Working on my character's sharings. Hoping I can get it posted by tomorrow evening!

EDIT: [hider=Joseph Harrell]

[b]Name[/b]: Joseph Harrell 

[b]Age[/b]: 32

[b]Appearance[/b]: Joseph is 5'6", thin and pale with a narrow face and sharp features. His hair and stubble is light brown; his hair has some grey areas at the sides, and is usually dishevelled. His eyes are dark green and sunken. He dresses neatly, with long-sleeved shirts and pants, but always seems to wear the same pair of black leather shoes. 

[b]Condition[/b]: Agoraphobia, major depressive disorder, alcoholism. (In order: an anxiety disorder characterized by anxiety in situations where certain environments are seen as dangerous or uncomfortable, often due to their vast openness or crowdedness, a a pervasive and persistent low mood that is accompanied by low self-esteem and by a loss of interest or pleasure in normally enjoyable activities, and an addiction to alcohol). He has been depressed for several years, and used alcohol as a means of self-medication. When he got married he tried to stop but couldn't, resulting in his wife leaving and taking their six-year-old daughter with her. 

[b]Shares[/b]: 

[u]Meeting Dr Blake[/u]

Going to therapy was my brother's idea. Mark never could mind his own business; he always had to be the Good Samaritan. And apparently, he'd decided to make his poor drunk divorced little brother his next project. 

The first I knew of this was when Dr Blake called my house. He introduced himself and said my brother might have told me to expect a call from him. I said he hadn't, and there was a pause. 

"He wanted to schedule you an appointment. I told him that in the end, you were the one who had to decide if you wanted help, and that I'd be calling you to see if you did."

That seemed fair enough, so I decided I'd stay on the line and answer his questions. My brother had told him a lot, apparently. He knew I hadn't left my house in three months. He knew about Courtney and Elizabeth. He even knew about my drinking, and that I'd lost my job. He didn't know about my feeling completely empty and dead inside for several years, though. I guess even my brother has his limits. 

By the end of that, getting help was sounding pretty good. Still, I didn't want to lie on a couch or whatever shrinks used nowadays and talk about my mother, and I told him so. 

He laughed. "Don't worry about that, Mr Harrell. I can assure you my methods are not quite so old-fashioned."

There was still a bigger problem. "What's the address?"

He told me, and my heart sank. It was several subway stops away from the apartment complex I lived in. Not a big deal for most people, but I could already feel the stares on my back as people took in my rumpled clothes and general disarray and knew I was a failure.

"If you prefer, I also hold group therapy sessions." He told me where they were. Near where I bought my groceries once a week, as it turned out. The next session was two days away. "Would you like to join?"

And I said that would be fine.

[u]First group therapy session[/u]
There weren't many people on my way there, which I'd been afraid of. The only good thing about being unemployed was not having a schedule to worry about. I'd shaved and combed my hair some, but my clothes were a lost cause. I hadn't been able to bring myself to do any chores for weeks, so I had to grab the least dirty shirt and pants I could find out of the clothes hamper. I must've looked like a hobo, but I was going to a therapy session. It was obvious I needed help, right?

My hip flask was in the front pocket of my pants. Mark wanted me to pour all my booze down the sink, but I wasn't ready to give them up yet. Still, a fresh start made sense, and he was paying for this and anything else I needed as long as I didn't spend it on alcohol. So I'd filled it with water before I left. 

I stopped in front of the grocery store, took a deep breath and continued walking. A few steps away and I was already starting to feel nervous. This may sound stupid, but I was worried Courtney would see me. Even worse, if she had Elizabeth with her. If she saw her dad like this...

Despite this, I managed to make it to the room in time for the session to start. Everyone took turns introducing themselves; they all seemed to have better reasons for being there than me. If I was stronger, I could've stopped drinking, I could've managed to get out of the house, I could've stopped feeling bad all the time...

The person before me finished speaking, and I realised everyone was looking at me. I had to say something. 

"My name is Joseph," I said. "I have agoraphobia, I'm an alcoholic, and I may or may not be depressed." Out of habit, I opened my hip flask and took a swig.

[u]Hypnosis[/u]
The sessions had been going much better than I'd expected. I'd gotten to know some of the people there, and we had more in common than I'd first thought. I'd gotten a job the previous week as a clerk; a step down from my previous position as a low-level manager but it was better than nothing. I hadn't had a drink in weeks. So I'd been feeling a bit better in general. 

Until Dr. Blake told me what this week's therapy would involve. 

"Do we [i]have[/i] to do this?" I was already lying on the therapy couch. At least I didn't have to talk about my mother. Then again, if I'd known Dr. Blake would be doing this instead, I'd've happily taken that option. 

"Other people here has already been hypnotised," he replied. "You'll be perfectly safe."

"I know, it's just..." I sighed. "I really don't want to see all the things I did. And I don't want to end up blabbing every single detail in my memories to everyone here."

"You don't have to worry about that. Hypnosis can't make you do anything you genuinely don't want to. The moment you start feeling uncomfortable I'll bring you back, I promise."

"Well...alright then." I lay back down. "I'm ready."

He told me to close my eyes and just focus on his voice. After I'd done that, he told me to pick a time within the past three months and imagine myself there, observing. 

Before I could decide, the scene faded in around me. I didn't want to say it at first. 

"I'm in my apartment with Courtney."

"And what are you doing?" 

"She's begging me to stop drinking. I was spending more than half my pay on booze, and if I didn't quit we'd be out on the streets. Didn't I care about our daughter at all? I'm not answering. But I'm getting angrier."

I knew what would happen next.

Courtney stepped forward, and I slapped her as hard as I could. She screamed. 

And far too late, I saw Elizabeth standing in the hallway. She was in her nightgown and her eyes were wide. 

"Lizzie?" In that moment I forgot I was in a memory, that I was only an observer here. I stepped towards her. "Oh god, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to—"

"Joseph?" Dr. Blake's voice. "What do you see?"

"I–" My breath caught, and tears pricked my eyelids. "I'd like to be brought back now. [i]Please.[/i]"

After a long moment, Dr. Blake started counting. "Ten, nine, eight..." 
[/hider4]
[b]Possessions[/b]: 

-A gold watch, given to him by his ex-wife soon after they got married. He wears it every day. 

-Stainless steel hip flask. He used to store whiskey inside it, but has replaced it with water since starting therapy. 

-A leather wallet, which was a Christmas present from his daughter. Apart from money and one or two credit cards, there is also a photograph of his family, taken about two years ago. 

[b]Relations[/b]: In general, Joseph feels that the other characters are in therapy for a reason, so he tries to be understanding of them and hopes they get better. 

As for specifics, 

Alma Evans: Joseph probably wouldn't like her much either; he'd see her as judgemental and pretentious. He'd also notice she was avoiding him and do the same. And maybe sometimes he'd drink from his hip flask where she can see him, just to irritate her even more. 

Kyle Mare: I think Joseph would see him as a kindred spirit, kind of. They're the same age and have had problems with their spouses (or fiancée in Kyle's case). He'd try to befriend him; maybe try to make small talk or something, but this is slightly stymied by the fact that Kyle's problems are not his fault whereas he cannot say the same for himself. He really hopes that Kyle can recover and find happiness, because it would mean that he could as well. 

Aimee Askins: Joseph thinks she seems nice, if a bit shy. He can sympathise with her social anxiety, and respects her courage in seeking help for her problems instead of withdrawing from the world like he did. 

Maya Chen: He doesn't know her all that well, but he feels sorry for her because of her illness. He'd be polite towards her, but that's about it. [/hider]