In August 1997, on her first day of clinical rotations as a medical student in New York City, Brie Williams, MD, sat down at the bedside of a young woman. The patient lay on her back, a blanket pulled up to her neck. Staring at the ceiling, she answered Williamsâs questions with curt, one-word replies. Finally, Williams asked the woman to sit up so she could examine her. âNo.â Williams froze. Had she done something wrong? She fidgeted silently, at a loss for words, until at last the woman said, âWhy donât you ask me why I canât sit up?â