IC inbox for Snowblind

[thewarningafter]

@beyonce

You've reached Dr. Stephen Strange. Leave a message and my secretary will get back to you.

Comments

[awwnoun]

Constant. [ Clint mutters. A little louder: ] Just an ache all the time, with random pulses of really intense pain every once in a while. The stuff I've been taking isn't working anymore. Medium grade painkillers.

[ At least this is making it easier to not concentrate on what happened. ]

changing this to 205?

[thewarningafter]

We could try a different prescription. [He doesn't want to take that off the table entirely, low supplies or no. He has a feeling Clint would already have asked whoever wrote the original prescription if that's what he's after, though...unless, of course, it was the (currently) late Dr. Watson.]

Have you ever tried meditation? It helps more than you might think.

yes!

[awwnoun]

[ It is Watson - and Clint doesn't want to bother him at all. John has so much on his plate that he feels like garbage for asking the guy for medical advice. ]

I don't want to waste more medicine. [ Clint mutters. ] Meditation? Like the whole ohmmmm thing?

[thewarningafter]

["Wasting." John's reluctant patient, then?]

I mean, you can chant Om if it helps you. It's gonna be easier to start off with focused meditation; a lot of people use their own breathing as the focal point instead of a mantra.

[awwnoun]

[ The one and only. ]

Okay, I think I can try that. I don't know what I'm supposed to do with it, though. Is it just -- [ A beat, and he has to mute the audio at the flare up stab of pain that hits him. He sounds sort of winded when he comes back: ] ... Is it just emptying your head?

[thewarningafter]

That's the general idea. In focused meditation you let yourself focus on some kind of stimulus instead of trying to completely clear out your head. It's easier. You can start doing it for five minutes at a time; shorter is better when you're not used to it.

What I want you to do is to get yourself comfortable, close your eyes, and relax your body. Focus on your breathing. Don't think about it, just experience it. If your mind starts to wander, just bring it back in.

[awwnoun]

Okay. [ It's hard to get comfortable, but he tries - he really does give it his best effort, but he's not good at this, he really isn't. He gets distracted, he can't sit still, and loses patience about a minute in. ]

... This is hard. [ Huff. ]

[thewarningafter]

[There's a soft chuckle at the other end of the line.]

I know.

[Helpful. Stephen makes a thoughtful noise.]

There's also guided meditation. I could walk you through it.