you want, get it from the inside and bring it to the outside, okay?"

Yakea continued to stare off into the distance. The tears starting to run down her pale cheeks. It was like she was trying to watch something beyond the bulkheads.

Kurumi pulled her in tight, she knew that she was remembering what had happened at her family home. "Hey there. You're safe now. Remember to focus on my voice." She said to her in a hushed reassuring tone. "Come on Yaeka. Calm down now. Calm down sweetie."

"I'm sure you're doing your best," Bree replied directly to the little girl. She didn't want to express direct disagreement with Kurumi, understanding the encouragement to calm down was meant to be soothing, but she also didn't want the young girl to think she had to suppress her reactions, as that would only make them stronger. Scott did agree with one of the other woman's suggestions, however. "I wonder if besides our voices, there's anything else you can hear? Or maybe see or smell as you're in this room?"

Yaeka seemed to come around. She stared busy at Bree for a moment. "My mummy and daddy are gone." She said

To be continued...

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