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    middle, standing at an angle. The room was L-shaped and in the short leg was a recliner chair, but Jay didn’t like using that until the client was more comfortable so he indicated that Mack should sit down in one of the single chairs.
    Despite his earlier confident entrance, Jay could tell the man wasn’t totally at ease, but then most people who came to his office had been through numerous doctors and therapists before arriving at this place and Jay really couldn’t blame him.
    “Let’s get straight to the point, shall we?” he offered. “Most of our time in this room will be spent talking. It’s important that you are honest with me, and to help you do that I will be honest with you as well.
    Also, I call things by their name and it would be easiest if you do this too.
    Anatomical parts have official names and it’s easier to use the right ones than to use euphemisms, don’t you agree?” He saw the other man nod, but not with great confidence. “Also, nothing that happens here leaves this room. I take notes and these do not leave this office. In some cases I will record our session, but I will ask for your express permission before doing so and you will be well aware of the camera at that time. Do you have any questions right now?”
    Mack sat up straighter. “How do you work? I’ve seen quite a few therapists, without much success, and you were recommended to me, but I realise I have no idea what makes you so special?” Jay smiled. He was asked this question quite often. “I don’t know if I’m special, but I do know I have quite a high success rate. I use general things like conversation. I’m not a Freudian so I don’t believe your childhood is to blame for everything. I simply feel there are blockages inside people that prevent them from functioning normally, and frank conversation can come a long way in resolving these blockages. I will also teach you some relaxation techniques, since some people are just too tense to be in any kind of mood to perform sexually. In some cases I use hypnosis to lower the barriers we create for ourselves. I often record those sessions, simply to show my clients afterwards that when they The Fine Line by Zahra Owens

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    lower their barriers, they sometimes can do the things they would like to do, but believe they can’t.”
    Mack nodded that he understood.
    “Now, I usually don’t talk this much. It’s your turn. Can you tell me why you feel you need a therapist?”
    Jay could tell Mack was uncomfortable with the question but he knew that this was the easy part, so he gave him enough time to formulate his answer. He saw the man shift in his chair and lean forward until his elbows were resting on his knees.

    “MR. ELLIS, could you tell us what type of people you usually treat?”
    “My average patient is a man with an erectile dysfunction for which they cannot find a physical cause. This could mean an inability to maintain an erection, or to achieve an erection. An inability to reach orgasm or premature ejaculation. Some men can only achieve orgasm on their own and not with a partner. Occasionally I also treat men with fetishes who want a more normal sexual life.”
    “Very well, sir,” the officer answered, without a hint of emotion on her face. “Since we are here in a private setting, Mr. MacAllister has allowed me to ask you this question and has given you leave to answer it, since this is information necessary for these proceedings. Could you tell us why you were treating him?”
    “When Mack… Mr. MacAllister first came to see me he was suffering from severe erectile dysfunction. He was functionally impotent and could not even achieve sexual release through masturbation, although physically his specialists couldn’t find anything wrong with him.”

    “CAN you tell me what kinds of things you’ve tried?” Jay’s voice The Fine Line by Zahra Owens

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    was calm and non-judgemental and he tried to give his client enough personal space, even though he too was leaning forward in his chair now, the clipboard with his illegible handwritten notes on it firmly in his hand.
    “Everything I can think of and everything that’s been recommended to me,” Mack answered reluctantly.
    “Porn? Penile pump? Viagra?” Jay rattled off the standard ‘visual stimulation, mechanical stimulation, chemical stimulation’ holy trinity and saw Mack nod every time.
    “You’ve tried masturbating? Have you tried it with a partner?”
    “Both,” Mack stated