Big Swiss

Greta admitted that her mother had been an addict, too. Her drug of choice: terrible news

OM: Stop trying to silence her or pretend she’s not there. Remind her that she’s not a bad person, that she doesn’t need to feel ashamed for having or expressing feelings, positive or negative. You could start by giving her a name.
GW: [SNIFFS]
OM: What are you smelling—gas?
GW: My least favorite kind of therapy: inner-child healing.
OM: I prefer the term “reparenting.”
GW: I’m not ready to be a mom.
OM: I just want Big Greta to be nice to Little Greta.
GW: I’m not good with kids, Om. Can we not call her Little Greta?

You’re struggling to break free,” Om said. “It takes an enormous amount of energy—and courage—to free yourself, to follow the path of transformation without abandoning yourself, without fleeing from your pain and all the loss you’ve experienced. But you need to have more compassion for yourself. That’s what’s missing.

“But we see things through a lens, don’t we? The lens of our own experience?”

“Why not say that you made a choice, that you knew what you were doing was wrong, and that you did it anyway? Why continue coasting on your trauma? It’s not a good look at your age.”

My mother burned everything I gave her in the yard and then killed herself in the house. She didn’t think of the mess. When I feel like throwing myself in front of a train, I always think of the poor soul whose job it is to pick up my large intestine and place it in a trash bag. It stops me. But at the end of the day, I’m just as careless and selfish as she was, because I’m acting on my impulses without thinking of the mess, and expecting you to pick up the pieces.”

BS: Have you tried medication?
G: It’s just a glitch. Two wires are crossed. It’s not a problem with the whole system. I don’t need to be rewired.

“If I don’t see you every day, I feel restless and unsettled.”

Greta waved her hand. “It’ll pass.”

“When?” Big Swiss said.

First thought, worst thought, maybe keep your fucking mouth shut?

OM: Do you fake orgasms?
FEW: How can I fake something I’ve never experienced?
OM: It’s called acting? Lots of women—
FEW: It would never occur to me.