Break on Through (Season 2, Episode 15)

In surgery, there's a red line on the floor that marks the point where the hospital goes from being accessible to being off-limits to all but a special few.  Crossing the line unauthorized is not tolerated. 

In general, lines are there for a reason.  For safety.  For security.  For clarity. 

If you choose to cross the line, you pretty much do so at your own risk. 

So why is it that, the bigger the line, the greater the temptation to cross it?

We can't help ourselves.  We see a line, we want to cross it.

Maybe it's the thrill of trading the familiar for the unfamiliar.  A sort of personal dare. Only problem is, once you've crossed, it's almost impossible to go back.  But, if you do manage to make it back across that line, you find safety in numbers.

Tell Me Sweet Little Lies (Season 2, Episode 14)

As doctors we're trained to be skeptical because our patients lie to us all the time.  The rule is: every patient is a liar until proven honest.  Lying is bad.  Or so we're told.  Constantly, from birth.  "Honesty is the best policy."  "The truth shall set you free."  "I chopped down the cherry tree."  Whatever.  The fact is, lying is a necessity.  We lie to ourselves because the truth freaking hurts.

No matter how hard we try to ignore it or deny it, eventually the lies fall away, whether we like it or not.  But here's the truth about the truth: It hurts.  So... we lie.

Adrift and at Peace (Season 7, Episode 10)

The first twenty-four hours after surgery are critical.  Every breath you take, every fluid you make is meticulously reported and analyzed.  Celebrated or mourned.  But what about the next 24 hours?  What happens when that first day turns to two, and weeks turn into months?  What happens when the immediate danger has passed, when the machines are disconnected, and the teams of doctors and nurses are gone?  Surgery is when you get saved, but post-op, after surgery, is when you heal.  But, what if you don't?

The goal of any surgery is total recovery.  To come out better than you were before.  Some patients heal quickly and feel immediate relief.  For others, the healing happens gradually, and it's not until months, or even years later that you realize you don't hurt anymore.  So, the challenge after any surgery is to be patient.  But if you can make it through the first weeks and months - if you believe that healing is possible - than you can get your life back.  But that's a big if.