Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Resources
Since professional journals change ownership, the "Resources" listed on the website is no longer pointing to journals correctly. Here is a master link which might give information on mental health issues: http://www.datehookup.com/content-the-psychiatry-resource-page.htm
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Passing of "Marie"
This past week, the 60-year-old lady known as Marie McKenize in "Memories of an Essence" died of natural causes in a local hospital. She had been living in a senior residence and apparently became ill there and was taken to a local hospital. She never fully regained consciousness and died. I do not know the cause of death, but it apparently was a medical disorder. Her only son was notified and will be in charge of all arrangements.
I first met Marie when I went to work for the Yolo County Mental Health Services back in 1979. She had only recently signed into the clinic after having been discharged from a Sacramento hospital psychiatric ward to the care of her mother, who managed a motel in Woodland, in nearby Yolo county. The psychiatrist she saw on intake left the agency just before I arrived, and so she was assigned to my caseload. During my second visit with her, an eight-year-old alter-personality came out, a development I did not relish as that time. I had had enough trouble with the controversy I had had with MPD patients during my prior time in Santa Cruz, CA.
During the next three years, I treated her to integration of about 60 alter-personalities, since she was the most complicated MPD patient I had ever seen. I saw her twice a week in the clinic office, usually putting her into hypnosis and age regressing her back to the times when the traumas occurred which caused the creation of each major alter-personality. By the end of that three or so years, she had a beneficial result, with her Original Personality returning from Thoughtspace to her body, and taking into it all of the cleansed alters whom I had dealt with during the hours of therapy. When I left Yolo county to move to San Luis Obispo county, she seemed to be integrated, as far as her alters were concerned. She still had a dissociated Essence, named Becky. In addition, her body could be "borrowed" by her three CIE (Celestial Intelligent Energy), named Faith, Hope and Charity. She had known them during her 30 years in Thoughtspace, as they were her "mothers" to whom she expected to return when she "ceased to exist" in Physicalspace. I have to assume that they are now in charge of her welfare back in Thoughtspace, which she thought of as "home."
It was through Marie's body that Faith, Hope and Charity frequently used to talk to me and teach me much spiritual information, which I have tried to pass on to my students. Yes, I know that Marie could have been trying to con me and mislead me, but my doubts were repeatedly handled by the CIE and I finally came to accept them as they claimed to be, spiritual beings who have most often been called "angels" by theologians.
Becky, her ISH/Essence, told me that her integration with Marie would be the final, spiritual integration needed to complete the total integration process. Becky told me that I would be expected to be present to witness it, as no one had witnessed such an event before. But I never got the invitation to meet with them again. I think I know the reasons.
During the past five years or so, Marie had alienated me and everyone else who was on friendly terms with her. She was insulting to her friends, who eventually could not stand to be around her. One friend even told me recently that she met, in Marie, a childish alter-personality. I suspected that there was at least one left over alter-personality whom I had not dealt with in therapy sessions. I suspected that this alter-personality had been created between the ages of 12 and 14, as this was a time when she was hospitalized in a children's psychiatric ward someplace, while being totally catatonic. I was not allowed, by the CIE or ISH, to know anything about what happened then, since, if Marie knew about it, she would totally freak out and become catatonic and nonfunctional as an adult. But it is reasonable to assume that she created at least one angry alter-personality during this two-year time, which had to come out sometime later. Its time to come out was in the last five years of her life.
Since I had been taught that any nonintegrated MPD patient who died would go through a spontaneous integration of all personalities, I assume that is what happened to Marie this past week in the hospital. She was reported by the nurses to be yelling "help me" while in a semicoma, and she was in bed for several days before she died. Obviously I do not expect to get any report of what was going on in her mind during that time, but my guess is that the final resolutions of her internal conflicts were being handled by her ISH, Becky, and the CIE, Faith, Hope and Charity. Now she has returned to her favorite home, Thoughtspace, where she had already spent 30 years of her lifetime in this incarnation. She now will be prepared for her next incarnation, whatever that might be.
Ralph Allison MD
I first met Marie when I went to work for the Yolo County Mental Health Services back in 1979. She had only recently signed into the clinic after having been discharged from a Sacramento hospital psychiatric ward to the care of her mother, who managed a motel in Woodland, in nearby Yolo county. The psychiatrist she saw on intake left the agency just before I arrived, and so she was assigned to my caseload. During my second visit with her, an eight-year-old alter-personality came out, a development I did not relish as that time. I had had enough trouble with the controversy I had had with MPD patients during my prior time in Santa Cruz, CA.
During the next three years, I treated her to integration of about 60 alter-personalities, since she was the most complicated MPD patient I had ever seen. I saw her twice a week in the clinic office, usually putting her into hypnosis and age regressing her back to the times when the traumas occurred which caused the creation of each major alter-personality. By the end of that three or so years, she had a beneficial result, with her Original Personality returning from Thoughtspace to her body, and taking into it all of the cleansed alters whom I had dealt with during the hours of therapy. When I left Yolo county to move to San Luis Obispo county, she seemed to be integrated, as far as her alters were concerned. She still had a dissociated Essence, named Becky. In addition, her body could be "borrowed" by her three CIE (Celestial Intelligent Energy), named Faith, Hope and Charity. She had known them during her 30 years in Thoughtspace, as they were her "mothers" to whom she expected to return when she "ceased to exist" in Physicalspace. I have to assume that they are now in charge of her welfare back in Thoughtspace, which she thought of as "home."
It was through Marie's body that Faith, Hope and Charity frequently used to talk to me and teach me much spiritual information, which I have tried to pass on to my students. Yes, I know that Marie could have been trying to con me and mislead me, but my doubts were repeatedly handled by the CIE and I finally came to accept them as they claimed to be, spiritual beings who have most often been called "angels" by theologians.
Becky, her ISH/Essence, told me that her integration with Marie would be the final, spiritual integration needed to complete the total integration process. Becky told me that I would be expected to be present to witness it, as no one had witnessed such an event before. But I never got the invitation to meet with them again. I think I know the reasons.
During the past five years or so, Marie had alienated me and everyone else who was on friendly terms with her. She was insulting to her friends, who eventually could not stand to be around her. One friend even told me recently that she met, in Marie, a childish alter-personality. I suspected that there was at least one left over alter-personality whom I had not dealt with in therapy sessions. I suspected that this alter-personality had been created between the ages of 12 and 14, as this was a time when she was hospitalized in a children's psychiatric ward someplace, while being totally catatonic. I was not allowed, by the CIE or ISH, to know anything about what happened then, since, if Marie knew about it, she would totally freak out and become catatonic and nonfunctional as an adult. But it is reasonable to assume that she created at least one angry alter-personality during this two-year time, which had to come out sometime later. Its time to come out was in the last five years of her life.
Since I had been taught that any nonintegrated MPD patient who died would go through a spontaneous integration of all personalities, I assume that is what happened to Marie this past week in the hospital. She was reported by the nurses to be yelling "help me" while in a semicoma, and she was in bed for several days before she died. Obviously I do not expect to get any report of what was going on in her mind during that time, but my guess is that the final resolutions of her internal conflicts were being handled by her ISH, Becky, and the CIE, Faith, Hope and Charity. Now she has returned to her favorite home, Thoughtspace, where she had already spent 30 years of her lifetime in this incarnation. She now will be prepared for her next incarnation, whatever that might be.
Ralph Allison MD
Saturday, September 20, 2008
Jean-Luis Predicts the Future
In several of the past few years, I have visited my Japanese friend, Dr. Norio “Woosie” Sanjoh, an OB/GYN doctor in Shinjo City, in Yamagata Prefecture. He had again invited me to visit during the annual Matsuri Festival. As noted in my manuscript, “Michael, My Essence”, Woosie and I have a long history of being reincarnated together. My Essence, Michael, and his Essence, Jean-Luis, were the best of friends in ancient Rome, in about 100 B.C., when they were both executed for treason in Rome, and buried together. Today, Jean-Luis still talks to Woosie and provides him guidance. I have sometimes been surprised at the remarks Jean-Luis makes when Woosie “talks” to him.
On August 21, 2008, Woosie sent me an e-mail from Japan. I had had to cancel my planned trip to Japan to be with him and his family during the Matsuri Festival because of medical problems. He wrote, “According to weather forecast, it will be rain around Matsuri. We have had 5 days straight rainy days. And more rainy days until next Thursday. Weather CIE is not on our side this year.”
He later reported that it rained continually during the Matsuri Festival week, so it would have be quite a wet week to visit, had I actually gone there.
He also wrote, “Saying about the CIE, I have heard of that aircraft crash in Spain. There were so many deaths due to that. Do they require more lives in Thoughtspace? Recently, Jean-Luis is telling me that several disasters will happen since the CIE decided to do so. So we will have more typhoons here and hard rain and earthquakes. In US, you will have very hard hurricanes attacking mainland. I wonder why they do this and would like to know the reason, to understand. But Jean-Luis doesn’t know that.”
Since that note came, CNN has been busy telling us all the terrible things that have been happening here in the USA. First, there was another hurricane which emptied out New Orleans. Next, a hurricane came on shore at Galveston, Texas, destroying most of the town, and hitting Houston, with massive floods throughout the state and elsewhere. Then a passenger train hit a freight train in Simi Valley, north of L.A. killing many passengers. Then, to top it all off, the US banking system started collapsing last weekend, with the stock market on a roller coaster and our Treasury Secretary trying to figure out how to keep the financial system together. So it seemed to me that Jean-Luis was predicting disasters correctly.
I sent Woosie another question as to why this might be happening, according to Jean-Luis, and on September 19, 2008, he sent me this answer:
“Again, Jean-Luis told me that the next 1-2 years are the years of con men. After ruined mega-banks and security companies, con men will appear to take money and confidentials from people and authority. So the world would enter more chaotic society. Typhoons and hurricanes are only the beginning. Severe winter would affect the East Coast of the US, and dry weather would make more wildfires on the West Coast. Japan will have severe rain and hard blizzards. In the winter, in France, vines are affected and there are no more great wines. In China, there must be heightening of distrust among people and more emotion in the western part and near Tibet. All the people would lose their confidence in things that are trustworthy, so con men are rising. I am afraid if Jean-Luis includes the US president and Japanese Prime Minister in this. [Here in Japan] economy is still going down. Oil is expensive. It affects the price of whole things. Depressed people are coming to my outpatient clinic every day. Police chief told me yesterday that indiscriminate killings are very often these days. So the CIE turned their steering wheel to something awful in this world. They might think that humans should sink until we notice something about the warning from the CIE.”
As to the lack of confidence in China, they are now dealing with contaminated baby food and milk, and thousands of parents are frightened and anxious. We have daily reports of more suicide bombings in several countries as the “War Against Terrorism” keeps going on many fronts.
I have never had much patience with Doomsday Prophets, but the first message from Jean-Luis came before the worst several weeks I can remember in US history, since the Great Depression. I was born in 1931, when the US was still in the Depression, and our bankers know what needs to be done to prevent a repeat of that catastrophe. But the Weather CIE seem to be very busy this season, also, but the human reaction in New Orleans was much better than during Katrina a couple of years ago. So we are learning to work together when we have to. We are also in the middle of a tight-fought Presidential election campaign, where there is much more interest in the result then often exists. Having talked to the CIE (Faith, Hope and Charity) many times, I know they can manipulate all this to happen, in the hope that we human beings will start being cooperative with each other, will look after one another, and will forgo personal greed and ambition for a greater good. The CIE will not give us much choice in these matters.
On August 21, 2008, Woosie sent me an e-mail from Japan. I had had to cancel my planned trip to Japan to be with him and his family during the Matsuri Festival because of medical problems. He wrote, “According to weather forecast, it will be rain around Matsuri. We have had 5 days straight rainy days. And more rainy days until next Thursday. Weather CIE is not on our side this year.”
He later reported that it rained continually during the Matsuri Festival week, so it would have be quite a wet week to visit, had I actually gone there.
He also wrote, “Saying about the CIE, I have heard of that aircraft crash in Spain. There were so many deaths due to that. Do they require more lives in Thoughtspace? Recently, Jean-Luis is telling me that several disasters will happen since the CIE decided to do so. So we will have more typhoons here and hard rain and earthquakes. In US, you will have very hard hurricanes attacking mainland. I wonder why they do this and would like to know the reason, to understand. But Jean-Luis doesn’t know that.”
Since that note came, CNN has been busy telling us all the terrible things that have been happening here in the USA. First, there was another hurricane which emptied out New Orleans. Next, a hurricane came on shore at Galveston, Texas, destroying most of the town, and hitting Houston, with massive floods throughout the state and elsewhere. Then a passenger train hit a freight train in Simi Valley, north of L.A. killing many passengers. Then, to top it all off, the US banking system started collapsing last weekend, with the stock market on a roller coaster and our Treasury Secretary trying to figure out how to keep the financial system together. So it seemed to me that Jean-Luis was predicting disasters correctly.
I sent Woosie another question as to why this might be happening, according to Jean-Luis, and on September 19, 2008, he sent me this answer:
“Again, Jean-Luis told me that the next 1-2 years are the years of con men. After ruined mega-banks and security companies, con men will appear to take money and confidentials from people and authority. So the world would enter more chaotic society. Typhoons and hurricanes are only the beginning. Severe winter would affect the East Coast of the US, and dry weather would make more wildfires on the West Coast. Japan will have severe rain and hard blizzards. In the winter, in France, vines are affected and there are no more great wines. In China, there must be heightening of distrust among people and more emotion in the western part and near Tibet. All the people would lose their confidence in things that are trustworthy, so con men are rising. I am afraid if Jean-Luis includes the US president and Japanese Prime Minister in this. [Here in Japan] economy is still going down. Oil is expensive. It affects the price of whole things. Depressed people are coming to my outpatient clinic every day. Police chief told me yesterday that indiscriminate killings are very often these days. So the CIE turned their steering wheel to something awful in this world. They might think that humans should sink until we notice something about the warning from the CIE.”
As to the lack of confidence in China, they are now dealing with contaminated baby food and milk, and thousands of parents are frightened and anxious. We have daily reports of more suicide bombings in several countries as the “War Against Terrorism” keeps going on many fronts.
I have never had much patience with Doomsday Prophets, but the first message from Jean-Luis came before the worst several weeks I can remember in US history, since the Great Depression. I was born in 1931, when the US was still in the Depression, and our bankers know what needs to be done to prevent a repeat of that catastrophe. But the Weather CIE seem to be very busy this season, also, but the human reaction in New Orleans was much better than during Katrina a couple of years ago. So we are learning to work together when we have to. We are also in the middle of a tight-fought Presidential election campaign, where there is much more interest in the result then often exists. Having talked to the CIE (Faith, Hope and Charity) many times, I know they can manipulate all this to happen, in the hope that we human beings will start being cooperative with each other, will look after one another, and will forgo personal greed and ambition for a greater good. The CIE will not give us much choice in these matters.
Monday, June 2, 2008
Review of a New Version of the Movie "Sybil"
This movie review appeared in Newsweek of June 9, 2008. It is about a remake of the movie “Sybil” which is based on the book of the same name. In reading the book carefully, I found no evidence that those “other selves” which the heroine created in her early childhood were alter-personalities. They were most likely IIC (Internalized Imaginary Companions), with some of them being “older” than the patient herself. Therefore I feel she used her “emotional imagination” to create entities who could help her cope with her schizophrenic mother. She had no evidence of a dissociated ISH, either. Therefore I disagree with any diagnosis of DID, or MPD, and I have always been unhappy that she has been considered a prototype of a “multiple” all these years. To have a movie apparently this bad produced about her gives a disservice to all those patients who really do have one of the dissociative disorders.
Ralph Allison, MD
The Return Of 'Sybil'
A new life for a TV movie that already had plenty
By Joshua Alston
Hysteria is a woman's problem," says a brutish male colleague of Dr. Cornelia Wilbur ( Jessica Lange), the psychologist treating the main character in the CBS remake of "Sybil." My hysterical laughter during most of the film is proof that it's a man's problem, too. I'm not an insensitive guy. I recognize the horror in the story of Shirley Ardell Mason, the woman whose personality fractured into 15 parts as a result of merciless childhood sexual abuse (assuming the story is true; both the diagnosis and the abuse are still under debate). But it would be difficult to intentionally match the unintended comic value of the scene in which Sybil (Tammy Blanchard) rebuffs her new beau, Ramon, after slipping into one of her alters, a boy named Sid. "Guys don't sleep with other guys!" says Sid. "Of course not," says Ramon, both writing off the comment as a non sequitur and failing to realize that his girlfriend's voice just dropped an octave. "Sybil" has the infectious scrappiness of a community-theater troupe, one that isn't that great but has enough conviction to make up for its lack of self-awareness.
But this new "Sybil" can't possibly have the same impact as the 1976 original, for which Sally Field won an Emmy, because the made-for-TV movie has a reputation that precedes it. The term "made for TV" has become shorthand for hammy acting and frugal production values, which is why the glossy, competent original TV movies of today are labeled "television events." The made-for-TV movie served a distinct purpose back when entertainment choices were few. They provided a way for families to have a night at the movies without the hassle and expense of going to a theater. Later they became topical, portraying the hot-button issues of the day, like 1983's hugely watched "The Day After," which depicted the eruption of nuclear war between the United States and the Soviet Union. Now a movie night at home is as easy as opening the mailbox. And Dick Wolf, between his three "Law & Order" franchises, has the "ripped from today's headlines" market cornered. (This season's premiere of "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" featured an appearance by Cynthia Nixon as a woman who—get this—fakes having multiple personalities.) Still, there's something charming about the made-for-TV movie, something adorable in its earnestness, something humorous in its humorlessness. This is why Lifetime and the Hallmark Channel have built brands around them; these movies are the purest form of guilty pleasure. And while I wouldn't watch "Sybil" a second time, it was raucous, nostalgic fun. I could say it's the worst movie I've seen in some time, but I'd prefer to say it's the best at being not good.
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
Life Plans
One of my patients from my early days of practice was in a crisis mode recently. To find out why, she went into a light trance and asked the question of her Essence. Here is the answer she received:
"You chose for this lifetime the theme of Emotionality, and you chose to be born into a family where this would be virtually unacceptable. You wanted to be challenged although you have fought the challenges all your life. You are very quick to point out when you have been 'hurt' but not so quick to take the responsibility for the many times you hurt others, others who loved you very much.
In order to work with the theme of Emotionality, you had to be born highly sensitive and intuitive, even psychic. You are now asking why you turn anger inward, assuming that someone else caused the anger when all the time you are angry at yourself. Your life is winding down now. It is time to stop this intense quest and just BE.
When you return to the spiritual world, you will understand that there is no good or bad energy -- it is all simply energy. The Creator wanted to know more of Itself and thus exploded outwardly, and each human being is basically on a 'fact finding mission of exploration.' You may decide not to come back to this world, or you might decide to just take a long rest and then come back because there is much of physical life, especially Nature and Relationships, which you will probably wish to experience again. There is nothing to fear, there is no separation, you are never alone -- whether here or there. Be gentle with yourself now."
"You chose for this lifetime the theme of Emotionality, and you chose to be born into a family where this would be virtually unacceptable. You wanted to be challenged although you have fought the challenges all your life. You are very quick to point out when you have been 'hurt' but not so quick to take the responsibility for the many times you hurt others, others who loved you very much.
In order to work with the theme of Emotionality, you had to be born highly sensitive and intuitive, even psychic. You are now asking why you turn anger inward, assuming that someone else caused the anger when all the time you are angry at yourself. Your life is winding down now. It is time to stop this intense quest and just BE.
When you return to the spiritual world, you will understand that there is no good or bad energy -- it is all simply energy. The Creator wanted to know more of Itself and thus exploded outwardly, and each human being is basically on a 'fact finding mission of exploration.' You may decide not to come back to this world, or you might decide to just take a long rest and then come back because there is much of physical life, especially Nature and Relationships, which you will probably wish to experience again. There is nothing to fear, there is no separation, you are never alone -- whether here or there. Be gentle with yourself now."
Thursday, April 3, 2008
Neurophysiology of Belief Change
This report was printed in the April 2008 UCLA Magazine. What is interesting is the finding that a change in a person’s belief system seems to also make a change in his neurophysiology, which seems to lock the belief system in place. It is a much more complicated change than “just changing your mind” which implies only a psychological shift of ideas
MAKING BELIEF
Shortly before Sam Harris became a New York Times best-selling author, he was a UCLA doctoral student in neuroscience, a mere dissertation away from his Ph.D.
But in 2004, Harris took some time off to write The End of Faith: Religion, Terror and the Future of Reason. The book sold wildly and Harris was anointed a leader of America's atheist awakening.
After writing another bestseller, Letter to a Christian Nation, and traveling the speaker circuit, Harris returned last fall to his doctoral research. His latest writings were published this January, not in a book but in the scholarly Annals of Neurology, and the subject wasn't faith but research into the physiological distinctions between belief and disbelief.
The study tested the hypothesis that belief "might have a functional localization in the brain and the design of the study was to isolate such regions," explains Mark S. Cohen, Harris' thesis adviser and professor of psychiatry at the Center for Cognitive Neuroscience, who co-authored the study with Harris and Sameer Sheth Ph.D. '03, M.D. '05 of Massachusetts General Hospital. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging, the scientists found that a region of the brain involved in belief, disbelief and uncertainty acted differently depending on subjects' acceptance of statements they were given while inside the machine. A portion of the brain called the ventromedial prefrontal cortex appeared to be at least partly responsible for discerning belief of all kinds, whether it's "a personal God exists as described in the Bible" or "George Bush is president of the United States."
"It has no relevance to the question of whether or not there is a God," Harris says of the findings. "Even if we had a perfect belief detector, we still can't tell you what is true in the world. You put somebody in the scanner who believes Elvis is still alive, and all we will be able to tell you is, 'Yes, he does believe Elvis is still alive.'”
Still, Cohen observes, "This study demonstrates convincingly that fMRI has the power and sensitivity to probe levels of human cognition that subjects may not be conscious of." In the planning stages a follow-up study to explore differences in neurological activities between those who believe in God and those who don't, with non-believers as the control group.
"If you are given a proposition you truly don’t believe, it is just mere words," Harris concludes. "The moment you give them credence a complete transformation of your neurology and psychology and physiology occurs. Belief is the hinge upon which the door to behavior and emotion swings."
— Brad A. Greenberg '04
MAKING BELIEF
Shortly before Sam Harris became a New York Times best-selling author, he was a UCLA doctoral student in neuroscience, a mere dissertation away from his Ph.D.
But in 2004, Harris took some time off to write The End of Faith: Religion, Terror and the Future of Reason. The book sold wildly and Harris was anointed a leader of America's atheist awakening.
After writing another bestseller, Letter to a Christian Nation, and traveling the speaker circuit, Harris returned last fall to his doctoral research. His latest writings were published this January, not in a book but in the scholarly Annals of Neurology, and the subject wasn't faith but research into the physiological distinctions between belief and disbelief.
The study tested the hypothesis that belief "might have a functional localization in the brain and the design of the study was to isolate such regions," explains Mark S. Cohen, Harris' thesis adviser and professor of psychiatry at the Center for Cognitive Neuroscience, who co-authored the study with Harris and Sameer Sheth Ph.D. '03, M.D. '05 of Massachusetts General Hospital. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging, the scientists found that a region of the brain involved in belief, disbelief and uncertainty acted differently depending on subjects' acceptance of statements they were given while inside the machine. A portion of the brain called the ventromedial prefrontal cortex appeared to be at least partly responsible for discerning belief of all kinds, whether it's "a personal God exists as described in the Bible" or "George Bush is president of the United States."
"It has no relevance to the question of whether or not there is a God," Harris says of the findings. "Even if we had a perfect belief detector, we still can't tell you what is true in the world. You put somebody in the scanner who believes Elvis is still alive, and all we will be able to tell you is, 'Yes, he does believe Elvis is still alive.'”
Still, Cohen observes, "This study demonstrates convincingly that fMRI has the power and sensitivity to probe levels of human cognition that subjects may not be conscious of." In the planning stages a follow-up study to explore differences in neurological activities between those who believe in God and those who don't, with non-believers as the control group.
"If you are given a proposition you truly don’t believe, it is just mere words," Harris concludes. "The moment you give them credence a complete transformation of your neurology and psychology and physiology occurs. Belief is the hinge upon which the door to behavior and emotion swings."
— Brad A. Greenberg '04
Dear Abby's Advice on Marriage to a Multiple
The following letters appeared in today's Tribune of April 2, 2008 (San Luis Obispo, CA) Any comments are welcome.
DEAR ABBY ADVICE
Daughter lauds mom's work to integrate selves
Dear Abby: I was offended by your response to "True Love Texan" (Jan. 18) when he asked about loving a woman with multiple personality disorder. MPD is also known as Dissociative Identity Disorder. Individuals with DID have survived severe childhood abuse. The way they
coped was to split into different personalities. DID can be treated through intense psychotherapy, which attempts to integrate the personalities into one.
A loving relationship is possible with people who have DID. My mother is an example. She has DID due to extreme childhood ritual and sexual abuse. She's the most amazing and resilient woman I have ever known, and I am proud to be her daughter. My father has been married to her for 35 years and has supported her unconditionally. It can work! Please educate your readers and provide some useful information about the courageous people who live with DID.
— Proud of Mom in Pennsylvania
Dear Proud of Mom: I received a slew of mail about this. My response to "True Love Texan" was not meant to minimize the seriousness of Dissociative Identity Disorder.
The following responses offer personal insights meant to support him as well as provide information about this sensitive topic. Read on:
Dear Abby: Telling that Texan to be certain that he loves every one of the multiple personalities may not be possible. However, it is possible to have a successful marriage with a person who has DID.
My husband and I will celebrate our 20th anniversary this summer, and he is a multiple. We knew about some of his personalities when we began dating, but others have surfaced as the years went on. It has not been easy, and I have had to deal with different folks coming out at awkward times. But as my husband said, "Your life will never be boring if you marry me," and he was right.
— Wife to One of Many in Vancouver, Wash.
Dear Abby: I know from firsthand experiences that all the love, devotion and loyalty may never be enough when dealing with a person with DID. Instead of being a partner, spouse or equal, I became my wife's caregiver, peacemaker and sometimes a target.
Nothing was ever easy; I could not depend on anything going smoothly or without incident. After 13 years of turmoil and uncertainty, I had to leave. A serious illness gave me no choice but to take care of myself for a change.
I hope "True Love Texan" will heed the warnings of his friends and understand the gravity of this illness before he makes a lifetime commitment.
— Wiser in California
Dear Abby: When a child is denied "normal" defenses and abused by those who are responsible for providing safety, some children do the most sane thing possible. They retreat into their own minds to a place of safety. We choose to call this by a new term, Multiple Personality Gift (MPG).
As long as the woman is in counseling, and "True Love Texan" is on board with the counseling, there is no reason they cannot have a good and productive life together
– Adoptive Mom in New York
DEAR ABBY ADVICE
Daughter lauds mom's work to integrate selves
Dear Abby: I was offended by your response to "True Love Texan" (Jan. 18) when he asked about loving a woman with multiple personality disorder. MPD is also known as Dissociative Identity Disorder. Individuals with DID have survived severe childhood abuse. The way they
coped was to split into different personalities. DID can be treated through intense psychotherapy, which attempts to integrate the personalities into one.
A loving relationship is possible with people who have DID. My mother is an example. She has DID due to extreme childhood ritual and sexual abuse. She's the most amazing and resilient woman I have ever known, and I am proud to be her daughter. My father has been married to her for 35 years and has supported her unconditionally. It can work! Please educate your readers and provide some useful information about the courageous people who live with DID.
— Proud of Mom in Pennsylvania
Dear Proud of Mom: I received a slew of mail about this. My response to "True Love Texan" was not meant to minimize the seriousness of Dissociative Identity Disorder.
The following responses offer personal insights meant to support him as well as provide information about this sensitive topic. Read on:
Dear Abby: Telling that Texan to be certain that he loves every one of the multiple personalities may not be possible. However, it is possible to have a successful marriage with a person who has DID.
My husband and I will celebrate our 20th anniversary this summer, and he is a multiple. We knew about some of his personalities when we began dating, but others have surfaced as the years went on. It has not been easy, and I have had to deal with different folks coming out at awkward times. But as my husband said, "Your life will never be boring if you marry me," and he was right.
— Wife to One of Many in Vancouver, Wash.
Dear Abby: I know from firsthand experiences that all the love, devotion and loyalty may never be enough when dealing with a person with DID. Instead of being a partner, spouse or equal, I became my wife's caregiver, peacemaker and sometimes a target.
Nothing was ever easy; I could not depend on anything going smoothly or without incident. After 13 years of turmoil and uncertainty, I had to leave. A serious illness gave me no choice but to take care of myself for a change.
I hope "True Love Texan" will heed the warnings of his friends and understand the gravity of this illness before he makes a lifetime commitment.
— Wiser in California
Dear Abby: When a child is denied "normal" defenses and abused by those who are responsible for providing safety, some children do the most sane thing possible. They retreat into their own minds to a place of safety. We choose to call this by a new term, Multiple Personality Gift (MPG).
As long as the woman is in counseling, and "True Love Texan" is on board with the counseling, there is no reason they cannot have a good and productive life together
– Adoptive Mom in New York
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