Original subtitles

Look at us having fun outside the hospital.

Would Dr. Wolf ever take you to a haunted house?

Not one that pedals in harmful and outdated tropes for cheap thrills.

I mean, look at where we are.

Out of super-fun team-building activity, let's give Charlie credit for trying.

I'm just tired of the narrative that mental health care is scary.

Stop being such a buzzkill, Dr. Kinney.

I think you're supposed to be something other than yourself for Halloween.

We're supposed to be team-building?

I'm just saying that the narrative is always the same.

Images of padded rooms and straitjackets, they

don't make it easier for people to ask for help.

Okay, but maybe you're just a little scared?

All right, you shut up, Clyde.

Sorry, Bonnie.

I'm checking in.

I get your point.

No, I do not like that.

You have mirror touch in a hall of mirrors.

Is this, like, symbolism, Dr. Marcus?

Yeah, it represents your vanity.

Jacob?

You guys?

I guess it's just us.

Dream team.

I'm gonna go find Erica.

No.

I got you.

Okay.

Okay.

Dad?

Starting compressions.

Oh, my God.

Oh, my God.

What?

He was fine when he was born.

I called him.

Oh, my God.

Is he gonna be okay?

30-year-old male found unresponsive in an ice bath.

Pulseless.

Downtime at least 30 minutes.

You wanna call it?

Not until he's back to normal temperature.

I need more blankets!

Ah, no.

No costumes, Pastor Adams.

You can collect said contraband after you clock out.

The last thing a patient needs is Tinkerbell diagnosing them with meningitis.

Ms. Carter, do you have the latest on Jorge Torres's vitals?

I need regular updates.

Spit it out, Estelle.

Why is Nurse Silva out here trying to kill everyone's Halloween spirit?

I heard that day.

I think she wanted you to.

Oh, no.

That is the third person to die in room 313 this week.

The curse continues.

Well, let's take it out of rotation for now.

Keep it on.

I don't want patients in the hallway.

Curses aren't real.

We're good.

Because I need to move Jorge Torres, so let's put him in 313.

Jorge Torres is fine where he is.

Copy that.

We'll let the room breathe for a beat.

Dr. Joshua Nichols.

Yeah, how can I help?

You've been served.

What was that about curses not being real?

I'm sorry.

Did my eyes deceive me?

Are you actually working on Halloween?

I thought this is a sacred holiday for you.

It was sacred.

Morris and I used to love throwing our monsters in martinis

parties, showcasing our fabulous couples' costumes.

I'm in mourning.

I should have remembered that, but you stopped inviting me to those.

Because you refused to wear a costume.

Anyway, I'd rather be here keeping busy than

wallowing at home eating fun-sized candy bars.

Well, I bet next year you'll be back to wearing a

fabulous couple's costume with someone who deserves you.

I'm not holding my breath.

Sir, just try to breathe.

The medic said that he was dead when they arrived, but that's not possible, okay?

I refuse to believe that.

I'm sorry.

Dr. Nash, can I help?

A middle-aged man found by his assistant, pulseless and hypothermic, in an ice bath,

warmed him back to room 10 because, you know,

you're not really dead until you're warm or dead.

Last pulse check?

Two minutes ago.

No cardiac motion.

Confirmed an ultrasound.

Okay, I'll look into this.

Okay, okay, thank you.

Halt compressions, please.

I think we're gonna have to call it.

No!

Okay, we got a live one.

All hands!

Dr. Nash, your persistence paid off.

Oh, my God!

He did it!

He beat death!

I need another IV!

Now, please!

He's at pharmacy.

We've got one, two.

Normal pupil reaction.

Okay, I'd like you to lift your leg up, put the opposite heel on your knee,

and draw a straight line down to your shin.

What's this about?

This is a test of cerebellar function.

The coordination in your lower body looks good.

In fact, I'd say you're in pretty decent shape considering

that for an hour or so this morning you were essentially dead.

Did you hear that, Thomas?

Nothing more validating than impressing a doctor.

That may be so, but I am still concerned that your

loss of consciousness could have been neurological.

Can you recall what happened before you passed out?

Why were you in an ice bath?

I do a cold plunge every morning just to stimulate the vagus nerve.

So this morning I was sitting in the bath for

a minute or so, and then everything went blank.

Next thing I know, I'm here.

I love your professional opinion.

Do you think the cold shocked my heart into arrhythmia?

I heard about that happen to a guy in Sweden.

Well, we're not ruling anything out yet, but I

think that's unlikely considering your EKG readout.

Yeah, see, that makes sense.

I have a heart of a 24-year-old and a penis, too.

Do you time the lengths of your nighttime erections, Dr. Wolf?

Mine can last three hours.

I'm sorry.

How is this relevant?

It's a sign of cardiovascular health.

Speaking of which, what is my blood pressure?

119 over 78.

Stone cold normal.

Not for me.

I'm usually below 110.

That's why I'm feeling spiky.

Is there dextrose in that solution?

I'm on a no-sugar diet, guys.

We will look into that with the nursing staff.

Have you always been so attuned to your health?

Oh, we are obsessed with data.

Part of my job is to help Cyrus keep track of everything.

We log his body fat percentage, VO2 Max, HSCRP, ALT, GGT, LDLC, HDLC.

Sorry.

I hope I didn't constitute breaking my NDA.

Nonsense.

We've earned bragging rights.

We're especially proud of my telomere length.

Incredibly robust for my age.

Wow.

A biohacker like those tech billionaires?

It's not just billionaires.

It's a whole subculture now.

These guys, and they typically are guys, they believe that through diet,

sleep, exercise, supplements and drugs, that

they can hack their bodies and live forever.

There's a lot of women who are into it, too,

and it's not necessarily about living forever.

Most people are focused on increasing their health span.

Basically, the number of good, high-quality years you get.

Imagine living your 80s the way most people live their 50s.

Well, you know that longevity is not a new fad.

From ancient Chinese emperors who took Mercury pills to dark-age Europeans

searching the globe for the fountain of youth, the quest

for eternal life is one of humanity's oldest pursuits.

I'm all for healthy lifestyle choices.

It's just the idea that anyone can beat death isn't science.

It's hubris.

We literally have a patient who just beat death, for now.

But if we want to keep him alive, we have to figure

out exactly what happened to him in that ice bath.

Run every lab you can think of while we find out more about Cyrus' unique lifestyle.

Maybe go easy on the rum next time?

Aye, Captain.

Hey!

Dance!

Uh-uh, uh-uh.

Oh, no, I don't want this doctor.

Please!

Hey, Mom, I'm not angling for another scan.

I just wanted to check in, see how you're doing.

What is it with you?

Why are you so obsessed with me?

Obsessed?

Please, don't flatter yourself.

I'm literally doing my job.

And you don't want to deal with me.

I'm pretty sure the last time you were here, you were swinging an IV pole at me.

I don't want to deal with this patient.

Touche, dawg.

So what brings you in?

The holidays can get a little lonely out there.

Any chance I can get an upgrade?

Yeah, I got you.

I got a call about a psych consult.

This one's a barrel of laughs.

Good luck, Dr. Pierce.

No, absolutely not.

I do not do clowns.

Hey, has your team done a Glasgow score on Jorge Torres yet today?

Uh, I checked on it myself an hour ago.

There's no change since yesterday.

Oh, by the way, uh, do you remember your patient, Sarah Kim?

Uh, I remember all my patients.

Uh, but go ahead.

Her parents are suing Bronx General over their hospital bills.

Hundreds of thousands of dollars spent on

tests, all to prove that she wasn't pregnant.

Oh, the witches.

That was a really unusual case.

And it wasn't just Sarah Kim.

It was also all of her friends' mass pseudosciences.

So fascinating.

Well, it's not enough to just consider our patients.

Well, if we also have to consider their families.

What I cost her parents in tests, I saved them in future therapy bills.

Also, Dr. Nichols, please, know that that all happened before I was buttoned up.

That kind of fiscal profligacy would never happen today.

Dr. Wolf, I scheduled those 12 tests you ordered for the hypothermic patient.

Thank you, Nurse Carter.

She is very bad with numbers.

I only ask for 10.

I have to investigate the Sarah Kim case because the board is expecting my report.

Just giving you a heads up, you need to defend yourself.

Dr. Wolf, we've been digging into Cyrus' lifestyle,

and for a non-athlete of his age, it's pretty hardcore.

He wakes up every day at 4.30.

He restricts his caloric intake, and he works out six days a week.

We downloaded his smart ring data.

Unfortunately, he takes it off before the

ice bath, but he's been sleeping like a baby.

Sleep efficiency is off the charts.

So the healthiest man in New York just happened to pass out in his daily ice

bath, and even though he tracks his every breath, we can't figure out why?

Oh, there's something we're not seeing.

Hang on, this might give us something.

This lab just came in.

Electrolytes are pristine, T4 is normal, and metabolic panel is clear.

Yeah, but his hemoglobin is oddly high.

High as if he's living at altitude.

Or he's been doping.

Yeah, maybe the guy with the NDA will help us.

Are you okay?

Oh, my God!

All right, Stilfeld, let me get some help here.

I'm gonna get some water.

It's Cyrus.

Easy, just breathe.

Blood.

Um, what blood?

We need to check on Cyrus.

Come on.

I got it.

Okay, buddy.

I guess now we know what was in that cooler.

I'm almost done.

Hit the emergency call button if he tries to harvest your organs.

Maybe don't stray too far.

No rest for the weary.

Sedentary life leads to early death.

If I could have a bowel movement standing up, I would.

Well, that I can't help you with.

Your assistant fainted.

I'm assuming it was his blood in the bags?

Thomas read all the fine print.

He knows what he signed up for.

All the literature on the anti-aging effects

of transfusing young blood is dubious at best.

What literature are you reading?

Dr. Wolf, this could be a mutually beneficial relationship.

I have as much to learn from you as you have to learn from me.

Our worlds have a lot of overlap.

Speaking of overlap, we are running tests on Thomas right now.

If he has a blood-borne pathology or a clotting

disorder, then that means you will too.

Dr. Wolf, do you know how hard it is to find a reliable assistant whose own

negative and has never been infected by cytomegalovirus?

Thomas' blood is...

I don't eat grapes.

You shouldn't.

They're high in sugar and have no nutritional value.

Okay, fair enough.

But that is not my reason.

When I was in the second grade, I choked on one.

And before my teacher did the Heimlich, I thought for sure I was gonna die.

That kind of fear always stays with you.

So now I don't eat grapes.

Cyrus, I'm curious.

What is your reason for all of this?

Ten years ago, I was diagnosed with breast cancer.

That's right.

I'm among the 1% of cases that impact men.

How's that for bad luck?

For two years, my whole entire life became about beating cancer.

Specialists, chemo, surgeries, radiation, Reddit, support groups.

But do you know how I felt when they told me I was in remission?

Released?

Lost.

Like I didn't have a purpose anymore.

But then I had an epiphany.

I could take all the energy I used to fight cancer and put it towards optimization.

Doctor, I can live forever.

And yet here you are.

Back in the hospital because you almost died.

Keyword is almost.

My job as your doctor is to prevent your death.

Our goals are aligned on that front.

Biohacking may be the reason you went pulseless in an ice bath, Cyrus.

It could very well cause another episode.

No.

Biohacking saved me.

But you keep avoiding grapes, Dr. Wolf.

I'm sure you'll all live us all.

How much trouble are we in?

Well, it depends on how well you can answer my questions on the Sarah Kim case.

Starting with, why was the head of neuro involved in a case of phantom pregnancy?

Well, for starters, he was really excited to have a case of mass hysteria.

He even made us a slide show.

And it got really wild when we learned the girls were actually covenant witches.

Hashtag witch talk.

I still follow them, but we got into Barnard B.T.Dubs.

That's awesome.

So, for a case of pseudocyasis, you ran urine tests, beta HCGs,

ultrasounds on multiple patients.

A few pregnancy sticks get it on the job.

And based on what you've told me, this is...

Dr. Nick, is he okay?

I respect people who put their blood, sweat, and tears into their work.

But you took that very literally.

What do you think happened to Cyrus in that ice bath?

I would hate for him to die after all of your sacrifices.

Oh, the transfusions aren't a sacrifice.

They're critical to Cyrus' work.

If my blood plays a role in maximizing longevity without sacrificing quality of

life, well then, I've done my part to help improve humanity.

You know, my granddad lives to be a hundred years old.

And on his deathbed, he said it all went by so fast.

You talk about quality of life, but when was the

last time you popped open a great bottle of wine?

Or went to the beach and felt the sun on your skin?

Or ate a delicious chocolate chip cookie?

It goes by fast, Thomas.

I get that you want to help Cyrus.

But you are going to pay a price in the process.

Uh, wait.

Sorry, we didn't mean to startle you, but we have an update.

Thomas' tests are clear.

His blood isn't what's making Cyrus sick.

I managed to get him to tell me that Cyrus is on a low dose of Rapamycin.

That's an immunosuppressant.

That means whatever he has, his meds are making him worse.

Okay, good work.

Thank you for the assist.

It's a tricky case, and I could use your mirror touch.

Happy to be of service, Dr. Pierce.

Wait, what exactly are we dealing with?

Because I can sense that you're terrified, and it's kind of making me terrified.

I'm fine.

He's just a patient, like any other patient, who

also happens to be supercharged nightmare fuel.

I'm not here for my mirror touch, am I?

Dr. Marcus, you are here because I highly value your medical expertise and your

generally calm demeanor, also to make sure I don't get murdered.

Why are all the lights off?

What in the world?

Hello?

Hello?

Hello?

Hey, Cyrus, this is your tenth loop around the floor.

You want to take a break, or should I set up one of those marathon water stations?

I am 5,000 steps shy of my daily goal, 25,000 steps.

Has anyone seen Thomas?

Because, Thomas, I'm going to need my...

Have a good seizure.

Wolf, are you seeing this right now?

What is up with Edward Scissorheads?

Magnets in his fingers.

Are you kidding me?

It's a thing, according to Reddit.

Some argue it's a way to extend your sense of touch.

Much of what Cyrus does has some basis in longevity

science, but body modification like this is different.

Makes me wonder how far he would go and why.

He seized here.

He must have seized in the ice bath.

But why did he seize?

I need you to think as broadly as you can.

This is a man who's on immunosuppressant drugs and

unapproved blood transfusions and who knows what else.

Think infectious.

Inflammatory?

Or cancer.

Why search for zebras?

Well, we'll look for it all.

Horses and zebras.

But to start, we need a better look at his brain.

The CT scan he got downstairs was clean.

A blunt tool.

We need an MRI, but... Magnets.

Right.

So, we get a contrast CT.

Order it, staff.

And let me know as soon as it's done.

Benefits of coming in on a holiday.

One of the PEED nurses brought in her Nona's lasagna.

Mmm.

Smells amazing.

I'm sorry for being so determined.

It's about a blessing and a curse.

Shut up.

Shut up.

Oh.

I'm sorry, too.

For waving the IV pole at you.

Oh.

The MRI freaked me out.

I'm not good in tight spaces.

Something we have in common.

I usually don't feel like I have anything in common with anyone.

So, here's our new deal.

Are you making deals now?

Yeah, I am.

I won't force you to do anything you don't want to do.

And you think about staying here for a few days.

What do you mean?

We call it crisis stabilization.

Short-term inpatient care meant to stop a bad day from getting worse.

You mean the psych ward?

No, it's not a ward.

Movies make it sound so much scarier than it is.

It is 48 hours here with me, plus a great psychiatrist and zero cold meals.

Most men would call that a dream.

Can I finish eating first?

Yes.

Dr. Pierce, I did not know that you had an Achilles heel.

I'm not the only one.

A study in Denmark showed that 100% of kids are afraid of clowns.

Studies also show that hospital clowns help children heal faster.

Well, I like my study better.

Coulrophobia is not funny.

How do we shake explicit memories of trauma?

It depends on the trauma.

But in your case, I think you've made great strides in processing your childhood.

I'm not talking about my dad.

When I was a junior resident, this young woman came

in with headaches and confusion and a loss of balance.

And ultimately, we found a grade 3 tumor in her left

frontal lobe, highly malignant, low survival rate.

Her oncologist wasn't exactly warm and fuzzy, so I agreed to stay on the case.

She would look at me and say, Dr. Wolf, you better not go soft on me.

I am going to beat this.

She was determined to exhaust every option, and I could

not look her in the eye and tell her it wasn't worth it.

She went through hell and then she died in the hospital on Halloween.

It still haunts me.

She wanted more time.

You gave her that.

You extended her life.

It felt like I extended her death.

You were young.

You can't let that haunt you for the rest of your life.

I know that.

But if I could go back, I would ask her what is the

minimum quality of life you were willing to accept.

I should have asked her that.

I didn't.

I couldn't.

Wolf, survival.

It's a very clear human want.

I mean, look at your patient, Cyrus.

At his core, he's afraid of the inevitable.

Yeah, it kind of makes me think of the cloud and the ED.

I wonder what's at his core.

Mm -hmm.

See, I hate it when you use my professional opinion against me.

But point taken.

Okay.

Wish me luck.

Dr. Pierce.

Cyrus' scans came back.

I think he could use someone with a soft delivery.

I know that look.

That's a look of a doctor who has bad news.

Do I even want to know what caused that seizure?

We found a mass on your CT.

It's cancer.

I know it.

Let me see.

All I know with certainty is that you have a brain mass that caused you to seize.

What the mass is exactly remains an open question.

Only directly removing and sampling the mass in surgery can tell us if it's an

infection, an inflammatory process, or, yes, a malignancy, but there are...

In my mind, it's cancer until proven otherwise.

And after everything I've done, this comes back to get me.

Let's not anchor on something we don't know to be true.

What I can promise is that you will have the best neurosurgeon

at your side, and we will find the answers we need.

There are a couple things to expect on the psych floor.

You'll be given a new set of clothes, and your belongings will be kept safe for you.

On the plus side, food is way better up there, and you'll love Dr. Pierce.

Not a scary place.

Promise?

Closed spaces.

Right.

Maybe we should have taken the stairs.

This is dangerous.

Sam's gonna get hurt.

Sam, focus on me.

Oh no, Sam.

See?

It is scary.

You're scared too.

Hey!

Let me out!

Hey.

Hey, you okay?

I heard there was an incident in the elevator.

Sam was scared to get admitted to psych.

And then I'm the one who lost it.

Is he okay?

Yeah.

He's good.

Safe and sound in the ED.

With his favorites, coffee and pumpkin pie.

I need to get it together.

Every day I advocate for patients getting help.

I am such a hypocrite.

And a liar.

Erica, that's not true.

I mean, you just went to Mexico for that wellness retreat.

You came back all fresh.

I know I keep saying this.

But if I tell you something, will you promise to keep it to yourself?

After the... building collapsed, I...

started swiping pills from Dana to help with my anxiety.

I knew I needed to stop and Mexico was supposed to be the answer.

But when I got to that wellness retreat, my room was on the 10th floor.

No amount of sun salutations was getting me in that elevator.

I tried meditation.

I tried long walks on the beach.

Nothing helped.

And then one day I walked into this pharmacy and I...

bought a bunch of benzos.

Without a prescription.

Wow.

Fear and loathing in Cancun.

I didn't know you partied like that, Kenny.

I don't.

That's the point.

I've been...

I've been taking them almost every day.

For weeks now.

If you've been saying that out loud, it's like...

Am I an addict?

Is this what my life is now?

Can I tell you what I really think?

I think... that you are being...

way too hard on yourself about... everything.

Sure, you went to a Mexican pharmacy.

I mean, people do that.

And now you're self-medicating.

Literally everyone does that in one way or another.

I mean, you've never had any prior history of any addictive behaviors.

Now, as a doctor, I would say you need to wean off the benzos.

But as your friend...

I really just think you need some help.

Oh, hey.

Why is Dr. Rarick operating on my patient, Cyrus?

I expected you on this.

My hands are tied.

I'm drowning an admin, your Sarah Kim lawsuit.

Plus, I actually see my dentist.

Have you been staging your office?

Better safe than sorry.

Okay, how many surgeries have you performed since Ana Torres cursed you?

Let's not with this.

Let me ask you this.

Who have you thought about more, Benny or Jorge?

Benny.

Why do we think more about the patients we couldn't

save than we do about the patients we did save?

We let our negativity bias chip away at our confidence.

What I do takes more than confidence.

It takes unwavering certainty.

If I walk into that operating room with a single

stray thought, I risk the life of my patient.

Okay, then no more stray thoughts.

And no more sage.

Josh, the only thing you're cursed with is those broad shoulders.

And they don't always have to carry the weight of the world.

Get back to doing what you do best.

Curses be damned.

I apologize for earlier.

I'll admit, I'm not a big fan of clowns.

I'm sure you get that a lot.

But I am here to help you.

So, you were brought in because of an altercation with a neighbor.

Can you tell me about that?

I'm sorry, can you speak up, please?

Can I smell your hair?

Excuse me?

Tell little Danny, his cat is never coming back.

This guy needs some serious help.

Why?

What did he say?

I think he murdered a cat.

A what?

A cat.

Yes, a cat.

You could be a sign of sociopathy.

I don't mean to be an alarmist, but I think we need to involve the precinct.

Dr. Pierce.

I need some help.

Okay.

Go.

The precinct.

Please.

Don't let me...

Are you okay, Dr. Wolf?

What are you doing in here?

Dr. Nichols just finished Cyrus' surgery.

You won't believe what we found.

I mean, just when you thought you'd seen it all.

I'll be right there.

Sam?

This is the doctor I wanted you to meet.

Hi, Sam.

I'm Dr. Pierce.

It's nice to meet you.

I'm a psychiatrist.

You're gonna strap me down?

I don't carry restraints.

If we're gonna work together, I want you to feel safe.

Sam, don't trust them.

Don't trust them, Sam.

Sam, are you hearing voices right now from people who aren't there?

Yes.

Please, help me.

How many people can say that they survive

hypothermia and brain surgery all in the same day?

Am I still on a hot streak?

I won't Bury the lead, Cyrus.

The good news is you're cancer-free.

But there was something in your brain.

You were infected by tinea solium, which means that you somehow ingested a

parasitic tapeworm that, untreated, can cause seizures, like

the one you had in your ice bath that nearly killed you.

These are the retractable hooklets and those are the suckers.

I told you drinking the founding youth water from the Gila River was a bad idea.

My money is on the 30-day raw meat diet.

I would steer clear of them both and stop taking the Rapamycin.

That suppressed your immune system and made the infection worse.

Luckily, the tinea is treatable, but...

Cyrus, I'm worried that your obsession with your own mortality could lead to

other risk factors that you won't be able to mitigate.

What Dr. Wolfe is trying to say is this is no way to live.

No, you're right.

I've been doing this all wrong.

Thomas, cancel my shipments from Gila River and let's wean me off of the Rapamycin.

Call Luna and tell her I want to do a daily sound bath and from now on,

I want you to personally test everything I eat.

Yeah, uh, you call Luna.

I quit.

What?

You know, I want to eat a chocolate chip cookie.

I want to stay up late and sleep in.

I want to meet someone who makes me feel like I'll die happy.

Most of all, I just want to keep my own blood in my own body.

I hope your mission works and I hope you live forever.

But, uh, yeah, you're gonna have to do it alone.

You?

Any idea what caused Thomas's about face?

It may have been my Dr. Wolfe-inspired soliloquy.

About the fleeting nature of life.

Well, imitation is the highest form of flattery.

In the end, Cyrus was just a person who was afraid of death.

And Thomas was collateral damage.

What about you, Dr. Wolfe?

Are you afraid of death?

You know, a wise man once said, I don't so much fear death as I do wasting life.

But for my patients, yes.

I do fear it.

Every doctor has a graveyard.

The place that holds the memories of the people we couldn't save.

The losses that haunt us.

I will stop worrying about curses.

But I still need to believe in miracles.

So how do we cope?

How do we keep getting up and doing what we do, despite the ghosts of our mistakes?

How is facing your biggest fear?

Let's just say some fears are justified.

Copy that.

And he wasn't even the biggest clown you shook off this year.

Damn straight.

At least I was able to help someone tonight.

I'm glad I came in.

Even though I do miss going out on Halloween.

Maybe it's not too late.

We hold on to the winds.

We focus on the future.

Find our support system.

Yo, my shift just ended.

I'll be at the Gansevoort in 30 minutes.

Tell the guys to order a couple bottles of McAllen.

My treat.

But sometimes none of that works.

Some mistakes.

Some patients.

Well, they haunt us forever.

Oliver.

Good news.

You're a visitor.

What's wrong, Mugwop?

You look like you've seen a ghost.

It's like a radio turning on and off in my head.

We call it musical hallucinations.

He's lucky he hasn't dropped dead.

I should let you know that the patient is my ex.

He's back to rekindle the flame.

Brilliant Minds next Monday on NBC and Peacock.