S1 E2: Sleep Therapy

is the control group. Get me up, I got a fine Morgan. Don't don't try to speak here, let me help you. Sit there, you go, No need to stand up until you're ready. Can you drink some water? Hmm? Here, just try a sip. It's okay, it's okay. I take it slow. You have all the time in the world. Do you want to hold you out? Try it on your own. That's it, careful, something's wrong with my hands. It's perfectly normal. It just takes a little while for your brain to regain control over your body. Take a

few minutes and let your body regain its equilibrium. That's all from what therapy E c T. Yes, Hello, Charlotte, I thought I would check in on the new girl, aren't you sweet? Charlotte? Do you mind helping carrying back to the ward? I really need to get back to my station. It'll be my pleasure. Thank you, Charlotte. I suppose I owe you an apology. I know I could have warned you about E c. T. But what would have been the point? I didn't want to frighten you.

Some of his treatments may seem cruel, but Dr Hayes is a brilliant man, and no matter how it may appear, he really does have our best interest at heart. I can help you back out to the ward if you'll let me. You don't have to talk to me if you don't want to, I'll understand well, Charlotte, Yes, dear. How often does anyone leave the hospital discharged? That's right? Not very often. But some of the women were placed

here by their families and will probably never be released. Others, the schizophrenics, the m d S, manic depressives you can tell by looking at them, will probably never leave. Not every illness has a cure. What about you? How long have I been here? That's right? Two years a bit more? My god, how do you stand it? I should ask you the same thing about life on the outside. Things are so peaceful here. It's a sanctuary. It really is.

E c T can be intimidating at first, but it neutralizes all the all the So when do you think you'll be discharged? I could probably go tell Dr Hayes I'm ready and need to open the game. Then why don't you Why would I want to? Karen? Stop looking at this as a punishment. This is a hospital, we're receiving medical attention. Why can't you appreciate what he's trying to do for all of us. I'll get out when Dr Hayes thinks I'm ready. But you see, he's a perfectionist.

He has very high standards. I guess, like mids architecture, you might be you an on the campus of the university. Perhaps the better curtis need of British nobility. But this place is intact the Central State Hospital at Utanan, a city unto itself. The hospital is situated upon one acres of land and has its own fire department, plant, Doctor Hayes. Dr Hayes, yes, yes, there's something wrong. It's nothing wrong.

It's just that we have a limited amount of time in which just second time today and can you kill it less hang Central State. I think it would be a more constructive use of our time to discuss the particulars of your grant renewal. M sure. Since I only have a few minutes to visit today, I hope to discuss the results of your latest work. What's gone on in the last ninety days, what do you expect in the next ninety And still have some time to talk

about new directions, new directions, anything you like. I read with great interest your paper abolishing Consciousness through e c T. Do you plan to publish? Yes, I'm trying. So far, I haven't had any luck severe delusion, paranoia, schizophrenia. Have you found that the treatment has any positive effect upon the patient? Well? Or is it simply neutralizing the symptoms? Well, neutralizing the symptoms of mental illness is a positive effect,

I think to a degree. But the goal should always be the elimination of the cause of this erratic behavior. If your objective is to neutralize it seems you could just prescribe some thorizine and get the same effect. The point is, we know the effect of e c T applying more of the same as in research. We know it flattens the brain waves, but it doesn't really do anything to attack the problem. I'm not sure I agree.

We ask have you been doing anything different since receiving the s i H grant then you were doing, say six months ago. Well, it's allowed us to enlarge our staff and increase the frequency of treatment because the impression on getting excuse me for interrupting the impression on getting, is that you're applying s i H funding towards the general operational costs of your port and not applying it

towards specific new research. Being in the medical field, I'm sure you can appreciate how cautious you have to be when introducing new forms of therapy. Appreciate research that aligns with s i H objectives. We appreciate results has come from this research. We would appreciate it if you would focus on new research. It is not our business to underwrite a facilities day to day operations. I'll tell you now that if that's how you plan to spend the next ninety days, we won't be able to continue to

support your work. In New Canaan understood decided CCT is so blunt it's like performing surgery with an axe rather than a scalpel. It lacks precision control. Here's my problem with e c T. You say you want to how do you put it, abolish consciousness? If you want to clean out the brain by by by wiping the slate clean, you risk of raising all the valuable data store inside the knowledge, the memories. You see where I'm going here, don't you? I think, sir? And what do you put

in the empty space anything? Have you ever thought about the name of our organization, the Society for the Investigation of Human Ecology Human Ecology. I think of the mind as a garden. E c T is like a tiller that churns the soil. It wouldn't it be better to have pulled the weeds, as it were, selectively remove the harmful growth is crowding out the healthy thoughts, so that we could then harvest the fruit of the mind. But

when you say harvest, I don't understand. Maybe gardening who wasn't the best metaphor I could have used, But hopefully you get what I'm saying. Instead of erasing the contents of damaged mind, let's try to open it up, look around, decide what's worth keeping and what should be thrown away. Yes, yes. And if you decide to till the soil and mulch everything, you make the ground fertile again. You have an opportunity to plan a fresh crop, a healthy crop in its place.

Have you planned for that? There are ways. I'll send over a paper from one of our members. How old are you? Doctor has met two is not so old. You still have time to do something great. You just have to think like a twenty six year old again. Remember that sometimes when a doctor has spent too much time in the same word as vision narrows, this is his touch with his ambition. Let's roll back the odometer of your career. Hayes give you a second chance to

to do something something big. H good afternoon, ladies. In about thirty minutes we'll all walk over to the dining room, so please visit the wash room now if you need to tidy up. In a moment, Dr Hayes will be coming through the ward with a very important guest. I'll expect you to be on your best behavior. And yes, I'm looking at you, Irene. Thank you. Hi, Hello, Karen. Glad to see you've gotten your land legs again. Yes, ma'am,

can I help you with something sure. Maybe, um, would it be possible for you need to make a phone call? I mean it is there like a procedure where I can request to make a patience are not allowed to use the telephone. I'm sorry, Carrie, oh that there must be some way to communicate with the outside world. What you know, we need to speak to someone outside the hospital. Ask Dr Hayes in your next interview. He will consider the request and take a proper action. Okay, it'll take

five minutes, two minutes. Well, the the phone is right there. Come on, Karen, if you need to speak to someone outside the hospital, ask Dr Hayes. And all right, I heard you. Like the convulsive y it's just the first step care no process because it's the most aggressive and reliable and neutralizer of conscious thought affect the short term and treating every patient every forty eight hours puts a strain on our staff, not to mention our electric bill. Yeah,

so you and Cameron up in in Montreal. He's having excellent results with sleep therapy. Ever heard of him? The society is um well acquainted with Dr Cameron's research, brilliant mind. So encouraged by his success. We've stalked up on phena barbitall and have set up a sleep room right here in New canaan first one in the southern US. There's one patient there at the moment, derotic, excitable, prone to burst of hysteria. You're out a sleep on would you care to see it? Dr her Ace, You are just

full of surprises right this way. I only have one patient under the sedative right now. She's three days in. Certainly looks peaceful. It's a deep, RESTful sleep, I'm sure. And we'll be constantly modering her vitals and adjusting the dosage along the way, and you'll keep her under the next round of VC T is Friday. We'll wake her up, feeder and treat her and put her right back under. And you hope to replicate the success of Dr Cameron's experiment.

That's right. And then yeah, I'll caution you not to dwell too long in another man's shadow. Cameron's were is remarkable. We'll give them back, but it's his. How will you leave your market? What will be your treatments? How will you apply them to make a name for yourself? Food for thought? That's all, if you don't mind my asking, Dcores, is there a reason you apply your more experimental therapies to women. Uh, we've We've found, I've I've found, and

I think the research supports this. The female mind is more supple, more malleable than the male, which tends to have developed a stronger resistance, whether it's culturally enforced defense mechanism or just the genetic proclivity. The jury is still loud. I mean, I mean, if you prefer that I treat male patients, I suppose I could just started. No need to be defensive DRS. It aligns with what all are just seem to have found. And where would medical research

be you without the lab mouse, white, complacent, obedient. Just remember that the lab mouse has been conditioned to be the model patient. Just remember that at a certain point it will be necessary to apply your methods to unless cooperative subject. This is an interview with patient Myers Caring. The date is October. Also present as ward head nurse vir Tree, Billburn. It's okring, how we've been getting along.

You're same to have come through your first DCT treatment. Okay, if you feel sore, Charlotte or one of the girls can show you some stretching and bending. Why do you call it easy? T stands for electroc convulsive therapy. Why don't you just call it shock treatment because that's not what it is. We use ECT to help wipe off the mental slate. What do we call deep patterning gets sort of the clutter and noise. But if you want to call it shock treatment, be my guest. Any other questions.

We have a variety of therapies in our medical arsenal, each one tailor to the specific needs of the patient. Yesterday you asked me about a timetable for your release. The truth of the matter is there are no shortcuts. The treatment takes time. But to encourage the process, I need two things from you. Your cooperation, not just with me, but with the nurse is the attendance to the other patients. And the second is honesty, absolute honesty. If you help me,

I can help you. Since we last spoke, I've had a closer look at your file, to be honest, with a thing in your file that don't add up, and frankly, I'm not quite sure why you're here and not in a prison facility. I do intend to take this up with the state, but before I do, I want to get your side of the story. Okay, you were in a hotel room when Ronald Grant was pushed through a window, actually, let's be honest, thrown through a window to his death.

I didn't throw him through the window, obviously, but I'm sure you can shed some light on the circumstances of the incident. Why were you there? We were there on a date, doctor, You know why we were there, that's right, So why be quite about it? A date? Beyond having a sexual liaison for money? Was there any ulterior motive in taking him up to the room? Robbery? Is the motel a clip joint, Get a man drunk, cold cock, and then take his wallet. Only Ronald Grant had a

tolerance for liquor and sex. You're debate and someone else does the dirty work, the other dirty work. There was no one in the room but Ronald and myself, and I didn't touch him. Just how much did he pay you not to be touched? I mean, he touched me. You might say that was the whole point of going on afterwards after your romantic date had ended as well. Grant so dissatisfied the experience that he just jumped through

a plate class window. Didn't open it first, didn't even open the blinds just just to a rhyan start, and that's exactly how it happened. Swear to God. Did the police ever find the person they were looking for? Who your accomplice? Or were you the accomplice? How does that work? Exactly? When you were arrested, you told the police you had to get out of jail free card if they would just call the number on the card. What was that about? Uh? So?

Is this just something the police fabricated for their own amusement? Did they call the number? Whose number was on the card? Karen? And if they called the number, why did you stay in jail card? That's ridiculous in a way. It doesn't matter. The details of the crime are not pertinent your treatment here. Neither is your guilt or innocence. I honestly don't care whether you did it or not. But what does matter is your willingness to cooperate, to be honest, fact is pertinent.

That's what I need from you, and that's what you're refusing to provide. Every question I asked, whether it's big or small, you you refuse to answer. You don't even bother to make up. Wise, how are we going to have a productive interview session? If you won't particip because all you want to ask me about is the fucking crime, because that's the one thing you refuse to talk about. You want me to bear my soul. I'll bear my soul.

Get out your notebook. I'll tell you about my shitty childhood, my creepy cousins, my abusive uncles, even my my school teachers. I'll tell you about running away from home at fifteen, the first time I pop pills, lost my virginity, turned a trick, got my face pounded in, got my arm broken by some angry john. I wouldn't let defy, only in ways you couldn't imagine. I'm telling you about the things that made me who I am, for better or worse.

I'll tell you what I had to do to stay alive on the street, the people I had to depend on for safety. But I won't I won't tell you about what happened in twelve So of all the things, of all the things that I'm willing to share with you. If that's the only thing that you want to know about me one night, you can save your fucking breath. Well, I mean, ask me about me, about me, and I'll tell you the Please please, Okay, I guess the battle

lines are drawn. This concludes interview with Myers Karen m h. Hello again, Hayes. I thought we had covered everything. Thanks for coming out. I really appreciate you coming by. And I can only stay a minute. I need to get to the airport by six if I'm going to get back to ACA tonight. It'll just take a minute. I would have met you at the airport, but it's hard for me to get away. It's not a problem. If it's important enough for you to call me back, I

figure it deserves my attention. It is, I think it does. I mean you'll want to hear it. Uh. I've put a lot of thought into what we were discussing last time, and I have some ideas, some forward thinking ideas that I think the society might be interested in having me explore. Spoken like a proper twenty six year old age. H, I'm all ears. Tell me if we think of the mind and analytical terms, no no, no, no no no, but the bear with me, bear with me, tell me

if I'm on track. The psychoanalysts must base is treatment on what the patient is willing to share through memories, dreams, and then the details they choose to share, right, that's right. Well, maybe the patient wants to share every detail, but they are limited in their own memory. For every dream they share,

there's another one that they're unable to recall. So the psychoanalysts cannot treat the patient until they're able to break through this filter and determine what the patient is really Thanking funding Freudian research, you know that doctor is suppose we remove the filter, break down the patient's mental resistance, whether it's one they've erected or one their subconscious mind is erected, and we look inside, We crack open the

head and get the unfiltered truth that lies within. Imagine the possibility if a doctor were capable of breaking down that wall. There is no limit to what he could achieve. And that's the kind of a doctor of the Society for the Investigation of Human Ecology would support to the absolute limit. Tell me more. It's a great idea in theory, but I need specifics. I have a patient who's harboring a secret. She's tough, sharp, fully functioning, but uncooperative. In

that patient's name, oh that um, let's just call her Karen. Okay, you said something about a secret. A very big, secret criminal one that will put her in state prison if I can get it out of her. The police couldn't make her talk, the state prosecutor couldn't make her talk. I think I can make her talk. In fact, I'm sure if are you sure you should be involving yourself in a criminal case only to degree that benefits her treatment,

I can crack her open. I know I can crack her I that is, by combining several of the newer, more aggressive theories we can we can retrieve a very specific, targeted piece of information. Wow, who is this new doctor Hayes who stands before me as a man of ideas? Consider your grand proposal approved. I'll have the necessary signatures by the end of the day tomorrow. Record everything. If it works the s I h will want to know every detail. I will, and if it doesn't, we wouldn't

want to know a thing about it. H understood, it's a lot of resources to dedicate to a single case. Have you considered the mechanics of a more widespread application of your therapy. I haven't yet. I'm still refining the method. It's never too early to think about where you would take this once it's perfected. While the s I G appreciates the value of labmize, we want to support therapies that can be applied on a broad spectrum of patients

to accomplish a variety of objectives. I don't see why not. I I see this as just the beginning. I'll be honest with your haste. I'm starting to like what I see in you. The society was starting to have its doubts, but I'm glad I stood up for you. Put her there. Let's get started. Oh, just one last thing, I hope you don't mind. The Society for the Investigation of Human Ecology does not assign projects or even recommend specific areas

for SERVE. We simply invest in projects relevant to progressive psychopharmacology, psychosurgery and research and share in the knowledge that results. And that's it. Abo'll do it. M M. Good morning, ladies. We hope you had a relaxing weekend on behalf of Dr Hayes and the nursing staff. We look forward to a week that is peaceful and productive. Our e C T. Psychle will get underway momentarily. Please tend to any personal business you need to finish up before we get started.

It's Monday, September and it's going to be a glorious day. Good morning, miss Wilbourne. And how are we today, Charlotte? Oh fine, that's great. Mhm. Is there something more on your mind? No, No, everything's just fine. Okay. Well, as you can see, I've got a lot of paperwork to sort through before Monday and e c T is about to begin. Yes, Monday morning is well, Monday morning is my time for one on one time with Dr Hayes remembers.

Has there been a schedule change because you said you're about to start ECT and I don't know if there's enough time. There's been a slight change of schedule, Okay, Okay. Being a new patient and someone who's been put here by the state, Karen is going to command more than her share of doctor Hayes's attention for a while at least. How is that fair? I beg your pardon, I said, how is that fair? Charlotte? Please don't take it personally. Don't get upset. I'm not upset. I'm sorry, I'm not upset.

I'm I'm really I'm really not okay, I'm not. Just bear with us, Charlotte, you'd be doing both Dr Hayes and myself a great consideration, if you'd just be patient. I only want to help. I know that Charlotte and you always are so helpful. I just don't want to ear no, not at my own expense. Why don't I talk to Dr Hayes later today? Tell him what a generous thing you did by giving up your interview times

so that Karen could get the treatment she needs. Let him know that this is a sacrifice you were willing to make sure. How would that be, I guess that would be. I'll do it as soon as the word it's clear after e C t Okay, okay, how are we doing? Burder? Just fine. I've almost sorted through today's schedule and wondered if Charlotte, yes, will you excuse us please? Of course, sorry, thank you doctor. She's worried that Karen has taken her place on the interview schedule this morning.

We can't let us start getting overly sensitive again or we'll never get her off the ward. Thank you for your patients. Ladies. We're ready to begin, and we'll start with Roberta and Carol. Please come up a joke back Stanley Brown, Asian managers here with me, Are you ready for the job? Favorite? And I love how um relationship with your Yeah? All right, well when you to sign what you want to say to me, come on back. If you think you can seduce Dr Hayes and get

what you want, forget it. He's a good man, better than the likes of you. Do you know about good man? I know a good man when I see one. I am married to the most wonderful man in the world, and I'm privileged, privileged to be the patient of one of the finest doctors in the profession. You know him that well, do you? I do? Stop laughing? Why are you laughing? You can put your cloths away, Charlotte. I'm not gonna stee you your beloved doctor away from you.

That's not all You're welcome to him. I'm just playing the game. What game? The survival game? We do it all the time on the outside. Figure out how a man wants you to act, and then react accordingly. I'm not saying let him own you. Just make him think he owns you, and by yourself the freedom to operate independently.

Don't let you change you. Don't let any man change you. Oh, Karen, You'll never get out of here with that out of wake up, Buttercup, I figured out more about your doctor Hayes in two weeks than you have in two years. Two years, Charlotte, listen, I know doctor Hayes better than he knows himself. That is ridiculous. Educated man, good Christian man, that's right, bursting at the scenes. Someone like him won't come out and say what he wants, but he'll drop hints.

He tries to find a way around the moral and ethical barricades so his conscience can stay clean while his ding dong gets nice and dirty. Go on, oh, you've noticed something, Harry. We don't have much time a brute like graph. You know exactly what he wants, so you're always prepared. But a man like Hayes, he keeps his desire hidden, buried so deep inside of himself that he doesn't even know it himself, and when it finally starts to use out, it won't come out through ordinary channels.

You're disgusting just because you're a whore. Don't try to seme your doctor Hayes with raking woman. The most dangerous creeps on the street aren't the pimps and the drug addicts. No, No, the real degenerate is the do Gootter, the White Knight, the Reforma. You think I'm saying this to be cruel to hurt you? Why else to warn you? Stupid? Elaine

and Charlotte please come up. Don't call me stupid. Okay, poor choice of words, but I'm only trying to explain to you for for your Hey, Charlotte, come on, we're waiting. Come on, Charlotte, Charlotte, you're going out there. You are, Charlotte, It's not like you to keep us waiting. I'm sorry, but I was talking to Karen and she up on the gurney. What happened, Karen, Karen, she was saying terrible things about Dr Hayes, comparing you. Oh well, she was

making terrible insinuations about you. She was implying, you're going to start on this again. No, no, I think she's up to something. Listen, listen. I think she's going to try and trick you. Now, Charlotte, I am trying to be helpful. I know you are, sweetie, by down on this. Okay, we're set. Give Karen and Neva please come up here. Pending it all in your letters. Car That's why a special my churn already. What were you saying to Charlotte just now, you know, girl talk? She seemed upset? Is

that my thoughts? I won't have you hurting her. Okay, we won't allow it. Jesus right, Charlotte, what's going on coming? I'm sorry? Okay, that's hop up on the gurney. Yes, ma'am. What was that all about? What what were you saying to Charlotte? That head her so upset? Really? I think Charlotte was feeling a little jealous. Her emotions got the better of her. Would you say that's accurate, Karen, Yes, ma'am. Uh huh wow. Let's keep the female hysteria to a minimum, Shelly, yes,

Doctor brite down on this, okay. Set The Control Group is a production of How Stuff Works, written and directed by Brett Wood, recorded and mixed by Rob Gal two