What is therapy? What is a therapist? What is the therapy process? And how can you tell if they’re any good? What is therapy? In my experience, therapy is about speaking the unspeakable. It’s the telling of things that you haven’t had the safety or the opportunity to tell before. It’s expressing your deepest feelings without have to edit or omit or pretend for the sake of someone … [Read more...]
50 Treatment Issues for Dissociative Identity Disorder
"I have DID. How long will it take for someone with Dissociative Identity Disorder to feel better?" As a clinical therapist, I hear that question frequently. It's a reasonable question. I certainly understand that when dissociative trauma survivors are deeply hurting and struggling in their life, they want to feel better as quickly as possible. However, the clinical treatment for someone with Dissociative … [Read more...]
Understanding Dissociative Identity Disorder – From Separated Splitting to Safe Solidity
Do you feel like you can be very different people? Do you have trouble remembering what happened through your week? Do you have minimal memories of your childhood? Do you feel a lot of conflict within yourself, and have unexplainable extremes in your behavior, thoughts, or attitudes? Do you have conversations in your head, and do the voices in your … [Read more...]
SAFETY FIRST: Assessing Safety of Sexual Abuse Survivors
The violence must end for healing to truly begin. Current safety is the foundational building block of healing for people who have been sexually abused. It is a known fact that children are being abused and exploited on a daily basis by sexual predators. Any child trapped in an abusive situation will naturally continue to use trauma-based coping strategies. They need safety in order to develop … [Read more...]
Kathy, Why do You Work as a DID Trauma Therapist?
Why do I work as a DID trauma therapist? I’ve been told it would be soooo much easier and less stressful and probably more lucrative to sell shoes. However, I have devotedly worked with trauma survivors and their loved ones for over 30 years. During this time, I have come to appreciate the depth of pain, the atrocious injuries, the years of dysfunction, the heartbreaking losses, and the overwhelming grief … [Read more...]