Brain Sniffles?! |
Summary: | Novella isn't sleeping right. |
Date: | 21 ACH |
Related Logs: | None. |
Players: |
........ |
-=============================================================================-
Sickbay Genesis - Deck 13
21 ACH 6735 Souls
The medical facility is large enough to hold a few dozen beds. Each bed is set with a curtain for privacy, a chair near the bed and any monitoring or medical aids needed. A nurses desk sits at the front near the hatch and a surgery area, Medical Officers area and supplies are on the far wall behind the desk. Nurses, doctors and medics man this area at any time day or night. Visiting hours are usually kept to the day and evening schedules, unless stated otherwise by medical staff.
----< Condition Three - Duty Area >----—-
Contents: D'Artanion Novella Thad Medical Charts Memorial Board
Wireless 1492
Exits: [CMO] CMOs Office [O] Corridor
[PO] Psychiatry Office [RW] Recovery Ward
Special: +lhelp - Local Help Available
-=============================================================================-
Thad waves off the offer of help in paying. "Don't bother. I haven't had a use for it since I've been here. Going to get the butter and the chocolate was the first time I left the Genesis, other than when I was working so it's not like I've been spending anything. And I doubt it'll be worth much when all this is over so I turned something I've got no use for to good use." he points out. His eyes follow her hand, and not just because it lands somewhere worth looking. Ahem. "Is something happening there?" he asks then. "I've been so wrapped up in studying Ramiro's file and recovery that I'm rather out of the loop on much that's not in this office. Why the pie's not already done, I admit."
D'Artanion is sitting in a chair, her cane leaning against the desk next to her. One hand rests almost over the spot where she was injured, though it lies quiescent. "Oh, yeah. Good point. Where did you have to go to get it? The Carina? I've not been over there yet. I hear that there's a sports stadium. Ramiro's trying to get folk together on pyramid teams." When he draws attention to her thigh, she looks down and blinks, then shrugs just a little, "It itches, I guess. Not a bad sort of itch. Just… That bone deep itch that you can't do frak about." That shrug returns and she looks back up, "It's healing. And that is never entirely fun. Y' know?"
Novella steps in with her flight suit wrapped around her waist, sleeves tied up front and flopping as she moves. She kisses the tips of her fingers and touches them to a picture of the Memorial Wall before anything else. But she stops in the waiting area and looks around. She doesn't interrupt anyone, though. They're probably talk about Docterly things.
D'Artanion says, "A'right. Thanks. But, don't worry, okay? I'm not one've those who gets all macho and foolish about injuries." Unlike some of the Marines… She looks around Thad as he turns to Novella. She smiles and lifts a wave, "Hey! Haven't seen you in a while. How's the head?" Might be a reference to something earlier. Motioning toward Thad, she adds, "He's a good sort." Shifting just a little to get more comfortable, her manner remains quietly confident."
"Shit, Lieutenant. Who mess of you Docs, isn't there, sir?" she chuckles and nods. "But yeah, uhm.. I don't feel.. right. Like, I can sleep but I'm tired a lot. And I don't really dream anymore. I was kinda curious if there was something.. maybe you could give me?" She juggles her hands in front of her as if trying to offer something. Her voice stays low, though. It should be obvious by her body lanuage this isn't the most comfortable place for her to be seen. There's a light smile to D and she shrugs. "Doin' alright I guess. Burns finally stopped hurting. Thanks, Guns."
Craven has arrived.
Thad and Novella are standing fairly near each other, with the doctor in full 'exam' mode and D'Art sitting nearby with her cane in easy reach as she relaxes in a seat. "You're sleeping, but feel tired a lot." he murmurs. "My first guess would be anemia, but that wouldn't affect dreams I don't think." he muses aloud. "A blood test would answer if my first impression is right though." he offers. "Have you been here to talk to anyone else already?" he asks then. "Maybe there's something in a file that might clear things up faster then starting from scratch." Then he looks between D'Art and Novella. "Burns?" Maybe there's something related there. Hmmm. Interesting.
D'Artanion leans back in the chair as Thad takes the initial interview. Rising, she takes up her cane and moves to the filing cabinet. A drawer is opened and she flips through a few charts before finding Novella's. Lifting it out, she closes the drawer and turns to walk back. When she gets close, she offers the chart to Thad. "Here you do, Doctor." Her tone is professional, though she smiles at Novella, concern touching her gaze.
"Anemic? Uh, yeah that's bad, right? In case you missed the flight suit.. Kinda need to be 'okay'. ..flight status and all." She suddenly looks a touch nervous, eyes flitting between the pair. "Uhm, I've been in here a few times. A had burns on my back from some sparks that burned through my suit. An El-Tee treated me for that. But.. that's done. Over. Like.. they don't hurt anymore. I stopped using the creamy stuff and my painkillers ran out like five days ago."
Thad takes the file to skim and look for more information. "You say you are sleeping. Are you sleeping deeply or fitfully?" he asks then. "Tossing and turning a lot, for instance?" He pauses to think a moment about a few things. "Considering the dreams, it may not be anemia. That's just a first reaction to sleeping but feeling tired for me. It's the obvious first check."
D'Artanion flickers a glance up at Novella, "Uh. Yeah, anemia would be bad. Not as bad as some other things and it would depend on what is causing it, but…" Licking her lips, she looks up at Thad, "Oh. Sorry…" Not her patient. She winks at the other woman and fades back a bit. "I'll be over here if you need me."
The entryway to Sickbay opens and the sound of whistling announces someone's presence, before Craven slips through the hatchway, closing the door behind him. Turning to look around, the whistling trails off as he spots a group of people and he lifts a hand, offering a wave and smile to each, before moving across the floor, towards the desk. Apparently, not going to disturb the group right now.
"Well I guess I wake up during the night like everyone else does.. Right? I mean- I don't toss and turn. But I think I'm sleeping normally. Well, except for the dreams and all. I mean- lack of dreams." Yep, she's getting excitable. Pilots don't like to hear they are broken. This one is no different. "Can't you just give me a pill or something to make me dream or sleep right?" Novella's eye glance to D and go a bit wide. "What's anemia, anyway?" But the other woman is moving away and she looks back to Thad. Craven gets a polite 'Sir' in his passing.
"Low iron." Thad answers almost automatically to the question about anemia. "It's actually very treatable. But that's not the real issue. Is it dreams or no dreams?" he asks then. "I don't mean to put you on the spot, but if you're having nightmares, I might recommend you talk to Doctor Sloan instead."
D'Artanion glances over as Craven enters. She smiles and waves, but does not speak. She is still listening a little to Novella and Thad. That is, until her personal com goes off. Pressing her ear, she speaks softly, then turns and heads for the door. Her soft, "Yes, sir. On my way," is heard as she nears the door. Releasing the unit, she turns and waves over one shoulder, then slips out the door.
D'Artanion has disconnected.
Pausing at the desk, Salin moves around it and withdraws a chart from the top of it, which he promptly slips under his left arm. It's then that he's turning back towards Thad and Novella and he's giving each of them a quick nod of his head, "Ensign. Lieutenant." He's perching himself on the edge of the desk then, eyes flickering towards the duty board before returning to the pair, "How are things today?"
"Oh." Low iron doesn't sound too bad. Especially if its treatable. "But no.. at least I don't think I'm dreaming. I wake up.. I'm still tired. I want to sleep all day. But its not effecting duty!" Nope!! "I just.. wait. Sloan? Who's Doctor Sloan and why would I talk to him about nightmares?" Touchy subject. She takes a step back towards the door. "Seriously, if this isn't something medical that you can't give me a pill or something for then I'll just head back on duty and push through it." Her eyes turn to Craven at the question. "Fine, sir! Peachy. Burns're all healed. Thanks for that again." She might as well sprint through the words.
Thad holds up a hand. "Easy Ensign. I just noticed you changing from dreams to lack of a minute ago and thought you might have been trying to pass off waking up from nightmares as something else. Some people think it would be better to avoid the real problem to keep working when all they do is make it worse." He turns to glance at Craven then. "She's sleeping, but not feeling rested. Says she's not dreaming at all. At first, I was thinking anemia, but with the dreams, maybe it's sleep apnea. Sound possible to you? We could do a sleep study on her next rest cycle and see without interrupting her duty at all." And without using anything but a bed to do it. "If it's not sleep apnea, then we can do further studies."
There's a flash of a smile to Novella and Craven is giving a quick nod of his head, "Good to hear, Ensign. Trust there was no scarring or permenant damage to the skin?" He's then looking over towards Thad, listening and giving a nod, "Probably not anemia, not with the dreams. Sleep Apnea would be a possible cause. So, would stress." He's looking back over towards Novella then, his brow arching ever so slightly before he looks back towards Thad, "I'd say let Doctor Sloan speak with her as well if a study doesn't return anything."
"No, just not dreaming. Well, 'sides for feeling tired. Its not like I'm about to fall asleep in the cockpit. Just.. lethargic. Yeah- that's the right word." She stops her abbreviated retreat and looks between them. "Sleep apnea? Sounds lethal. Hey.. This isn't going to take me off flight status, right? If I have to sit around all day I'll go nuts." Stir crazy pilots are the fertile playground of the devil's antics. She blinks and looks to Craven. "No scarring I can tell. But stress? Uh.. No. No way! I put in my hours like everyone else. I'm not some special case. Besides, I'm trying to make Jig. If I get pulled off the line I'm frakked." A pause. "Who is this Sloan-Guy?" The nervousness returns.
Thad shakes his head. "It's not serious in your case, if that is what it is. If it was serious, you'd be waking throughout the night. It -can- be serious, but I feel you're suffering from a mild case at best. What we need first is for you to come back when it's your usual sleep time and sleep here where we can observe how you sleep through the night. If you've got sleep apnea, you'll be almost waking up as you reach the deeper, restful, sleep stages. Depending on how bad it is, you may need some special help to sleep, but most likely, all you'll need is a bit of tape to help keep your nasal passages more open so you get more air while asleep. If, on the other hand, you're sleeping soundly, then it's something else and we'll need to run some other tests. Nothing to keep you from anything you're doing yet though. Especially if it turns out that it is just a mild sleep apnea case." Then he glances at Craven with a raised eyebrow, silently asking if he wants to explain about Doctor Sloan.
"Good to hear, Ensign. And as for stress, nothing to be ashamed of, everyone gets it." Craven then falls quiet, allowing Thad to explain the details of sleep apena. When the brow is raised in a silent request, he simply gives a slight nod of his head before looking back towards Novella. A hand lifts then, pointing towards one of the doors, "Doctor Evalyn Sloan. Psyche. She helps people get through issues, including stress. Might be worth while speaking with her, Ensign. Never know, it might just help."
"Well wouldn't I know if I wasn't sleeping right? I mean, like.. I dunno.. Wouldn't I know if I was broken that way? Not quite sleeping, even though I was?" It doesn't make sense to her. Either you sleep or you don't. Novella looks about as lost as nervous, now. Which are probably interdependent emotions when it comes to Sickbay and her visitation. "But what if its not this 'apnea thing'? What other tests?" Tests are bad. Put her on the spot to lead and attack and she'll charge full throttle with confidence blazing. Ask her about medical exams and she wants to know if its Pass/Fail. Like combat. "Its not stress though. There's no way. Really. I'm good. Honest. Just tired." Fretful eyes get wider at the mention of what Sloan does. "Frak no, sir. I go see a shrink, then I'm really screwed. Rue'll yank my flight status, it'll go on my record, and then you bet your bars my ass will never make Jig. Forget that other pilots will have to fill in because I have a case of the brain sniffles or some junk. How is that fair to them?"
Thad shakes his head. "Well, it depends on how much it wakes you up." he answers, focusing on the physical situations. "If it just pulls you from the deep restful sleep to the light doze that usually accounts for lost time when someone is really tired, no, you probably wouldn't realize. In more extreme cases, it brings the person fully awake many times during the night. People that are that bad usually need breathing masks to sleep. In those cases, it is dangerous. From the sound of things, you probably just sleep a lot more fitfully than most. As for other tests, a blood test would be my first call. We could check your iron levels and your B vitamin levels. Those are the two main causes of anemia and they can both be checked on one test. It wouldn't explain the dreams, but it would be the next place I checked for lethargy." He glances over to Craven and then back to Novella. "Stress can be as debilitating as any physical trouble, and it can be cured, just like the other possibilities. There's nothing wrong with seeking help for it, any more than there is in coming to a doctor for a burn. Still, if it's sleep apnea, there's no reason to worry about stress, right? Why make things worse by jumping ahead to maybes?"
"Oh. I kinda figured sleep was sleep. You're either doing it or you're not. Kinda like being pregnant or frakking in general." She looks around, the rest of it sort of coming toegether. "If you want me to wear a mask to sleep, sorry sir but I won't do it. I'm not interested in trying to wear little trips, either." Novella shakes her head subtley, her eyes still holding that nervous defiance. "My squad'll think I'm broken. Like I said, if I can't just take a pill or something for this, I'm not interested. And it's not stress. I can't see that Doctor. No, sir. Coming to a Doc to get my burns treated was one thing. Going in to see a shrink because I might be frakked in the head calls into serious question a lot of shit I won't put myself through. You want to see a pilot stressed, sit them down with a shrink." She really looks nervous at this point. "Maybe coming in was a mistake, sir."
Thad shakes his head. "Never a mistake to come and seek out help if something isn't right. Especially in someone we need, like a pilot. Come back and sleep here tonight. We'll see how you are sleeping and go from there. After all, it might be as simple as something in your bunk not letting you sleep well too. One step at a time. Work your normal duty other than where you sleep one night. Alright?"
"Well its a mistake if those that count on me suddenly can't because of some stupid thing like sleep. How selfish is that?" Still nervous, she almost seems disgusted with herself. "Simple frakking thing and I can't even do that right." The blond shakes her head, tucking a lock of hair behind an ear. "But fine.. Don't know how you expect me to sleep tonight, though. Performance anxiety, stress about possible stress, worrying about flying." She sighs, looking to the picture on the wall as if its watching her. "Yeah fine. I sleep second shift. I'll be back then." Her gaze returns to him. "Anything I need to do before then? Eat? Drink? Exercise?"
Thad shakes his head. "Don't do anything unusual. Just go about your regular day and then sleep here. That's all." Then he tips his head. "But… if you're going to call seeking help when you need it selfish, what would you call not seeking help when you need it and then not being able to hold up when your friends really need you?"
The woman stares at the Doctor for a moment. Just when he might have a point, she shakes her head. "Viper pilots, sir, don't fail each other. Ever. The only reason you can't help our your squadmates is because you're dead." She swallows and looks around the Sickbay once more. "Yeah, I'll be back later or something." She turns to head for the door, once again kissing her fingers before touching them to a photograph on the board.
Thad nods. "Then you best be sure you're in top shape to live up to that. Take care Ensign. I'll be sure everything is ready for your sleep test." And with that, he turns back to other paperwork to let her leave.