Do you get to be your real self? I’ve been wondering what else I could teach about Dissociative Identity Disorder, using an episode of United States of Tara as the example. Then I remembered the last minute of a show about Buck and his emotional pain. And I thought more of how very painful and how very real that heartbreak is for Buck. Throughout this season two, Tara has struggled with the fact … [Read more...]
United States of Tara is Integrated Now? Really?
So here we go again. The second season of the Showtime series "United States of Tara" starring the Emmy Award winner Toni Collette has begun. The first season was full of controversial episodes, and most of the survivor population with dissociative identity disorder was disappointed and angered by the series. Even though some of the best-known trauma psychiatrists were allegedly acting as advisors for the show, … [Read more...]
What if you don’t like being Multiple?
This week, the readers here have posted a wide variety of reactions to the idea that being multiple could have benefits. If you haven't yet read all the comments on that blog, please do so. They are very interesting. When people have DID/MPD, they have experienced life as a multiple since their childhood. It is their norm - basically the only way of life they know. Multiples typically have not experienced … [Read more...]
Lack of Acceptance of Dissociative Parts and Their Life Histories
Many trauma survivors with DID, especially those relatively new in the treatment process, often have difficulty accepting that there are "other people inside your head." The ideas of losing time (including big chunks of time), losing control of yourself and your mind or your body, having a limited awareness of what has happened in your life, sharing your life with a bunch of others of all different ages, and … [Read more...]
DID Trauma Survivors and Getting Support from Other People – or not?
Dissociative trauma survivors need emotional support. However, this can be difficult to achieve. As the show, "United States of Tara" is gradually starting to demonstrate, survivors with Dissociative Identity Disorder have friends and family members that offer varying levels of support: Those that find dissociative trauma survivors to be really good, kind, decent, and wonderful people, and will stand by them … [Read more...]