dissociation

Trauma Tuesday: Video to Explain Dissociation and Dissociative Identity Disorder

Submitted by FaithA on Tue, 10/14/2008 - 07:45

Traumatized Adopted Child (c) Julie C

**Update -- A reader told me that the video link was not working. I have fixed the issue. You can now view the video **

I recently posted a powerful video on organized pedophilia. I don’t know how many of you have watched it, but I cannot get through it without tearing up.

The same person has put together a shorter video (under four minutes long) on dissociation and dissociative identity disorder (DID). If you are parenting a traumatized adopted child, you need to watch this video. It will help you understand how your adopted child’s mind works.

The video is intended for people who do not understand DID and dissociation. The video is not graphic, so you do not need to worry about having horrible sights burned into your brain.

Please let me know what you think. Does this help you understand DID and dissociation a little better?

Trauma Tuesday: Recognizing Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) in Traumatized Adopted Child

Submitted by FaithA on Tue, 08/26/2008 - 08:45

Traumatized Adopted Child (c) Julie C

On Trauma Thursday, I wrote about traumatized adopted children with Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID). Today, I would like to focus on recognizing DID in a traumatized adopted child.

DID is very difficult to recognize unless you know what you are looking for. Even then, it can be hard to see. If you are concerned about DID, the best starting point is understanding the profile of a person with DID.

DID only occurs in people who have suffered from severe trauma from an early age (generally beginning before age six). Children with DID tend to be people-pleasers, which is the whole point of DID – being able to “be” who the child is expected to be in different settings. Children with DID also tend to be highly intelligent.

Children with DID might generally seem one way most of the time, and that “one way” is usually very passive and obedient. However, if the child becomes triggered, he can suddenly act very differently. For example, he might usually allow other people to take advantage of him but then, out of nowhere, suddenly stand his ground very firmly or even in an “over the top” way.

Trauma Thursday: Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) and the Traumatized Adopted Child

Submitted by FaithA on Thu, 08/21/2008 - 08:45

Traumatized Adopted Child (c) JulieC

On Trauma Tuesday, I introduced the topic of dissociative disorders. Today, I would like to discuss the most extreme type of dissociative disorder, which is called dissociative identity disorder (DID). If you are unfamiliar with DID, you might recognize it by its former name – multiple personality disorder.

DID has gotten a bad rap in the media. When most people think about DID, they think about the movie Sybil. My biggest complaint about how DID is represented in the movies is its lack of subtlety. The whole point of DID is to be able to switch to different alter parts without anyone else knowing. The way that DID is portrayed in the movies is about as subtle as being hit by a truck.

DID is a brilliant way to survive extreme child abuse, and people with DID tend to be highly intelligent.

Trauma Tuesday: Dissociative Disorders and the Traumatized Adopted Child

Submitted by FaithA on Tue, 08/19/2008 - 07:45

Traumatized Adopted Child (c) Julie C

Last week, I talked about dissociation in the traumatized adopted child and how to help a traumatized adopted child to stop dissociating. This week, I am going to focus on dissociative disorders.

According to Martha Stout’s book, The Myth of Sanity, dissociation occurs on a continuum. On the far left is normal dissociation that everyone experiences, such as “losing yourself” in a good movie and “forgetting” that you are sitting in a crowded theater. In the middle of the dissociation continuum is post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). On the far right is dissociative identity disorder (DID), which used to be called multiple personality disorder. (I have written extensively on my personal blog about DID).

Dissociative disorders fall on the dissociation continuum between PTSD in the middle and DID on the extreme right, which makes them more severe than PTSD but not as severe as DID. If you are parenting a traumatized adopted child who experienced severe trauma and has PTSD, it is possible that your child is also struggling with a dissociative disorder.

Trauma Thursday: How to Help a Traumatized Adopted Child to Stop Dissociating

Submitted by FaithA on Thu, 08/14/2008 - 08:00

Traumatized Adopted Child (c) JulieC

On Trauma Tuesday, I talked about dissociation and the traumatized adopted child. For Trauma Thursday, I am going to share some tips for helping a traumatized adopted child to stop dissociating.

Dissociation is a defense mechanism that helps a traumatized adopted child to “flee” into his own head to avoid painful realities. The ability to dissociate comes in handy when you are being traumatized through abuse or neglect on a regular basis. However, dissociation can interfere with a traumatized adopted child’s day-to-day life if he is constantly “checking out” every time something triggers his pain from the trauma.

The long-term goal is to teach a traumatized adopted child to “stay present” in his body, even when he becomes upset. This is not going to happen until the traumatized adopted child feels safe.

Trauma Tuesday: Dissociation and the Traumatized Adopted Child

Submitted by FaithA on Tue, 08/12/2008 - 07:45

Traumatized Adopted Child (c) Julie C

I find it interesting that I rarely see the topic of dissociation discussed among people who are parenting traumatized adopted children. The reason this surprises me is that dissociation is one of the most talked-about topics on message boards for adult survivors of child abuse, and those traumatized people learned how to dissociate in childhood.

Dictionary.com defines dissociation as…

A psychological defense mechanism in which specific, anxiety-provoking thoughts, emotions, or physical sensations are separated from the rest of the psyche.

In layman’s terms, the traumatized child “checks out” in her own head. It is like the body is there, doing whatever it is supposed to be doing, but the essence of the child is “gone.”