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...]
Being Hated, Feeling Hated, Overcoming Self-Hatred
Practically every dissociative trauma survivor that I have spoken to has said to me that at some point in time or another, they have felt hated, truly hated. What's worse, they didn't feel hated by strangers -- they felt hated by their loved ones. These trauma survivors felt hated by their mothers, their fathers, their siblings, their spouses, their children, their friends. They felt hatred from the … [Read more...]
20 Signs of Unresolved Trauma
Many people enter the therapy process with minimal awareness of their trauma history. When the trauma survivors are dissociative, they have the ability to block out an awareness of their trauma. They may know that their family had problems, or that their family was dysfunctional, etc, but they may believe they were never abused. However, blocking out conscious awareness of trauma does not mean … [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...]
Dissociative Trauma Survivors – Must You Be Alone?
Are you alone? Oh, what a tough and painful topic this one is. All too many dissociative survivors are alone. Alone with their pain. Alone with their memories. Alone within their system. Alone in relationships. Alone in a crowded room. Far too many dissociative survivors feel painfully alone. Isolated. Alienated. Separated from others. There are actually a few trauma survivors that genuinely … [Read more...]