“When a lie has been embedded in the public consciousness, the truth has a difficult time making itself known.” TruthLiesCommon SenseDeceptionPublic Consciousness Author:Bethany L. Brand
“Dissociative identity disorder is conceptualized as a childhood onset, posttraumatic developmental disorder in which the child is unable to consolidate a unified sense of self. Detachment from emotional and physical pain during trauma can result in alterations in memory encoding and storage. In turn, this leads to fragmentation and compartmentalization of memory and impairments in retrieving memory.2,4,19 Exposure to early, usually repeated trauma results in the creation of discrete behavioral states that can persist and, over later development, become elaborated, ultimately developing into the alternate identities of dissociative identity disorder.” TraumaMental IllnessChild AbuseDissociative Identity DisorderSense Of SelfEmotional PainDissociationPersonality DevelopmentTraumatizedAlter PersonalitiesMemory LossDissociativeCoping MechanismAbused ChildrenAltersDefense MechanismAlter IdentitiesCompartmentalizationAlter PersonalityPosttraumaticPosttraumatic StressAlter Identity Author:Bethany L. Brand
“Because DID requires the presence of amnesia, DID patients are, by DSM-5 definition (American Psychiatric Association, 2013), unaware of some of their behavior in different states. Progress in treatment includes helping patients become more aware of, and in better control of, their behavior across all states. To those who have not had training in treating DID, this increased awareness may make it seem as if patients are creating new self-states, and “getting worse,” when in fact they are becoming aware of aspects of themselves for which they previously had limited or no awareness or control. Although some DID patients create new self-states in adulthood, clinicians strongly advise patients against so doing (Fine, 1989; ISSTD, 2011; Kluft, 1989).” Self AwarenessTherapyTreatmentDissociative Identity DisorderPsychotherapyAmnesiaAlter PersonalitiesDissociative PartsAlters Author:Bethany L. Brand
“defense lawyers are key in promoting the idea that many convicted of child abuse are innocent” Child Sexual AbuseFalse MemoriesWitch HuntPedophilesFalsely AccusedChild AbusersInnocent Until Proven GuiltyChild Molesters Author:Bethany L. Brand
“Without trauma-informed treatment, traumatized clients may not respond optimally and they may even be re-traumatized by the mental health system if they are labeled as “treatment resistant” because the treatment does not address the core issue of trauma; some may be misunderstood as fabricating or exaggerating their trauma history or symptoms.” Mental HealthPtsdAbuse SurvivorsTraumatizedMental Health SystemTrauma InformedFabricatingRe TraumatizedTreatment Resistant Author:Bethany L. Brand
“Split is doing well at the box office around the world, but it misrepresents people with dissociative identity disorder (DID; previously called multiple personality disorder). The trailer is particularly gripping, luring in audiences by depicting a man with DID kidnapping and preparing to torture three teenage girls. Kevin (played by James McAvoy) juggles 24 personalities that are based on stereotypes: a cutesy 9-year-old infatuated with Kanye West, a flamboyant designer, and the “Beast,” a superhuman monster who sees the girls as “sacred food.” Kevin falsely represents people with DID through exaggerated symptoms, extreme violence, and unrealistic physical characteristics. The senior author, an expert in DID, has not seen any DID patient who is this violent in 25 years of clinical practice. Kevin’s ghastly personalities are so over-the-top that terrifying scenes are making audiences laugh.” Mental IllnessDissociative Identity DisorderStereotypesMultiple PersonalitiesMental Health StigmaSerial KillersSplitDidmpdSplit MovieSplitmoviehurts Author:Bethany L. Brand
“Diagnosing dissociation does not make it happen, and denying it does not make it go away.” DenialSkepticismDissociative Identity DisorderDissociationDissociative DisordersMisdiagnosisMental Health Bias Author:Bethany L. Brand
“...the vast majority of these [dissociative identity disorder] patients have subtle presentations characterized by a mixture of dissociative and PTSD symptoms embedded with other symptoms, such as posttraumatic depression, substance abuse, somatoform symptoms, eating disorders, and self-destructive and impulsive behaviors.2,10 A history of multiple treatment providers, hospitalizations, and good medication trials, many of which result in only partial or no benefit, is often an indicator of dissociative identity disorder or another form of complex PTSD.” Mental IllnessPsychiatryDissociative Identity DisorderDissociationMultiple Personality DisorderDissociative DisorderDissociativeComplex PtsdMpdMisdiagnosisPsychiatric DrugsPosttraumatic Author:Bethany L. Brand
“FLATOW: So you would - how would you treat a patient like Sybil if she showed up in your office BRAND: Well, first I would start with a very thorough assessment, using the current standardized measures that we have available to us that assess for the range of dissociative disorders but the whole range of other psychological disorders, too. I would need to know what I'm working with, and I'd be very careful and make my decisions slowly, based on data about what she has. And furthermore, with therapists who are well-trained in dissociative disorders, we do keep an eye open for suggestibility. But that research, too, is not anywhere near as strong as what the other two people in the interview are suggesting.It shows - for example, there's eight studies that have a total of 11 samples. In the three clinical samples that have looked at the correlation between dissociation and suggestibility, all three clinical samples found non-significant correlations. So it's just not as strong as what people think. That's a myth that's not backed up by science." Exploring Multiple Personalities In 'Sybil Exposed' October 21, 2011 by Ira Flatow” RealityFakeFraudExposedDissociative Identity DisorderDissociationMultiple Personality DisorderMultiple PersonalitiesDissociative DisordersMental Illness StigmaSybilSuggestibilityControversorySuggestible Author:Bethany L. Brand