Chapter 7
On the Disturbed ward, Lee, another patient there, comforts Deborah by speaking to her. Deborah realizes that it takes great courage for Lee to reach out of her own illness to speak to Deborah, but Deborah doesn't know how thank her for it. Deborah also notices that the D ward is more comfortable for her because up there everyone is crazy, and there's no need to pretend that they aren't. Even on the B ward she was on before, there was some pretense of sanity, but on D ward the women get in fights with the attendants and throw beds and act as crazy as they really are.
Topic Tracking: Deceit 6
Topic Tracking: Friendship 3
When Deborah shows Dr. Fried the cut on her arm, Dr. Fried isn't frightened by it the way that most people are when sickness manifests itself in self-mutilation. In return for the doctor's understanding, Deborah tells her about Yr and its secret language. Deborah explains that Yr was created to fill the void of loneliness that Deborah lived in at school and at camp. Then she explains how Yr became not only a place of refuge for her, but also a place of punishment. She says that the cruelty that Yr could exert on her proved that it was as real as the world. Dr. Fried doesn't judge her for her secrets, and when Deborah leaves the appointment that day, she is surprised to see that the world has not ended.
That night, however, the nonexistent tumor flares up and she descends into the Pit. When she wakes, she is in a cold pack, which is a method that mental hospitals used to help patients calm down. Deborah is surprised to find that when she emerged from the Pit while in the pack, there is no pain and she feels better.
View More Summaries on I Never Promised You a Rose Garden
