The Three Faces of Eve – the popular press version of Cleckley and Thigpen’s misrepresentation of Chris Costner Sizemore (which was originally an academic article), Chris actually had significant early trauma that she only recalled years later, eventually developed 22 alters and published her full story in 1977
The Bird’s Nest (Lizzie) – Shirley Jackson – written by a psychiatrist, a film for this was released in the same year as the movie for The Three Faces of Eve. The five personalities in the book are shown as only three personalities in the movie.
Strangers in My Body / The Final Face of Eve – James Poley, “Evelyn Lancaster” (Chris Costner Sizemore) – Chris was prevented from telling her full story by her ex-therapists so ended up fudging parts of this, publishing her full story in 1977.
The Chris Costner Sizemore papers – selection of letters, diaries etc, covering 1950s to 1980s – held at Duke University
1960 – 1980
Sybil: The Classic True Story of a Woman Possessed by Sixteen Personalities – Flora Rheta Schreiber – A Times bestseller in the 1970s, Schreiber writes about Shirley Ardell Mason and her therapist Cornelia Wilbur – the book led to 2 TV mini-series, a number of follow on books, and a rather bizarre and sensationist book trying to blame DID symptoms on anemia during the 1990s backlash against abuse survivors
The Final Face of Eve – Elen Sain Pittillo, Chris Costner Sizemore – Chris’s full story including domestic violence in her first marriage, suicidality, finally getting a good therapist, and life after integration
The Five of Me – Henry Hawksworth
Paperclip Dolls – Annie McKenna
1980 – 2000
Michelle Remembers – Michelle Smith and Lawrence Padzer (her psychiatrist). A later backlash against ritual abuse discloses places considerable blame on this book.
Therapist when Rabbit Howls – Truddi Chase and the Troops (her alters) wrote this together, and took her story of incest and abuse public
Multiple Personality Disorder from the Inside Out – edited by Cohen and Giller, accounts from many different people living with DID
Prism : Andrea’s World – Jonathan Bliss, Eugene Bliss – based on “Andrea Biaggi”, a Silician-American
The Lives of Billy Milligan – Daniel Keyes – Milligan sold his story after being sent to a locked psychiatric hospital following his trial for a 3 week crime spree involving multiple rapes and thefts by several of his alters
Voices – Trula Michaels Lacalle – by a psychologist
Beyond Integration: One Multiple’s Journey – Doris Bryant, Judy Kessler
I’m Eve/A Mind of My Own: The Woman Who Was Known as “Eve” Tells the Story of Her Triumph Over Multiple Personality Disorder – Chris Costner Sizemore – her last book
Shatter : The True Story of Kathy Roth’s Eight Separate Personalities and Her Struggle to Become Whole – Nancy Hughes Clark
Through Divided Minds: Probing the Mysteries of Multiple Personalities – Robert S. Mayer – written by a psychoanalyst
Katherine, It’s Time: The Incredible Journey into the World of a Multiple Personality – Kit Castle, Stefan Bechtel
Becoming Kate – Theodore J. Jansma
Suffer the Child – Judith Spencer – about “Jenny” whose poetry is included
37 to one: living as an integrated multiple – Phoenix (formerly Sandra) J. Hocking – she wrote a self-help book and a book for loved ones before this
Abused Beyond Words: The Healing Journey of Reclaiming Our Inner Power and Peace by Speaking the Unspeakable Truth – Moriah S. St. Clair
Jennifer and Her Selves – Gerald Schoenewolf – by a novice therapist
The Family Inside: Working with the Multiple – Doris Bryant – a self-help book with a study of someone with DID
Moira – Martin Obler
The Laid daughter : A true story – Helen Bonner
Thirteen pieces : life with a multiple – Mary Locke – written by a partner after the end of a relationship
The Flock: The Autobiography of a Multiple Personality – Joan Frances Casey
Telling without talking : art as a window into the world of multiple personality – Carol Thayer Cox and Barry M. Cohen – art therapists include 180 pieces of art by people with DID
Broken Child – Marcia Cameron
Silencing the voices: one woman’s experience with multiple personality disorder – Jean Darby Cline
First Person Plural – Cameron West, one of the few men with DID to describe incestuous abuse
Silencing the voices : one woman’s triumph over multiple personality disorder – Jean Darby Cline and Jeff Darby Cline
Diary of a survivor in art and poetry – deJoly LaBrier
Rag Doll: A Journey of Healing and Integration – Alayna
Nightmare : uncovering the strange 56 personalities of Nancy Lynn Gooch – Nancy Gooch
Childhood’s Thief: One Woman’s Journey of Healing from Sexual Abuse – Rose Mary Evans – written by a therapist
Becoming One: A Story of Triumph Over Multiple Personality Disorder – Sarah E. Olson
Magic Castle: A Mother’s Harrowing True Story of Her Adoptive Son’s Multiple Personalities — and the Triumph of Healing – Carole Smith
Sorority of survival : memoirs of a multiple – Katherine A. Newman
The Magic Daughter: A Memoir of Living with Multiple Personality Disorder – Jayne Anne Phillips
Welcome Home Stranger: An Account of Multiple Personalities – Matthew Daniels, author from New Zealand
2000 – 2020
Looking Inside: Life Lessons from a Multiple Personality in Pictures and Words – Judy Castelli – misdiagnosed with schizophrenia for 20 years
Body Scripture : A Therapist’s Journal of Recovery from Multiple Personality – Barbara Hope – a therapist with DID
Big Marcia H – Lisa Heibner
Beyond these walls : The true story of a lost child’s journey to a whole life – Hanna Gabriele
I Am More Than One: How Women with Dissociative Identity Disorder Have Found Success in Life and Work – Jane Hyman
Carol Rutz – A Nation Betrayed
Safe Eyes – A Story of Healing – Deborah Hall Berkley
The Shining man with hurt hands – Ellis H. Skolfield
From ghetto to glory : a memoir – Monique Douglass-Andrews
Unshackled: A Survivor’s Story of Mind Control – Kathleen M. Sullivan
Not Otherwise Specified: A Multiple Life in One Body – Leah Peterson (DDNOS) – Leah was a consultant for the TV series The United States of Tara
A God Called Father: One Woman’s Recovery from Incest and Multiple Personality Disorder
– Judith Machree
Lina in search of Lina : The history and treatment of a patient with multiple personality disorder – Rolando I. Haddad
Secret Weapons: How Two Sisters Were Brainwashed To Kill For Their Country – Cheryl Hersha – mostly about experiences with MK-Ultra and other abuse, with DID resulting
A Fractured Mind: My Life with Multiple Personality Disorder – Robert B. Oxnam – read the excerpt
Am I a Good Girl Yet?: Childhood Abuse Had Shattered Her. Could She Ever Be Whole? – Carolyn Bramhall, DID including ritual abuse
Fire and Water: A Safe Journey Through Multiple Personality Disorder – Anna Thomas
5010 – The One Who Flew Into the Cuckoo’s Nest by Kathi Stringer
Anne’s Multiple World of Personality – Anne Garvey
Today I’m Alice: Nine Personalities, One Tortured Mind – Alice Jamieson, describes the British NHS psychiatric system at the time
Fractured: Nine Lives To Escape My Own Abuse – Ruth Dee, written under a pseudonym by a former headteacher
Hell Minus One – Anne A. Johnson Davis
Five Farewells – A Southern Life with Dissociative Identity Disorder – Liz Elliott
Switching Time / A Life in Pieces: the Harrowing True Story of a Woman with Multiple Personality Disorder – Richard Baer – psychiatrist writes about treating someone with DID, includes letters and parts she wrote describing integration in detail, also available on audio CD
A Shattered Mind – Dauna Cole
As if it Didn’t Happen: A memoir of abuse, multiple personalities, and hope – Maggie Claire
Coming Present: Living with Multiple Personality Disorder/Dissociative Identity Disorder and How My Faith Helped Heal Me – Caroline Lighthouse
Breaking Free: My Life with Dissociative Identity Disorder – Herschel Walker – by an African American athlete
All Of Me: My incredible true story of how I learned to live with the many personalities sharing my body – Kim Noble
The Sum of My Parts: A Survivor’s Story of Dissociative Identity Disorder – Olga R. Trujillo – also available in Spanish
Sybil in her own words: The Untold Story of Shirley Mason, Her Multiple Personalities and Paintings – Patrick Suraci – by her friend (a former psychiatrist), including some of Shirley Mason’s notebooks, art and photos from her cousin – interview with Suraci
After Sybil… From the Letters of Shirley Mason – Nancy Preston writes about her friend “Sybil” – see Sybil (the original)
Mother Had a Secret – Tiffany Fletcher – writing about her mother with DID and the impact on her life
Us – Matthew Mckay – writing about someone else
I Am WE: My Life with Multiple Personalities – Christine Pattillo
We Are Annora – P. S. Marrow
In Out of Ice/Glass: Living With Dissociative Identity Disorder and Chemical Dependency – Sarah Smith
Which One Am I?, Multiple Personalities and Deep Southern Secrets – Thomas S. Smith, James Darrell Williams – jointly written by a loved one and someone with DID
Twenty-two Faces – Judy Byington – about Jenny Hill
The Rape of Eve – Colin Ross – a psychiatrist describes the manipulation of Chris Costner Sizemore by her previous psychiatrist, Chris contributed to this book before she passed away
Fractured Mind: The Healing of a Person with Dissociative Identity Disorder – Debra Bruch
Most written accounts are fairly short, and many attribute behaviors or alter personalities to a form of religious possession, or link mental illness with belief in demons.
However some longer accounts were published by “physicians” and some historians found other accounts.
Many ordinary people couldn’t read and books were expensive rather than today’s mass-produced paperbacks and ebooks about DID.
An incomplete list of some of the historical cases of dissociative identity disorder…
1580s: Jeanne Fery: A sixteenth-century case of dissociative identity disorder – van der Hart, Lierens and Goodwin (1997)
1700-1799
1790 – 1952: Multiple personality before “Eve” – Adam Crabtree (1993), a short summary of the psychology of the times and recognition of DID
1790: a woman from Stuttgart described by Eberhard Gmelin speaks different languages depending on which personality is in control at the time
1800-1849
1802: Three cases described by Dwight who publishes them in 1818, with one likely to be multiple personality disorder and the others likely to be dissociative amnesia or fugue (Hacking, 1991), Dwight describes a female with “two souls, each occasionally dormant and occasionally active, and utterly ignorant of what the other was doing”
1834: “Estelle” is treated by Charles Antoine Despine (also described by Catherine Fine, 1988)
1840-1869
1845: Mayo describes an 18 year-old English girl with two personalities, “misconduct in her relatives ” is mentioned
1846: Ward refers to other boys with “double consciousness” whose “nervous system has been weakened by excess, terror or cerebral excitement” which Hacking believes suggests trauma
1860: Mary Reynolds is described by Plumber
1870-1899
1876: “Félida X” is described by Eugène Azam as “double personality” or ”doublement de la vie”
1876: “double consciousness” is now referred to as “double personality” according to Hacking (1991)
1887: Barret describes a 17 year-old English boy with two personalities of different ages , with different handwriting. Barret attributes the symptoms with the stress of applying for a scholarship to Cambridge University – his symptoms delay his admission to Cambridge.
1880s: Louis Vivé/Vivet in France – originally described by Bourru and Burot in 1885, 1886, 1887, and in Variatons de la personnalité (1888/95); Camuset in 1882; Mabille and Ramadier in 1886; and Voisin in 1885 and 1887. The 19th century DID case of Louis Vivet: New Findings and Re-evaluation (1995/1997) – Henri Faure, John Kersten, Dinet Koopman and Onno van der Hart
1880s: V.L.and his six personalities are treated by Bourru and Burot in France, as described by Sidis and Goodhart in 1904.
1887: Pierre Janet describes “dissociation” as demonstrates that some people have multiple “psychic centers” that he describes as multiple “personalities”, rather than dual or alternating states
1858: Ansel Bourne – Wonderful Works of God: A Narrative of the Wonderful Facts in the Case of Ansel Bourne of Westerly, Rhode Island, Who, In The Midst of Opposition to the Christian Religion Was Suddenly Struck Blind, Dumb, and Deaf, and After Eighteen Days Was Suddenly and Completely Restored In the Presence of Hundreds of Persons, in the Christian Chapel At Westerly, on the 15th of November, 1857. Bourne also describes his father’s death when he was seven, severe poverty following the death, and being forced from school into work at thirteen due to poverty
1881: Ansel Bourne is described as having dissociative fugue episodes and an “alternate personality”.
1894: Peter Scott is described by Dana
1894: Mollie Fancher is described by Abram H. Dailey in Molly Fancher: Brooklyn Enigma; An Authentic Statement of Facts in the Life of Mary J. Fancher, 1894. She is described in The Fasting Girl: A True Victorian Medical Mystery – Michelle Stacey – A much newer and confusing account of the story of Fancher including hysteria/hysterical paralysis and the fame surrounding people claiming to not need to eat in Victorian times.
1899: Theodore Hyslop describes different types of “double consciousness”
1900 – 1919
1900: From India to Planet Mars by Théodore Flournoy describes Catherine-Elise Muller under the name “Hélène Smith” as a spiritualist with multiple personalities. Flournoy, a psychology professor, realizes that the “martian” language used by one of them is based on French.
1900: Ottolenghi, an Italian , refers to ”sdoppiamenti el le transformazioni della personalitá”
1901: Sally Beauchamp (Clara Norton Fowler) is described by Morton Prince as having multiple personalities
V.L., who was cared for in the late 1880s by Bourru and Burot, is also described by Sidis and Goodhart who ever to him as a “manifold personality”. V.L. is a 17 year-old boy with an unknown father, unmarried and promiscuous mother, who is wandering and begging on the streets from a very young age. V.L. becomes a thief and is sent to a reformatory as a child, develops conversion disorder with paralysis after a fright with a snake, and is then looked after in an asylum (a general term meaning place of rest). His is described as having 6 “states”, each with different memories, skills and a distinct personality.
1904: Thomas Carson Hanna is described in the New York Times as an “Instance of Multiple Personality” being treated in New York by Boris Sidis, and Sidis’ book is referred to be the journalist. Hanna is described as developing a second personality after an accident with a head injury, and then switching between the two until they eventually merge.
1904: Reverend Thomas Carson Hanna is described by Boris Sidis as developing a second personality after a head injury, they eventually merge
1905: Prince publishes the book ”The Dissociation of a Personality’‘ about “Miss Beauchamp” describing three personalities
1906: Burnett describes a 16 year-old American boy who has had problems since early childhood. He He attributes the different personalities to epilepsy.
1906: Gordon reports a 19 year-old American with two personalities and a third state who struggle over control of the body. Gordon describes the boys “delusion belief” about having two ego states and calls it “epileptic psychosis”. Problems continue for at least 9 years despite epilepsy medication.
1907: A young girl from London is reported to the British Psychical Research Society as having ten distinct personalities, and is mentioned in the New York Times in an article called ”A Girl’s 10 Minds” and ”A case of hysteria”. The personalities become apparent after she nearly dies from a severe case of flu, after ten years of treatment they fuse together, at age 22. She is treated by Dr Albert Wilson has presented the case to a skeptical Medico-Psychological Association, who come to believe it is genuine.
1909: My life as a dissociated personality by B.C.A. – Morton Prince persuaded Clara Norton Fowler and her alters to write this
1909: Charles van Osten is reported as having multiple personalities, with symptoms appearing after a head injury. Van Osten has gone missing from hospital. The New York Times quotes Prof. Diefendorf as saying that Van Osten was distressed by the Slocum disaster, and may be looking for his wife and child. ”HYPNOTIZED, FINDS HOMES.: Van Osten, Without Hesitation, Takes Doctor to New York Addresses. Special to The New York Times” (20 May 1909).
1916: After around 12 years of treatment Doris Fischer‘s five personalities are described by Walter F. Prince and Theodore Hyslop (1915), Hyslop (1917), and Walter F. Prince (1923). Together they publish over 2,000 pages about her symptoms and treatment. Doris links her violent, alcoholic father to developing different personalities and describes her mother encouraging her to dissociate, with problems beginning at age three and a half, after an assault by her father. The case is reported in the press.
1919, 1920: Grace Oliver and her alter personality “Spanish Maria” are described in the Journal of Abnormal Psychology.
1920-1940
These years are the aftermath of World War I.
1926: Bernice R. is described by Henry Herbert Goddard in “Two Souls in One Body?”; Bernice describes incest which Goddard regards as a hallucination.
1926, 1927: A 19 year-old American woman “Norma” is described by Goddard with a four-year-old alter personality “Polly” and severe conversion disorder causing episodes of paralysis and mutism. Her history includes the deaths of her twin sister and three other siblings before age 11, paternal incest at age 14, the separation from her surviving siblings and emotional abuse by relatives, and the death of both parents by age 17. Goddard calls the incest a transference hallucination and believes her traumatic history has resulted in a daydream-like escape. The two personalities gradually merge.
1933: John Charles Poultney is described in Persons One and Three: A Study of Multiple Personalities – Shepherd Ivory Franz, Poultney gets a severe head injury during World War I and starts switching back and forth between two personalities
1940 onwards
These years involve World War II, with further understanding of trauma and dissociative amnesia, the introduction of the American DSM psychiatric manual and the World Health Organization equivalent, and the impact of Vietnam war veterans leading to the creation of PTSD as a separate diagnosis.
All years
Multiple personality and dissociation, 1791-1990 : a complete bibliography – Philip M. Coons, George B. Greaves and Carole Goettman
Many studies have shown the majority of both psychiatrists and clinical psychologists view the diagnosis of Dissociative Identity Disorder (Multiple Personality Disorder) as valid. As understanding of Dissociative Disorders increases world-wide, skepticism decreases.
Warwick Middleton: Australian psychiatrist
Transcript
Now when the [trauma and dissociation] unit first started, there were psychiatrists in the hospital that was established who had the sort of reactions that were talked about here this morning, with raised eyebrows and shaking of heads, like borderline hell had just moved in. In fact, it’s sort of interesting that by not attacking, by not being overly defensive, by being warm, inviting, encouraging dialogue, giving appropriate information, research material, articles, books, et cetera, if they were requested, but certainly never attacking anyone for being a disbeliever or having a different paradigm, it’s very interesting over the years just how many of those psychiatrists that were openly incredulous and dismissive, have become stalwart admittants to the unit. In fact, I can remember one psychiatrist … this is going back more than a decade and a half, who rang me, at that stage he was a senior registrar … it says something about the ambivalence about this area, he rang me saying he doesn’t believe that DID exists, but nevertheless he has a patient with it that he’s like to refer.
Research (Newest articles first)
Leonard, D., Brann, S., & Tiller, J. (2005). Dissociative disorders: pathways to diagnosis, clinician attitudes and their impact. Australian and New Zealand journal of psychiatry, 39(10), 940-946.
Abstract Results: Of the 250 clinicians, 21% reported experience with more than six cases on average of any one of the dissociative disorders, 38% with less than six, 42% with none; 55% regarded them as valid diagnoses, 35% dubiously valid and 10% invalid. Of the 55 patients, 76% reported delays in diagnosis (57%, ❤ years and 25%, <10 years) with adverse consequences in 64%; 80% had experienced sceptical or antagonistic attitudes from clinicians, rated as destructive by 48%. They were disabled (60% rated as <50% impaired) and were heavy consumers of health services (48% hospitalized, 68% <5 times). There was considerable comorbidity including moderate or severe depression (96%), self-harm (68%), suicide attempts (69%), panic disorder (53%), eating disorders (75%), substance abuse (25%), poor physical health (44%), major interpersonal (70%) and sexual problems (90%). Patients rated individual psychotherapy as the most helpful treatment (90%) but medications, such as antidepressants, were also valued (60%). Conclusions: Although over half of the responding Australian clinicians thought that dissociative disorders were valid, the rest were dubious about their validity with 10% believing them to be invalid. Only 21% had considerable experience with the disorders. These findings may relate to some of the difficulties perceived by patients, which included delays in diagnosis, suboptimal treatment and negative experiences with clinicians. http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/j.1440-1614.2005.01700.x
Somer, E. (2000). Israeli mental health professionals’ attitudes towards dissociative disorders, reported incidence and alternative diagnoses considered. Journal of trauma & dissociation, 1(1), 21-44. Results: Years in clinical practice (including postgraduate and registrar training) did not differ between psychologists (mean = 16.1 years, SD = 9.68) and psychiatrists (mean = 18.8 years, SD = 10.05). Overall, there was a greater tendency to believe in the existence of the condition with 48 (55.8%) respondents replying “Yes,” and 32 (37.2%) replying “No” to the reality of DID. Five (5.8%) participants replied “unsure,” and one did not respond to this item. Excluding the unsure responses and one missing value, a chi-square analysis between psychologists and psychiatrists for this item showed a significant relationship between profession and belief (chi-square = 13.00, p < .001). Psychologists showed a greater tendency to believe in the existence of DID (23 yes, 3 no), while the slight majority of psychiatrists did not believe in the clinical reality of DID (25 yes, 29 no).
Abstract Clinical diagnoses of dissociative disorders (DDs), including Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID), are controversial because there are mental health professionals in North America and elsewhere who are skeptical about whether these psychiatric disorders actually exist. This paper explores the attitudes of mental health professionals in Israel toward DDs and DID through a survey of 211 practicing clinicians (return rate of 39.5%). Of the sample, 95.5% scored at or above the point on a 5-point Likert scale measuring belief in the validity of DDs (m = 4.17, SD = 0.78); 84.5% declared at least a moderate belief in the validity of DID (M = 3.5, S.D. = 0.97). The average Israeli clinician surveyed had made 4.8 career-long DD diagnoses (S.D. = 18.06) and carried an average of 1.05 DD patients in his/her caseload (S.D. = 2.86). DID had a career-long diagnosis frequency of 0.14 patients per clinician (S.D. = 0.59) and was currently seen at a frequency of 0.03 cases per clinician (S.D. = 0.20). The five most frequently considered alternative diagnoses to DID in Israel were Borderline Personality Disorder (24%), Psychotic Disorder/Schizophrenia (23%), PTSD/Anxiety Disorder (10%), Malingering (8%) and Depressive Disorder (7%). The findings suggest that attitudes of Israeli clinicians are similar to those of North American clinicians despite the geographical and cultural differences between them. Full paper – https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Eli_Somer/publication/232909347_Israeli_Mental_Health_Professionals’_Attitudes_Towards_Dissociative_Disorders_Reported_Incidence_and_Alternative_Diagnoses_Considered/links/02e7e51cef1213f1df000000.pdf
Cormier, J. F., & Thelen, M. H. (1998). Professional skepticism of multiple personality disorder. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 29(2), 163.
Abstract If you saw a patient who appeared to have more than one personality, what diagnosis would you make? And how would you vary your clinical approach? Data from 425 respondents indicated that the majority of psychologists believed multiple personality disorder (MPD) to be a valid but rare clinical diagnosis. Respondents cited extreme child abuse as the foremost cause of MPD. Approximately one-half of all respondents believed that they had encountered a client with MPD, whereas less than one-third believed that they had encountered a client who feigned MPD. http://psycnet.apa.org/journals/pro/29/2/163/ Professional attitudes to Dissociative Identity Disorder (MPD) in Britain: More on treating DID where it doesn’t exist. Paper presented at the 4th conference of the International Society for the Study of Dissociation-UK branch. J Mcintee. 1998. and
Davis, J.D. & Davis, M.L. (1997). The prevalence of dissociative disorders within the mental health services of a British urban district.Paper presented at the Fourth Conference of the International Society for the Study of Dissociation. Chester, UK, April 19-11. Summarized by Somer, E. (2000) A recent survey conducted in Britain sought to test the prevailing view in the United Kingdom academic press that DID either did not exist or was fashionably over-diagnosed by gullible practitioners, influenced by ill-advised North American colleagues. The survey was designed to examine British psychologists’ and psychiatrists’ attitudes towards the identification and treatment of dissociative disorders (McIntee, 1998). Dissociative disorders had been encountered by 66% of respondents, of whom 14% attributed dissociation to iatrogenesis. The 965 British mental health professionals responding to the survey reported having seen a total of 3225 clients with DDs, 526 clients diagnosed as DID, and 596 clients with Dissociative Disorder–Not Otherwise Specified. The estimated life prevalence rates for a British research sample reported a year earlier were 15.2% for DDs in general and 5.7% for DID specifically, with clinical profiles resembling those described in the North American literature (Davis & Davis, 1997). Hayes, J. A., & Mitchell, J. C. (1994). Mental health professionals’ skepticism about multiple personality disorder. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 25(4), 410.
Abstract Three studies were conducted to investigate the nature of mental health professionals’ skepticism regarding multiple personality disorder (MPD). An initial pilot study was conducted to develop a psychometrically sound survey instrument. In Study 2, the results of a national survey of 207 mental health professionals supported the hypothesis that skepticism and knowledge about MPD are inversely related, r = –.33, p < .01, although the strength of this relationship varied among professions. Moderate to extreme skepticism was expressed by 24% of the sample. Results from Study 3 supported the hypotheses that MPD is diagnosed with less accuracy than is schizophrenia and that misdiagnosis of MPD is predicted by skepticism about MPD. Findings are related to literature pertaining to mental health professionals’ skepticism about MPD and consequential effects on treatment. http://psycnet.apa.org/journals/pro/25/4/410/
Dunn, G. E., Paolo, A. M., Ryan, J. J., & Van Fleet, J. N. (1994). Belief in the existence of multiple personality disorder among psychologists and psychiatrists. Journal of clinical psychology.
Abstract Surveyed the attitudes of 664 psychologists and 456 psychiatrists with regard to the existence of dissociative and multiple personality disorders (MPDs). 97.5% of the Ss indicated that they believed in dissociative disorders, while 80% reported a belief in MPD. 12.3% did not believe in MPD, and 7.7% were undecided. Belief in MPD was related significantly to profession, age, and years of experience. Young Ss with less professional experience believed more in MPD than did older Ss. Ss who had worked with patients with MPD would tend to believe in the entity. http://psycnet.apa.org/psycinfo/1995-21368-001
Barton, C. (1994). Backstage in psychiatry: The multiple personality disorder controversy.
Abstract Arguments about the existence of multiple personality disorder (MPD) are creating a professional dispute. Skepticism is manifested in literary as well as behavioral forms. The most widely cited recent skeptical paper is that of H. Merskey (see record 1992-31500-001). Merskey uses arguments that are sociological in nature but with little attention to empirical evidence. Merskey’s skepticism about MPD differs from skepticism in natural science. Proponents’ research is ignored rather than being subjected to critical examination and disproof through attempted replication. His skepticism appears largely based on challenges to the integrity of MPD patients and questions about the competence of therapists. http://psycnet.apa.org/psycinfo/1995-29438-001 – Mersky’s response – and Barton’s response to it
Dell, P. F. (1988). Professional skepticism about multiple personality. The Journal of nervous and mental disease, 176(9), 528-531.
Abstract Therapists who have treated patients with multiple personality disorder (MPD) were surveyed about professional skepticism regarding the existence of MPD. Of these therapists, 78% reported that they had encountered intense skepticism from fellow professionals. Much of this skepticism appears to be explainable in terms of a) the lengthy decline of psychiatry’s interest in dissociation, b) under appreciation of the prevalence of individuals with dissociative ability, and c) misconceptions about the natural clinical presentation of patients with MPD. These factors, however, could not explain the behavior of those skeptics who deliberately interfered with the clinical care of patients and who engaged in repeated acts of harassment against the patient and/or therapist. Half of the survey respondents reported that they had encountered these latter forms of extreme skepticism. http://journals.lww.com/jonmd/Abstract/1988/09000/Professional_Skepticism_about_Multiple.2.aspx
It’s easy to assume that the end of an abusive relationship means the end of the problems caused by abuse. This may happen for a few people, but it’s not true for everyone!
Your old life doesn’t just snap back into place immediately. You changed, and others changed along with you. – Thomas Fiffer
The lingering effects of abuse, and the extent of the damage that it is caused may only become apparent some time later. You will also find that coping with the abuse has changed your way of interacting with others, lowered your self-esteem and distanced you from those close to you (or, those who were close to you but no longer are.
If this sounds overwhelming and depressing then remember that recovering is both possible, and worthwhile. You can begin to have the good life you deserve. You might find it helpful to read the excellent article below – and to share it with those close to you, to help them understand that possible reactions after the end of the abuse – and what can be done to help.
1. Get over it
Other variations on this are ‘why aren’t you better yet?’ and ‘But that was years ago.’ This is commonly said to abuse survivors, who often seem to be judged negatively compared to ‘wounded warriors’ who have PTSD as a result of military combat. Nobody chooses to have PTSD and it doesn’t disappear on demand, or when it becomes inconvenient for another person. Some people have PTSD for over 50 years despite working hard to heal, for others PTSD disappears by itself in a matter of months: even a trauma which seems ‘minor’ to another person, or happened decades ago can trigger severe PTSD symptoms. If a person could just ‘get over it’ in an instant, they would have already done so. Healing from PTSD doesn’t have a fixed timeframe, but support from others is known to help.
2. Everything happens for a reason
This view puts pressure on trauma survivors of find a positive reason behind their suffering, and can feel like the horror of the trauma is being minimized and was somehow ‘justified’. Some people do manage to find a positive outcome from the trauma, but it needs to be in their own time, and normally only happens late in the healing process. Healing PTSD involves dealing with loss, including the loss of a person’s former sense of safety, their former way of living (because PTSD symptoms often have a major impact on someone’s lifestyle), possibly losing their job or home, family, partner or friendships, and even sometimes their sense of identity. Would you say ‘everything happens for a reason’ to someone about bereavment? Then don’t suggest this to someone with PTSD.
3. It takes the same amount of effort to behappy as it does it be depressed
The exact opposite is true: lack of energy and lack of motivation are key symptoms of the depression, but a happy overall mood leaves you feeling energized and ready to face the world. Almost as bad is the phrase ‘If you act happy, you will become happy.’ The “persistent inability to experience positive emotions” affects many people with PTSD. Depression (and anxiety) often come as a result of PTSD, so rather than dealing with just one mental health disorder, a person can quickly find they are dealing with two or three. All people with PTSD regularly re-live the trauma, through flashbacks, nightmares or intrusive thoughts: with a mind that won’t stop replaying the worst moments of your life it would be hard to avoid feeling depressed. Severe depression makes it extremely difficult just to get out of bed, and willpower alone is not a known cure for depression. Disturbed sleep caused by PTSD or depression zaps energy levels further. Pressuring someone who is struggling to put on a fake smile or look on the ‘bright side’ in order to make you more comfortable isn’t helpful to them. Thinking or acting positively can help some people, but it can’t be forced. The pressure to ‘be positive’ can increase someone’s sense of isolation and any feelings of failure that depression brings.
4. All you need to do is…
‘You will feel better if you…’ is another version of this. There is no ‘quick fix’ or simple, easy solution to a complex condition like PTSD. It’s natural to want to help someone you care about, but unless you have been asked for advice, or have had a substantial battle with your own PTSD, resist any temptation you may have to offer solutions or well-being/mental health advice. Also be aware that news stories about new PTSD treatments are often misleading and not worth sharing: it is common to find out later they promote unavailable drugs, refer to clinical trials on mice rather than humans, involve a single study only, mention types of therapies which are not widely available, are only effective treatments for a different form of PTSD or PTSD caused by a different type of trauma – and they don’t mention risks (e.g., addiction and paranoia resulting from cannabis use, high drop-out rates, that it’s not advised for certain people, etc).
There is no single treatment or combination of treatments that everyone will respond to. Avoiding seeking professional help does not mean ‘not wanting to recover’ – it can simply be the result of the major PTSD symptom of ‘avoidance’ – which means avoiding anything that reminds the person of the trauma, including trauma professionals. Time does heal a proportion of people with PTSD, so a person’s mind may in fact already be healing by itself.
5. I know how you feel
It’s not possible to know exactly how another person feels, or what their thoughts are, unless you ask them. In PTSD symptoms often go from one extreme to another rapidly: from being emotionally numb to being anxious and ‘on edge’, or depressed and teary, then back again. One moment someone can be unable to stop talking about the trauma, and another time they will avoid conversations about PTSD or trauma and even the slightest reminder of it. Even after asking, you might not be aware of how strong particular feelings are.
6. Why didn’t you… during (or after) the trauma
You may want to keep your belief in a ‘just world’ where bad things don’t happen to good people – or if they do, good things later happen as a result – but trauma can affect anyone, and questioning someone’s actions or blaming them for a trauma is insensitive and judgemental. Unless you were in the same situation, at exactly the same time, and with the same personal history, you don’t know how you would reacted then – or how it would be impacting you now. Trauma responses are instinctive and biologically driven rather than logical decisions, and both ‘freeze’ responses and complying with (rather than resisting) a threatening person are common. Questioning someone’s actions, or rather reactions, during or after trauma is likely to feel like adding blame to someone who may not yet understand their own reactions.
7. It wasn’t that bad
Many people with PTSD will minimize their trauma, or may not mention the extent of what happened at that time (or shortly after the trauma). Some people have amnesia for some or most of the trauma’s details as well. This is the mind’s way of protecting itself from the full horror of the trauma, and the fact it could not be avoided or escaped. Don’t fall into the same trauma-related pattern of thinking and support their belief that ‘nothing really that bad happened’, ‘it was all my fault’ or ‘it was just an auto accident’, etc. The minimization (or even total denial) may later be followed by speaking out the reality of the trauma, which can sound contradictory, confusing and be judged as ‘exaggerating’ or ‘untrue’ because it doesn’t match the previous statements – or just because it sounds too horrible to accept. This pattern of minimizing (or denying) and then re-stating the trauma is not a measure of a person’s honesty, it can simply be the result of PTSD’s symptoms: either “distorted cognitions” about the trauma and/or an “inability to remember” major parts of the trauma (amnesia). A clearer picture of the trauma will emerge in time. If a person has developed PTSD that means the trauma has had a devastating impact and was too much for the mind to handle at the time. PTSD itself is a sign that the trauma was that bad, and even worse is the fact the person is reliving parts of the experience every day.
What To Say Instead 1. I’m here for you But only say this if you really do mean it, over the longer term.
2. I’m sorry it happened to you
Nobody ‘deserves’ to be traumatized. Nobody makes that choice.
3. How can I help?
4. I can’t fix it, but I can listen.
Remember: listening doesn’t mean offering unsolicited advice.
5. Do you have the details of a helpline you can contact if you need to?
This shouldn’t be said as a way to avoid listening, but as a backup for when nobody is available or things are very hard. Helplines often offer text message or email help, some also offer online chat too.
Trauma and Dissociation 
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