Valley Hill Mental Hospital

Psychiatrist: Dr. William Branton

Patient: Marcus DeWitt

Date:05Mar

Prep Notes:

Today Elizabeth and I started to review the case for my second new patient of this month, a young man named Marcus DeWitt. He is a 20 year old black male who is in good health. He is studying in pre-med to become a surgeon and is among the top in his class. He is single with no children and lives by himself. He supports himself by working as a Forensic morgue technician at night which doubles as a job and practical training for his desired profession. No previous records of self harm, schizophrenia, paranoia, or hallucinations.

Mr. DeWitt's file shows that he was well on his way to a successful future. His problems began when he first reported hearing sounds that other people cannot hear. He visited several audiologist to have his hearing checked and it came back normal. He had no detectable problems that any doctor could find however Mr. DeWitt insisted he could still hear a drumming sound. The intensity of the sound would fluctuate; at times being a dull distant beat but other times it would be so loud that he would appear to be in physical pain. He even underwent neurological testing that all came back normal.

A second point of concern is that Mr. DeWitt seems to have created a fictitious individual similar to Mr. Taylor (See 04Mar consultation). Mr. DeWitt claims that he was joined in his pre-med classes by one Sarah Lawford and the two had been taking these classes together for two years. In checking with the University, there was no record of a Sarah Lawford ever attending. In checking with his professors it was the same, none had any knowledge of a Sarah Lawford. Once again, I find myself with a patient that has completely invented an individual. I should look into this deeper to see if there are other similar cases that I can learn from.

On its own this would not be enough to admit one to Valley Hill. Sadly Mr. DeWitt has also been attempting to harm himself. On multiple occasions he has tried to stab/puncture his eardrums with sharp objects. He fortunately has not managed to cause permanent damage but did have to undergo minor medical care for this. He has also attempted suicide twice; once by trying to overdose on sleeping medicine and the second he was trying to jump from the top of a building onto the street below. The attempted overdose was stopped by a concerned neighbor who could hear Mr. DeWitt screaming from his apartment and called the cops. The drumming sound had gotten so bad according to him that he could not take it anymore. After a few days in the hospital he was released but with a mandatory psychiatric evaluation a few days from then. The day before this evaluation was to take place it would seem the sounds once again drew too loud and he attempted to leap from a building. Once again a cop was able to pull him from the ledge, but this time he was admitted here for a full evaluation under strict supervision.

I cannot help but think of my wife with this case. She once had a friend who committed suicide by overdosing on sleeping pills. Her friend’s reasons were very different but the outcome was still tragic and it took my wife years to come to terms with it. I hope I can help Mr. DeWitt so that not only he, but his friends and family can all be at peace.

Meeting Minutes:

Note that Elizabeth, per the norm, brought Mr. DeWitt into my office restrained in a straitjacket and in a wheelchair. The straitjacket was to obviously prevent self harm and the wheelchair was simply a precaution against him trying to run away.

Myself: Good day Mr. DeWitt. How are you feeling today?

Mr. DeWitt: Drowsy. I'm assuming the pills that the nurses are forcing me to take sedatives? Then again, since there are 6 different horse-pills it's likely a mix between sedatives, antipsychotics, and mood stabilizers.

Myself: That would be correct. Your obviously studied well in class. Aside from the medicine’s side effects how are you?

Mr. DeWitt: I’m terribly bored. There is nothing to do here and I hate it. Between class and work I always went nonstop 18 hours a day. If I was lucky I would get 5 hours of sleep. But now it looks like I have all the time in the world to sleep.

In observing Mr. DeWitt’s face he did not look like someone who was getting enough sleep. Deep bags had formed under his eyes and he looked more akin to someone who had been awake for more than a few days strait.

Myself: Please make sure you are getting enough rest. As you know, it is important for your recovery.

Mr. DeWitt: Looking away to the side and scoffed, Right.

Small talk was obviously over at this point so I wanted to start down the path of events that lead this young man to my office.

Myself: Can you still hear the sounds even today? You have had constant dosages of medicine over the past few days that should have been well absorbed into your system at this point.

Mr. DeWitt: Yes. I can hear them. I can hear them loud and clear. If this was something a pill could fix I would have never been here to begin with.

At this point I noticed that Mr. DeWitt’s right foot was slowly tapping the ground. I was unsure if this was intentional or not so I decided to not say anything about it. It was light enough where it made no sound but followed a slow beat, maybe once every 10 seconds.

Myself: Tell me where this all started. What happened before you started hearing the sounds.

Mr. DeWitt: I was working a lot. Between school and my job I never had much time to relax. It wasn't bad though. Honestly I enjoyed staying busy. I never went out much aside from that, that was until Sarah and I started hanging out on the weekends.

Myself: So you two hung out often?

Mr. DeWitt: Not at first. I knew who she was because we have had quite a few classes together. She was your typical party girl and seeing as I didn't care for the part lifestyle we only spoke in class a few times.

Myself: So how did you two start to interact more?

Mr. DeWitt: We were in our last semester of Bio and we had to break up into teams for the class. The final project was a pain and so we were put in groups of 5. Within a few weeks of the class 1 guy dropped the class, another was caught cheating on a test and was kicked out, and the third was highly unreliable. Even though Sarah loved her parties she was quite smart. So the project landed on just the two of us working together.

He paused for a moment as if he was reflecting on the events.

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

Mr. DeWitt: It was a lot of work but it was fun. We made a lot of progress quickly and ended up with some free time at the end of the semester. If there was nothing due that week we would go out instead of work on the project. This became quite regular and eventually we agreed to start officially dating .

Myself: So Sarah and yourself were dating?

Mr. DeWitt: Yea. For about 3 months. Until, well… She disappeared.

Myself: Explain to me what happened. Did she drop out of school? Did she go abroad?

Note that I have already looked into Sarah Lawford and there is no evidence this person ever existed. The school has nobody registered under this name, student of faculty. I had also previously checked with his professor concerning the group they were in together and he said that Mr. DeWitt was in a group with only 4 other individuals. The other 3 people match Mr. DeWitt’s description but the professor indicated that it was Mr. DeWitt that alone carried most of the work related to that team.

Mr. DeWitt: She didn’t quit school, move back home, or go overseas. She just simply vanished. It is as if she stopped existing all together. We went out one night and I lost track of her. When I got home her things were gone. She had left a few things at my apartment for when she would stay overnight occasionally. Well it was all gone. I went to her place and nobody answered the door. I called her god-knows how many times but I only get a message saying the phone number was invalid. After a few days I spoke to her apartment manager and he said that nobody lived in that apartment and had not for months. I even went to my teachers about her and they said there was nobody in the class by that name, which is bullshit!

He was starting working himself up in a fit but instead of calming him down right away I kept listening. He truly felt passionate about this. In his mind she was real and resolving this might be key in stopping his suicidal tendency.

Mr. DeWitt: Everyone thought I was crazy. Well… Who knows, maybe I am. I broke into her apartment one night and nothing was there. It was just as the manager had said. The fridge was empty, there was no furniture or pictures on the walls. The cabinets were empty. Hell, there wasn't even marks on the carpet from her couch. Another day I broke into my old professor’s office and went through our project from the previous semester. Her name wasn't on it. Her name wasn't anywhere. All the work that she did was still there but it was credited to me! How is that possible?

He was nearly yelling at the end but then he stopped himself and after a few deep breaths he was calm. His next words were in almost a whisper, full of sorrow.

Mr. DeWitt: Maybe I have lost my mind, but I still love her.

Myself: Let's talk about the sounds you started hearing. When did they start?

Mr. DeWitt: The same night she disappeared.

Myself: Tell me the events of that night.

Mr. DeWitt: We went out one night to go to this party she had heard about that was downtown. As we were almost there we saw a few cop cars parked in a circle at the place and a few people were cuffed and being questioned. From what I guess there was either a fight or maybe drugs involved. We didn’t hang around to see but just kept going. We ended up walking around downtown until we came across the new Marina that is under construction. She wanted to check it out so we walked up to it as close as we could. It was blocked off by a fence and some barbed wire. Before I knew it she had found a hole in the fence and had run into the building.

Myself: So you two broke into the Marina in the middle of the night?

Mr. DeWitt: Well I wasn’t going to just leave her, so yea, I followed. The place was dark and huge on the inside. It was like what you would think of if you were in a museum with all the lights off in the night. There were display cases everywhere, whale skeletons hanging from the ceiling, It was truly exciting. There was enough light coming in the windows from the city lights where we didn't have much trouble navigating the dark. I caught up to her and she wanted to go to the lower levels where they have a large glass window against the ocean so you can see the natural sea life.

Mr. DeWitt started to talk slower and in more hushed tones. As if there was a part he was not looking forward to coming up.

Mr. DeWitt: We found our way down to the lower floor easily enough. At the window it was too dark to make out much of anything. We stood there for a minute trying to discern shadows from fish but there wasn't much else. She started to head back up when I first heard the sound. It was like something heavy falling far away, just this distinct low rumble. I was confused at first but I didn't feel any vibrations in the floor so I assumed it was too far away for concern. I was following her to the stairs, which she was already up a few, when I heard the sounds again. This time it was closer. I called out to Sarah but she left my sight up the stairs and didn't reply. I paused and looked around once more because I felt as if I was being watched.

He started to shake as if he was trembling. Something scared him that night.

Mr. DeWitt: The third time I heard the sound it was so close I could feel it in my chest. And I saw something. It was in the ocean and it was big. The sea window is almost 100 meters long and 10 meters tall. More than half of it was covered by a shadow instantly when the third sound hit. At first I thought it was a whale or maybe a ship but it wasn't moving right. It had appeared too quickly. I couldn't make out any recognizable shape but it was a shadow that was darker than any shadow I have ever seen. I was frozen staring at it. My legs were were jello but somehow were still holding my upright. It wasn't until the fourth sound that I came to my senses and ran. It sounded as if whatever it was had happened right next to me. I think the only reason I ran was because I was being knocked over by the pressure of the sound and just happened to keep my feet under me. By the time I got to the top of the stairs the noise had stopped, but I didn't stop running. I called out for Sarah and searched for her frantically. She never replied and I never found her. I assumed maybe she ran just like I was trying to so I left the building and went back out the same hole in the fence but there was nothing indicating she was there. I glanced at the ocean but here was nothing there. No ships, no whale, nothing. But I kept running. I ran until I was at a nearby intersection crowded with people. Nobody acted as if anything was out of place so I didn't bother asking anyone about the sounds. Instead I searched the crowd for Sarah. I must have stood at that intersection for hours looking for her. I tried calling her phone for the first time here and was surprised when I got the error that the phone was not in service. I ended up going home alone that night with no answers.

He took a deep breath and once more steadied himself.

Mr. DeWitt: In the morning I awoke to the sound. It was very faint but there was no mistaking it. It was as if a ton of bricks had dropped a mile away, too far to be considered loud however too loud to ever be missed. From that day on I have never stopped hearing it.

Myself: So that night was the last you ever saw Sarah and at the same time it was the first you ever heard that sound. What is it that you think you saw?

Mr. DeWitt: As if I know. Honestly I’m glad I didn't see it, if ‘it’ was even something in the first place. It was dark, I was looking underwater, It may have been nothing. But what I want to know first and foremost is what is what happened to Sarah. The detail that I remember her in is no delusion. I could not have made her up. That question alone would be enough to drive me mad but I am also now constantly assaulted by this noise too. It’s too much.

I noticed that Mr. DeWitt’s foot was now tapping the ground almost in harmony with the ticks of a second hand. It was also no longer a soft inaudible tap but now a noticeable thud.

Myself: Do you hear the sound right now?

Mr. DeWitt: Yes. As I said, I always hear it.

Myself: Currently the sound is getting close and louder for you, isn’t it?

He glanced at me confused at first as if he suspected that I could hear the sound. Then noticed his foot tapping along the the beat that resided only within his own mind.

Mr. DeWitt: Yes. It feels like it enjoys tormenting me. It starts far away in a slow drum then progressively get closer, and louder, and faster. It feels like I am being hunted.

Myself: So you attempted suicide twice so you can avoid the pain?

Mr. DeWitt leaned forward and gazed at the floor. His expression was one of sadness and a near broken man.

Mr. DeWitt: I just want the pain to stop. These drums will get louder and louder until I feel like my body is going to be shaken apart. I will scream and it will not stop. I will cry and it will not stop. I will vomit, shit and piss myself but it will not stop. Only when I give up hope and wish for death does it then leave me alone, curled up in my filth only to reset the timer for a soon yet unknown time for it to return. Almost two months have passed since this has started. No doctor can find anything wrong. No medicine can fend off the noise that only I can hear.

Mr. DeWitt looked up at me with tears running down his face.

Mr. DeWitt: I do not want die. But death has to be better than this.

Post Meeting Notes:

I am having a hard time in remaining professional with Mr. DeWitt. I feel like I must embrace him as if he were the child my wife and I never had. It is clear that his condition has driven him to an extreme however who could not be tempted to take their own life in such a situation. From his point of view he has a disease that has no cure and the only symptom is eternal suffering. This is not madness but humanity at its breaking point.

Once again I am baffled by the story about Sarah. Just like with Mr. Taylor I have another story of a person who was seemingly fabricated by the patient. Both of these men truly believe these other people existed and are willing to go to great acts to prove it. But in the end I think that both men are very possible to accept that their memories are false.

The more I think about it the more their stories almost line up. Both men have the same delusion of a second person that does not exist. After some difficult to explain and traumatic event this delusion was broken so that now they are able to see the world without the fabricated individual but it has been replaced with a sensory problem. Mr. Taylor is so afraid of his eyes (specifically what he will see) that he refuses to ever open them. Mr. DeWitt is being attacked by some unknown sound. Is there a connection or is it just a coincidence?

Once again I feel that hypnotherapy will be our best next course of action. With this I can break into their subconscious and rid them of their strife. As this will take a few days to coordinate I will keep them both under observation until that time. As it is already getting late I must leave. Tonight is my wife and I’s 15 year anniversary and we are celebrating with dinner at her favorite restaurant. Thanks to my assistant Elizabeth I am rarely late to these events anymore. She has been working for me for almost 3 years and her organization skills are superb for someone half my age. Honestly, without Elizabeth to help line up my meetings and doing the recordkeeping I would be hard pressed to ever complete my work.