Please, Look at Me

"Hallucinations... I've had them many times before."

"Oh? What symptoms do you experience?"

"Well... I see or hear things that aren't there."

"Mm-hmm. Are you still having these hallucinations?"

"Actually, no. ...But they've left me with some deep-seated... feelings that sometimes affect my work."

"I understand, sir. This will be a long process."

"I've received treatment before, too... but now the problem has come back, hasn't it?"

"It takes time to work through suffering. ...Please don't be pessimistic. The analyst can help turn those unforgettable or deeply affecting memories into things you can understand and talk about. ...There's no need to feel anxious or sad. Everything can be resolved."

(This work is essentially a stream-of-consciousness piece. The protagonist's reality and hallucinations intermingle, so some scenes may be disturbing. When the subject cannot construct a stable sense of reality through the symbolic order, hallucinations both fill the void and serve as a defensive response to an existential crisis.)