When the Mind Splits
Dissociative identity disorder affects millions of people, most of whom are former child abuse victims. Why do some psychologists doubt that the condition even exists?
By Sam Levin
....I met Elyse a few weeks after she sent me an email, stating that she has was trying to find a journalist to help her raise awareness about dissociative identity disorder, or DID (pronounced D-I-D), a misunderstood and stigmatized condition that is far more common than most people realize. Elyse was officially diagnosed with DID two years ago at Stanford University Medical Center, but she said she has had the condition for much longer.
"The majority of the public knows little to no correct information about DID, and even those in the professional field of psychology debate whether or not this disorder is even real," Elyse wrote to me over the summer. "But it is. It is very, very real, and so I am working hard to spread awareness."
Research has increasingly demonstrated that DID is a trauma-based disorder that typically emerges among people who have experienced childhood sexual or physical abuse. Dissociation occurs when people mentally detach themselves from their surroundings, a common coping mechanism for a child victim of abuse. When the abuse continues over a period of time, that dissociation can become extreme and lead the victim to develop distinct, dissociated parts of himself or herself that exist to withstand the abuse.
Experts on DID say that roughly 1 percent of the population suffers from the condition, making it as common as bipolar disorder or schizophrenia.
....Every year, child protective service agencies in the United States receive more than 3 million reports of child abuse. In 2012, there were nearly 63,000 documented cases of child sexual abuse, according to US Department of Health and Human Services data. And experts believe that the number of cases reported and investigated represents just a small fraction of the abuse and trauma that children suffer across the country.
"When they are reported, they are not dealt with well," said David Spiegel, associate chair of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Stanford University School of Medicine and an expert on dissociative identity disorder. Some research has suggested that two-thirds of child trauma cases aren't reported, he said. "These children have to live with it. How do you live with it? ... You act as though it isn't happening or it's happening to somebody else that isn't you."
Cases involving the most severe and disturbing trauma — prolonged physical and sexual abuse by parents, other family members, or caregivers — are especially likely to go unreported. And so children in these cases develop their own ways to survive. "You can't run away. You can't fight it, so you go away in your head," explained Bethany Brand, a clinical psychologist and professor of psychology at Towson University in Maryland, who recently completed the world's largest study on the treatment of dissociative disorders. "That makes it easier to disconnect from the body in pain."
When a young mind repeatedly enters these dissociative states in response to ongoing abuse, the coping mechanism can evolve into DID. "It's an interesting paradox of sort of breaking apart, so that you don't break," explained Janelle Salah, a Berkeley-based therapist who treats DID patients.
....A 2006 Journal of Psychiatric Research study concluded that 1.5 percent of the general population has DID. And a 2011 epidemiological overview of DID studies — which stated that "dissociative disorders constitute a hidden and neglected public health problem" — said the disorder exists in 0.4 to 3.1 percent of the general population, and in roughly 5 percent of psychiatric patients. That study also stated that dissociative patients are more likely to report childhood psychological trauma than people suffering from any other psychiatric disorder.
http://www.eastbayexpress.com/oakland/when-the-mind-splits/Content?oid=4109440&showFullText=true
When The Mind Splits: Processing Dissociative Identity Disorder Through Art
by Sam Levin
In this week's cover story, I profiled Elyse Winter-Volkova, a 21-year-old San Leandro woman who suffers from dissociative identity disorder, the condition formerly known as multiple personality disorder. Experts believe the disorder, also known as DID, affects roughly 1 percent of the population and most often emerges in people who have experienced severe childhood trauma, typically prolonged physical or sexual abuse. One of the leading DID experts featured in my story is Bethany Brand, a professor of psychology at Towson University in Maryland, who conducted the world's largest study on the treatment of dissociative disorders. In addition to discussing her extensive research with me, Brand helped connect me to two women in Maryland who also have DID.....
DID most often develops as a highly complex coping mechanism in the face of intense abuse and trauma, meaning a child mentally detaches from his or her surroundings, and eventually develops distinct, dissociated parts (or personalities) that exist to withstand the abuse. The challenge for people living with DID is to develop a functional system of communication between different personalities or identities (sometimes called "alters"), with some sufferers working toward "integration" — that is, the fusion of different identities into one. While integration is not always the ultimate goal for people with DID, Elise told me that she is working toward integration — an incredibly difficult process of trying to merge different parts of herself that carry different memories and perspective on her past abuse. "I would like to come back together as much as possible," she said....
http://www.eastbayexpress.com/CultureSpyBlog/archives/2014/10/29/when-the-mind-splits-processing-dissociative-identity-disorder-through-art
When the Mind Splits
from East Bay Express
Elyse Winter-Volkova has been diagnosed with dissociative identity disorder, but instead of hiding it, she openly talks about her condition online, with the people in her life, and as a guest lecturer in college psychology classes. She hopes to raise awareness and advocate for greater acceptance of people with mental illnesses.
http://vimeo.com/110367678
Dissociative identity disorder (formerly called Multiple Personality Disorder or MPD) is defined in the DSM-IV-TR as the presence of two or more personality states or distinct identities that repeatedly take control of one’s behavior. The patient has an inability to recall personal information. The extent of this lack of recall is too great to be explained by normal forgetfulness. The disorder cannot be due to the direct physical effects of a general medical condition or substance.
http://childabusewiki.org/index.php?title=Dissociative_Identity_Disorder
Showing posts with label dissociative disorders. Show all posts
Showing posts with label dissociative disorders. Show all posts
Thursday, October 30, 2014
Monday, February 17, 2014
Global Perspectives on Dissociative Disorders Individual and Societal Oppression
Global Perspectives on Dissociative Disorders
Individual and Societal Oppression
Edited by Vedat Sar, Warwick Middleton, Martin Dorahy
Routledge – 2014
Dissociative disorders are one of the psychiatric consequences of childhood psychological trauma. While oppression is an aspect of traumatic conditions, dissociation undermines resistance to oppression throughout a person’s lifespan. Neither oppression nor dissociation are restricted to particular cultures, and both can affect the individual as well as societies.
This collection engages with the universality of dissociative disorders and their close relationship to oppression. The chapters cover extreme examples such as ongoing incest in adulthood, children and adults forced to kill others, and abusive states in interrogation. Further subjects examined include the utilization of dissociation in postmodern societies to maintain oppression, the oppressive conditions of asylum seekers and the consequences of oppression as they are dealt with in psychotherapy. The final chapter considers how a paedophile pandering network employed multi-layered oppression to prevent the public becoming aware of the widespread and organised abuse of children.
This book will engender interactions between trauma investigators – those whose approach is close clinical observation, those who use instruments to survey groups of individuals, those whose research takes the form of investigative journalism, and those who examine the truth embedded or hidden in documents created for multiple, and at times, disturbing political purposes. http://www.routledge.com/books/details/9780415718073/
Individual and Societal Oppression
Edited by Vedat Sar, Warwick Middleton, Martin Dorahy
Routledge – 2014
Dissociative disorders are one of the psychiatric consequences of childhood psychological trauma. While oppression is an aspect of traumatic conditions, dissociation undermines resistance to oppression throughout a person’s lifespan. Neither oppression nor dissociation are restricted to particular cultures, and both can affect the individual as well as societies.
This collection engages with the universality of dissociative disorders and their close relationship to oppression. The chapters cover extreme examples such as ongoing incest in adulthood, children and adults forced to kill others, and abusive states in interrogation. Further subjects examined include the utilization of dissociation in postmodern societies to maintain oppression, the oppressive conditions of asylum seekers and the consequences of oppression as they are dealt with in psychotherapy. The final chapter considers how a paedophile pandering network employed multi-layered oppression to prevent the public becoming aware of the widespread and organised abuse of children.
This book will engender interactions between trauma investigators – those whose approach is close clinical observation, those who use instruments to survey groups of individuals, those whose research takes the form of investigative journalism, and those who examine the truth embedded or hidden in documents created for multiple, and at times, disturbing political purposes. http://www.routledge.com/books/details/9780415718073/
Monday, July 15, 2013
Sweep 255 suspected child predators, child abuse cover-ups, North Wales, Stuart Hall, Nottinghamshire
- Sweep snares 255 suspected child predators, rescues 61 children, officials say
- The truth behind the child abuse cover-ups child abuse in North Wales care homes
- Stuart Hall faces new rape allegations
- Police investigating over 50 allegations of sexual and physical abuse at former children's home (Nottinghamshire homes)
- Ex-teacher faces 47 charges of historical sexual abuse
- Global Perspectives on Dissociative Disorders
Sweep snares 255 suspected child predators, rescues 61 children, officials say
By Andy Gross and Daniel Arkin, NBC News July 14,2013
Law enforcement officials announced Monday that a recent five-week sweep snared more than 250 suspected child predators, including nine teachers and three clergymen.
Director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement John Morton said that 255 child predators were arrested and 61 child victims were rescued in so-called "Operation iGuardian," which targeted online sexual abusers as well as those who possess, produce or trade child pornography.
Morton said that the international investigation, which ran from May 28 to June 30, revealed that online sexual abuse is pervasive and growing....
Twenty-two of the victims were 9 years old or younger -- including four under the age of 3. The remaining 39 children were between the ages of 10 and 17, according to the ICE news release.
Of those arrested, 20 people were charged with online sexual enticement of a minor, with the remaining 235 people charged with child pornography production, possession or distribution of child pornography, traveling with the intent to have sex with a minor, or other offenses, including rape, according to the ICE release....
Investigators have arrested 1,674 people in similar investigations this fiscal year alone, ICE officials said.
http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/07/15/19486786-sweep-snares-255-suspected-child-predators-rescues-61-children-officials-say
The truth behind the child abuse cover-ups
The report that first exposed child abuse in North Wales care homes has finally been published. But, says Eileen Fairweather, damning details have still been left out
By Eileen Fairweather 13 Jul 2013
Seventeen years ago, a nervous-sounding woman rang and asked me to publicise a top-secret report. She was not the whistleblower, she explained, but a go-between. She would not give me her name: “It’s safer if you don’t know.”
That secret report revealed the extensive rape and savage beating of countless children in North Wales children’s homes. It was titled “Child Abuse: An independent investigation commissioned by Clwyd County Council, period 1974-1995”. Last week, John Jillings’s report on the Clwyd scandal was finally published. But Flintshire county council – successor to Clwyd – has heavily censored it. I dug out the original and discovered, unsurprisingly, that the cover-up continues....
as one investigation rapidly led to another, and I realised that paedophiles had comprehensively infiltrated Britain’s children’s homes since the 1970s.
Back in 1996, only a handful of local politicians and officials were allowed a copy of Jillings’s report. They were told – by police, insurers and the council – that they risked their careers, arrest and being personally sued if a word reached the media. The uncensored Jillings report includes these chilling threats.
Every report had a number, imprinted as a large watermark on every page. Any journalist who quoted it would supposedly be ordered by the courts to produce their copy or photocopy or face jail, and the watermark would expose their source....
Jillings, in the non-redacted report, reveals that one head of a home who allegedly cruelly beat boys even had a post secured for him by Clwyd at an exotic holiday destination abroad. Might some who failed to act now be investigated for neglect or conspiracy? When does inertia become criminal?
Many children ran away, but police returned them, weeping, to their abusers. At Bryn Estyn – famously described by Jillings as “the Colditz of residential care” – one boy was crammed into a laundry basket, the lid tied shut and tossed into a swimming pool. Other children saved him from drowning....
The real martyrs are the care children who killed themselves or died violently. Jillings lists 12. He called them R1, R2, etc, with just a few poignant lines about their deaths by hanging or falling from heights. My hand ached after I wrote out that report, and so did my heart.
I later learnt of four other abused boys who died tragically or mysteriously. I rang the secretariat of the Waterhouse tribunal and asked if it would examine the deaths of these 16 boys. The official said no and, when I asked why not, became supercilious. If they’re dead, he snapped, they can’t give evidence – can they?....
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/10177681/The-truth-behind-the-child-abuse-cover-ups.html
Stuart Hall faces new rape allegations
Fresh allegations of rape and sexual assault against Stuart Hall have emerged, after he was jailed for 15 months for a string of child sex offences. By Daniel Johnson 15 Jul 2013
Five new claims, including the alleged rape of a 12-year-old girl, have been made against the former BBC broadcaster, it has been reported.
The former It’s A Knockout presenter, 83, was jailed last month after admitting 14 counts of indecent assault against girls as young as nine between 1967 and 1987.
A Lancashire Police spokesman said: “We can confirm that we have received further allegations against Mr Hall and we are working closely with the Crown Prosecution Service to determine the most appropriate course of action....
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/10179390/Stuart-Hall-faces-new-rape-allegations.html
Police investigating over 50 allegations of sexual and physical abuse at former children's home
Police investigating abuse at council-run Beechwood home in Mapperley
Six victims previously came forward in 2011, five years after the home shut
Also looking at claims of abuse at three other Nottinghamshire homes
By Daily Mail Reporter 14 July 2013
Police are investigating more than 50 allegations of physical or sexual abuse at a former children's home.
Nottinghamshire Police said they are investigating claims that people were abused at the council-run Beechwood Children's Home in Mapperley, Nottinghamshire.
Some of the allegations date back nearly 30 years.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2362813/Bechwood-home-Police-investigating-50-allegations-sexual-physical-abuse.html
Ex-teacher faces 47 charges of historical sexual abuse Mon 15 Jul 2013
A man has been charged following an investigation into historical sexual abuse at a school in Trafford, Greater Manchester.
Alan Morris, 63, of Hale has been charged with 47 offences.
The charges are for offences alleged to have taken place between 1972 and 1991 and involve 29 boys aged between 11 and 17 during their time at St Ambrose RC School in Hale Barns.
http://www.itv.com/news/update/2013-07-15/man-faces-47-charges-over-sex-abuse-in-a-school/
Global Perspectives on Dissociative Disorders
Individual and Societal Oppression
Edited by Vedat Sar, Warwick Middleton, Martin Dorahy
To Be Published January 13th 2014 by Routledge – 192 pages
978-0-415-71807-3
Dissociative disorders are one of the psychiatric consequences of childhood psychological trauma. While oppression is an aspect of traumatic conditions, dissociation undermines resistance to oppression throughout a person’s lifespan. Neither oppression nor dissociation are restricted to particular cultures, and both can affect the individual as well as societies.
This collection engages with the universality of dissociative disorders and their close relationship to oppression. The chapters cover extreme examples such as ongoing incest in adulthood, children and adults forced to kill others, and abusive states in interrogation. Further subjects examined include the utilization of dissociation in postmodern societies to maintain oppression, the oppressive conditions of asylum seekers and the consequences of oppression as they are dealt with in psychotherapy. The final chapter considers how a paedophile pandering network employed multi-layered oppression to prevent the public becoming aware of the widespread and organised abuse of children....
http://www.routledgementalhealth.com/books/details/9780415718073/
- The truth behind the child abuse cover-ups child abuse in North Wales care homes
- Stuart Hall faces new rape allegations
- Police investigating over 50 allegations of sexual and physical abuse at former children's home (Nottinghamshire homes)
- Ex-teacher faces 47 charges of historical sexual abuse
- Global Perspectives on Dissociative Disorders
Sweep snares 255 suspected child predators, rescues 61 children, officials say
By Andy Gross and Daniel Arkin, NBC News July 14,2013
Law enforcement officials announced Monday that a recent five-week sweep snared more than 250 suspected child predators, including nine teachers and three clergymen.
Director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement John Morton said that 255 child predators were arrested and 61 child victims were rescued in so-called "Operation iGuardian," which targeted online sexual abusers as well as those who possess, produce or trade child pornography.
Morton said that the international investigation, which ran from May 28 to June 30, revealed that online sexual abuse is pervasive and growing....
Twenty-two of the victims were 9 years old or younger -- including four under the age of 3. The remaining 39 children were between the ages of 10 and 17, according to the ICE news release.
Of those arrested, 20 people were charged with online sexual enticement of a minor, with the remaining 235 people charged with child pornography production, possession or distribution of child pornography, traveling with the intent to have sex with a minor, or other offenses, including rape, according to the ICE release....
Investigators have arrested 1,674 people in similar investigations this fiscal year alone, ICE officials said.
http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/07/15/19486786-sweep-snares-255-suspected-child-predators-rescues-61-children-officials-say
The truth behind the child abuse cover-ups
The report that first exposed child abuse in North Wales care homes has finally been published. But, says Eileen Fairweather, damning details have still been left out
By Eileen Fairweather 13 Jul 2013
Seventeen years ago, a nervous-sounding woman rang and asked me to publicise a top-secret report. She was not the whistleblower, she explained, but a go-between. She would not give me her name: “It’s safer if you don’t know.”
That secret report revealed the extensive rape and savage beating of countless children in North Wales children’s homes. It was titled “Child Abuse: An independent investigation commissioned by Clwyd County Council, period 1974-1995”. Last week, John Jillings’s report on the Clwyd scandal was finally published. But Flintshire county council – successor to Clwyd – has heavily censored it. I dug out the original and discovered, unsurprisingly, that the cover-up continues....
as one investigation rapidly led to another, and I realised that paedophiles had comprehensively infiltrated Britain’s children’s homes since the 1970s.
Back in 1996, only a handful of local politicians and officials were allowed a copy of Jillings’s report. They were told – by police, insurers and the council – that they risked their careers, arrest and being personally sued if a word reached the media. The uncensored Jillings report includes these chilling threats.
Every report had a number, imprinted as a large watermark on every page. Any journalist who quoted it would supposedly be ordered by the courts to produce their copy or photocopy or face jail, and the watermark would expose their source....
Jillings, in the non-redacted report, reveals that one head of a home who allegedly cruelly beat boys even had a post secured for him by Clwyd at an exotic holiday destination abroad. Might some who failed to act now be investigated for neglect or conspiracy? When does inertia become criminal?
Many children ran away, but police returned them, weeping, to their abusers. At Bryn Estyn – famously described by Jillings as “the Colditz of residential care” – one boy was crammed into a laundry basket, the lid tied shut and tossed into a swimming pool. Other children saved him from drowning....
The real martyrs are the care children who killed themselves or died violently. Jillings lists 12. He called them R1, R2, etc, with just a few poignant lines about their deaths by hanging or falling from heights. My hand ached after I wrote out that report, and so did my heart.
I later learnt of four other abused boys who died tragically or mysteriously. I rang the secretariat of the Waterhouse tribunal and asked if it would examine the deaths of these 16 boys. The official said no and, when I asked why not, became supercilious. If they’re dead, he snapped, they can’t give evidence – can they?....
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/10177681/The-truth-behind-the-child-abuse-cover-ups.html
Stuart Hall faces new rape allegations
Fresh allegations of rape and sexual assault against Stuart Hall have emerged, after he was jailed for 15 months for a string of child sex offences. By Daniel Johnson 15 Jul 2013
Five new claims, including the alleged rape of a 12-year-old girl, have been made against the former BBC broadcaster, it has been reported.
The former It’s A Knockout presenter, 83, was jailed last month after admitting 14 counts of indecent assault against girls as young as nine between 1967 and 1987.
A Lancashire Police spokesman said: “We can confirm that we have received further allegations against Mr Hall and we are working closely with the Crown Prosecution Service to determine the most appropriate course of action....
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/10179390/Stuart-Hall-faces-new-rape-allegations.html
Police investigating over 50 allegations of sexual and physical abuse at former children's home
Police investigating abuse at council-run Beechwood home in Mapperley
Six victims previously came forward in 2011, five years after the home shut
Also looking at claims of abuse at three other Nottinghamshire homes
By Daily Mail Reporter 14 July 2013
Police are investigating more than 50 allegations of physical or sexual abuse at a former children's home.
Nottinghamshire Police said they are investigating claims that people were abused at the council-run Beechwood Children's Home in Mapperley, Nottinghamshire.
Some of the allegations date back nearly 30 years.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2362813/Bechwood-home-Police-investigating-50-allegations-sexual-physical-abuse.html
Ex-teacher faces 47 charges of historical sexual abuse Mon 15 Jul 2013
A man has been charged following an investigation into historical sexual abuse at a school in Trafford, Greater Manchester.
Alan Morris, 63, of Hale has been charged with 47 offences.
The charges are for offences alleged to have taken place between 1972 and 1991 and involve 29 boys aged between 11 and 17 during their time at St Ambrose RC School in Hale Barns.
http://www.itv.com/news/update/2013-07-15/man-faces-47-charges-over-sex-abuse-in-a-school/
Global Perspectives on Dissociative Disorders
Individual and Societal Oppression
Edited by Vedat Sar, Warwick Middleton, Martin Dorahy
To Be Published January 13th 2014 by Routledge – 192 pages
978-0-415-71807-3
Dissociative disorders are one of the psychiatric consequences of childhood psychological trauma. While oppression is an aspect of traumatic conditions, dissociation undermines resistance to oppression throughout a person’s lifespan. Neither oppression nor dissociation are restricted to particular cultures, and both can affect the individual as well as societies.
This collection engages with the universality of dissociative disorders and their close relationship to oppression. The chapters cover extreme examples such as ongoing incest in adulthood, children and adults forced to kill others, and abusive states in interrogation. Further subjects examined include the utilization of dissociation in postmodern societies to maintain oppression, the oppressive conditions of asylum seekers and the consequences of oppression as they are dealt with in psychotherapy. The final chapter considers how a paedophile pandering network employed multi-layered oppression to prevent the public becoming aware of the widespread and organised abuse of children....
http://www.routledgementalhealth.com/books/details/9780415718073/
Wednesday, June 12, 2013
Ritual Abuse And Extreme Abuse Clinician’s Conference August 2013
Ritual Abuse And Extreme Abuse Clinician’s Conference August 2013
A one day conference preceding our regular conference will be open to licensed practitioners in related fields to discuss issues in working with clients suffering from ritual abuse and extreme abuse symptoms. Students studying in related fields and retired licensed practitioners may write smartnews@aol.com by e-mail for more information.
Internet conference information is available at: http://ritualabuse.us/smart-conference/ritual-abuse-and-extreme-abuse-clinicians-conference-2013/
http://goo.gl/GiBKr
Information about last year’s clinician’s conference is at http://ritualabuse.us/smart-conference/ritual-abuse-and-extreme-abuse-clinicians-conference-2012/
The conference will be held on August 9, 2013 from 9 am until 5 pm at the DoubleTree near the Bradley International Airport, 16 Ella Grasso Turnpike
Windsor Locks, CT. A free shuttle is available to and from the airport.
A free lunch buffet will be available to all conference participants. The cost of this conference is only $50 and limited seating will be available, so please register as soon as possible.
Registration is not guaranteed, so before making any travel arrangements, please contact smartnews@aol.com by e-mail, sending your professional qualifications. Due to the nature of the information being discussed, all conference proceedings will be confidential. Handouts and materials will be available for participants to take home.
Conference Registration
(Please read the entire brochure before registering.)
After approval, please mail this registration form and checks (made out to S.M.A.R.T., US Banks only please), money orders (US) to: Clinician’s Conference, c/o S.M.A.R.T., P O Box 1295, Easthampton, MA 01027 USA
Name: (please include names and individual addresses of all registrees, thanks.)
___________________________
Licensing information : ___________________________________
Street: ____________________________
City: ___________________State:______
Zip:________E-mail_________________
Refund Policy: Fees will not be refunded after July 9, 2013. Please send us written notice. Refund will be minus $25.00 deposit per registree.
Conference Schedule
9:00 – Ellen Lacter, Ph.D.
10:30 – Lee Schwecke RN, BSN, MSN, EdD
12:00 – Lunch
1:30 – Rev. Rik Fire MSW, LCSW, LISW
3:00 – Clinical Discussion – Treating Survivors of Severe Abuse: Techniques and Resources
Presenters
Ellen Lacter, Ph.D., has been a clinical psychologist in San Diego, California, USA, for 27 years and specializes in the treatment of trauma and dissociative disorders in both adults and children. She has a number of published chapters in edited books on the subjects of ritual abuse and mind control. Her website is http://www.endritualabuse.org/
Her presentation will discuss: breaking torture-based mind control down into the psychological mechanisms that allow for its installation and ongoing control, and then to draw upon these concepts to discuss how to work to overcome mind control.
Lee Schwecke RN, BSN, MSN, EdD is an Associate Professor Emeritus, Indiana University School of Nursing, Indianapolis, IN. She taught theory and clinical Psychiatric Nursing for 38 ½ years. She co-authored 5 editions of: Keltner, Schwecke, Bostrom. (1991-2007) Psychiatric Nursing. St. Louis, MO, Mosby Year Book. Each edition included her chapters on Survivors of Violence and Trauma. She wrote 2 editorials for the Journal of Psychosocial Nursing: 1) Childhood Sexual Abuse, PTSD, and Borderline Personality Disorder: Understanding the Connections (2009); 2) Beyond Childhood Sexual Abuse: Ritual Abuse-Torture and Human Trafficking (2011). She has worked part time as a staff nurse in the Psychiatric Pavilion of Community Hospital North in Indianapolis for 25 years.
Her presentation will discuss: Working with Inpatient Survivors of Violence and Trauma. She will talk about the increased difficulties in providing quality care with inpatient survivors, her chapter sections and journal articles, getting articles to all units and finding outpatient and internet resources for after discharge.
Rev. Rik Fire MSW, LCSW, LISW is an Ordained Interfaith Minister and Board Trustee of Ecumenicon Fellowship. He is a Licensed Clinical/Independent Social Worker in the states of Iowa, Louisiana and Pennsylvania and is in private practice as a therapist specializing in trauma, sexuality, gender and holistic healing modalities. Additionally, Rik is an Advanced Certified Shamanic Practitioner and Reiki Master. He lives and serves at Village of Radikal Healing in Bucks County, PA and is in the process of renovating another retreat center by the ocean in NJ that will be called Agni Ashram. Rik is working on a Doctorate in Holistic Nutrition and Natural Health.
His presentation will discuss: Shamanic Technology for Treatment of Trauma
In shamanic worldview, it is believed that trauma effects the system of the being—on a mind, body and spirit level. There are techniques and practices in shamanic technology, in which the practitioner can access the “other realm” on behalf of the client to gain information on the work to be completed. Based on information received via shamanic journeywork, the practitioner will develop a treatment plan on recommended interventions. This workshop will discuss the primary shamanic modalities used in the treatment of trauma including journeywork, extraction, soul retrieval and energy work.
Transportation
There is a free shuttle to and from the airport. Hotel parking is available at no charge for those attending the conference. Conference sponsors, etc. assume no responsibility for ground and/or air transportation arrangements. Conference sponsors cannot assume responsibility for additional expense or losses due to illnesses, cancellation of flights, strikes or other causes.
Attendance Policy
Presentation of a picture ID will be required of all conference participants, unless prior arrangements are made. This is for the protection of all participants. The conference is educational and not intended as therapy or treatment. Conference sponsors, cosponsor, speakers, organizers and exhibitors assume no responsibility for any reactions resulting from attending our conference. Statements made and materials exhibited and distributed by attendees, speakers and exhibitors are their own and don’t necessarily represent the policies or views of conference sponsors, cosponsor, speakers, exhibitors, organizers or attendees. Children are not permitted to attend the conference. S.M.A.R.T. and its representatives also reserve the right to remove anyone from the conference at any time. Photographing, audio taping and videotaping without written permission from S.M.A.R.T. are prohibited.
Accommodations
Room rates for Friday night at the DoubleTree Hotel at Bradley International Airport (CT) are $92 a day for one person (not incl. tax), please mention the SMART 2013 conference to get the special rate. This rate is guaranteed until 7/9/13 or all rooms at the special rate are gone. Call 860-627-5171 for information. The hotel has no information about the conference, other than room information.
copied with permission
A one day conference preceding our regular conference will be open to licensed practitioners in related fields to discuss issues in working with clients suffering from ritual abuse and extreme abuse symptoms. Students studying in related fields and retired licensed practitioners may write smartnews@aol.com by e-mail for more information.
Internet conference information is available at: http://ritualabuse.us/smart-conference/ritual-abuse-and-extreme-abuse-clinicians-conference-2013/
http://goo.gl/GiBKr
Information about last year’s clinician’s conference is at http://ritualabuse.us/smart-conference/ritual-abuse-and-extreme-abuse-clinicians-conference-2012/
The conference will be held on August 9, 2013 from 9 am until 5 pm at the DoubleTree near the Bradley International Airport, 16 Ella Grasso Turnpike
Windsor Locks, CT. A free shuttle is available to and from the airport.
A free lunch buffet will be available to all conference participants. The cost of this conference is only $50 and limited seating will be available, so please register as soon as possible.
Registration is not guaranteed, so before making any travel arrangements, please contact smartnews@aol.com by e-mail, sending your professional qualifications. Due to the nature of the information being discussed, all conference proceedings will be confidential. Handouts and materials will be available for participants to take home.
Conference Registration
(Please read the entire brochure before registering.)
After approval, please mail this registration form and checks (made out to S.M.A.R.T., US Banks only please), money orders (US) to: Clinician’s Conference, c/o S.M.A.R.T., P O Box 1295, Easthampton, MA 01027 USA
Name: (please include names and individual addresses of all registrees, thanks.)
___________________________
Licensing information : ___________________________________
Street: ____________________________
City: ___________________State:______
Zip:________E-mail_________________
Refund Policy: Fees will not be refunded after July 9, 2013. Please send us written notice. Refund will be minus $25.00 deposit per registree.
Conference Schedule
9:00 – Ellen Lacter, Ph.D.
10:30 – Lee Schwecke RN, BSN, MSN, EdD
12:00 – Lunch
1:30 – Rev. Rik Fire MSW, LCSW, LISW
3:00 – Clinical Discussion – Treating Survivors of Severe Abuse: Techniques and Resources
Presenters
Ellen Lacter, Ph.D., has been a clinical psychologist in San Diego, California, USA, for 27 years and specializes in the treatment of trauma and dissociative disorders in both adults and children. She has a number of published chapters in edited books on the subjects of ritual abuse and mind control. Her website is http://www.endritualabuse.org/
Her presentation will discuss: breaking torture-based mind control down into the psychological mechanisms that allow for its installation and ongoing control, and then to draw upon these concepts to discuss how to work to overcome mind control.
Lee Schwecke RN, BSN, MSN, EdD is an Associate Professor Emeritus, Indiana University School of Nursing, Indianapolis, IN. She taught theory and clinical Psychiatric Nursing for 38 ½ years. She co-authored 5 editions of: Keltner, Schwecke, Bostrom. (1991-2007) Psychiatric Nursing. St. Louis, MO, Mosby Year Book. Each edition included her chapters on Survivors of Violence and Trauma. She wrote 2 editorials for the Journal of Psychosocial Nursing: 1) Childhood Sexual Abuse, PTSD, and Borderline Personality Disorder: Understanding the Connections (2009); 2) Beyond Childhood Sexual Abuse: Ritual Abuse-Torture and Human Trafficking (2011). She has worked part time as a staff nurse in the Psychiatric Pavilion of Community Hospital North in Indianapolis for 25 years.
Her presentation will discuss: Working with Inpatient Survivors of Violence and Trauma. She will talk about the increased difficulties in providing quality care with inpatient survivors, her chapter sections and journal articles, getting articles to all units and finding outpatient and internet resources for after discharge.
Rev. Rik Fire MSW, LCSW, LISW is an Ordained Interfaith Minister and Board Trustee of Ecumenicon Fellowship. He is a Licensed Clinical/Independent Social Worker in the states of Iowa, Louisiana and Pennsylvania and is in private practice as a therapist specializing in trauma, sexuality, gender and holistic healing modalities. Additionally, Rik is an Advanced Certified Shamanic Practitioner and Reiki Master. He lives and serves at Village of Radikal Healing in Bucks County, PA and is in the process of renovating another retreat center by the ocean in NJ that will be called Agni Ashram. Rik is working on a Doctorate in Holistic Nutrition and Natural Health.
His presentation will discuss: Shamanic Technology for Treatment of Trauma
In shamanic worldview, it is believed that trauma effects the system of the being—on a mind, body and spirit level. There are techniques and practices in shamanic technology, in which the practitioner can access the “other realm” on behalf of the client to gain information on the work to be completed. Based on information received via shamanic journeywork, the practitioner will develop a treatment plan on recommended interventions. This workshop will discuss the primary shamanic modalities used in the treatment of trauma including journeywork, extraction, soul retrieval and energy work.
Transportation
There is a free shuttle to and from the airport. Hotel parking is available at no charge for those attending the conference. Conference sponsors, etc. assume no responsibility for ground and/or air transportation arrangements. Conference sponsors cannot assume responsibility for additional expense or losses due to illnesses, cancellation of flights, strikes or other causes.
Attendance Policy
Presentation of a picture ID will be required of all conference participants, unless prior arrangements are made. This is for the protection of all participants. The conference is educational and not intended as therapy or treatment. Conference sponsors, cosponsor, speakers, organizers and exhibitors assume no responsibility for any reactions resulting from attending our conference. Statements made and materials exhibited and distributed by attendees, speakers and exhibitors are their own and don’t necessarily represent the policies or views of conference sponsors, cosponsor, speakers, exhibitors, organizers or attendees. Children are not permitted to attend the conference. S.M.A.R.T. and its representatives also reserve the right to remove anyone from the conference at any time. Photographing, audio taping and videotaping without written permission from S.M.A.R.T. are prohibited.
Accommodations
Room rates for Friday night at the DoubleTree Hotel at Bradley International Airport (CT) are $92 a day for one person (not incl. tax), please mention the SMART 2013 conference to get the special rate. This rate is guaranteed until 7/9/13 or all rooms at the special rate are gone. Call 860-627-5171 for information. The hotel has no information about the conference, other than room information.
copied with permission
Wednesday, April 3, 2013
Growing Not Dwindling: Worldwide Phenomenon of Dissociative Disorders, Disinformation About Dissociation Dr Joel Paris’s Notions About Dissociative Identity Disorder
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease & Volume 201, Number 4, April 2013 www.jonmd.com p. 353 - 358
Growing Not Dwindling: Worldwide Phenomenon of Dissociative Disorders
To the Editor:
In the December 2012 issue of the Journal, Joel Paris, MD, wrote an article about the current status of dissociative identity disorder (DID) and the dissociative disorder field in general. He suggests that DID is merely a ‘‘fad’’ and that there is no credible evidence to connect traumatic experiences with the development of DID. We refute several of the claims made by Dr Paris.
Our biggest concern as non-North American researchers is that Dr Paris does not reference a single international study related to dissociative disorders and DID, despite the considerable and increasing empirical literature from around the world. His speculation that DID is not diagnosed outside clinics that specialize in treating dissociation is not consistent with current data. DID and dissociative disorders have been reliably found in general psychiatric hospitals; psychiatric emergency departments; and private practices in countries including England, the Netherlands, Turkey, Puerto Rico, Northern Ireland, Germany, Finland, China, and Australia, among many others.
Much of the international research, using sophisticated epidemiological and clinical research methods, has replicated dozens of times the finding that dissociative processes and disorders (including DID) can be reliably detected in a wide spectrum of different societies. Epidemiological general population studies indicate that 1.1% to 1.5% meet diagnostic criteria for DID; and 8.6% to 18.3%, for any DSM-IV dissociative disorder (Johnson et al., 2006; Sar et al., 2007a). The international literature on DID and dissociative disorders has been widely published in mainstream journals of psychiatry and psychopathology and is inconsistent with Dr Paris’s conclusions....
Dr Paris also opines that there is only a ‘‘weak link’’ between child abuse and psychopathology, quoting an article published 17 years ago. Current research illustrates a very different picture. Persons with early abusive experiences demonstrate increased illnesses (Green and Kimerling, 2004), impaired work functioning (Lee and Tolman, 2006), serious interpersonal difficulties (Van der Kolk and d’Andrea, 2010), and a high risk for traumatic revictimization (Rich et al., 2004). The Adverse Childhood Experiences Study, an American epidemiological study, has provided retrospective and prospective data from more than 17,000 individuals on the effects of traumatic experiences during the first 18 years of life.
This large study demonstrated the enduring, strongly proportionate, and frequently profound relationship between adverse childhood experiences and emotional states, health risks, disease burdens, sexual behavior, disability, and health care costs, even decades later (Felitti and Anda, 2010). Specifically, child sexual abuse (CSA) has been related in various epidemiological studies to the subsequent onset of a variety of psychiatric disorders....
In conclusion, Dr Paris’s assessment of the supposedly dwindling fad of DID and dissociative disorders is not in keeping with current peer-reviewed international research. The dissociative disorder field has been producing solid and consistent evidence that provides guidance to clinicians and researchers about the epidemiology, phenomenology, diagnosis, and treatment of DID (and closely related conditions).
Alfonso Marti´nez-Taboas, PhD
Department of Psychology
Carlos Albizu University
San Juan, Puerto Rico
Martin Dorahy, PhD
Department of Psychology
University of Canterbury
Christchurch, New Zealand
Vedat Sar, MD
Department of Psychiatry
Istanbul University
Istanbul, Turkey
Warwick Middleton, MD
Department of Psychiatry
University of Queensland
St Lucia, Australia
Christa Kru¨ger, MD
Department of Psychiatry
University of Pretoria
Pretoria, South Africa
Journal of Nervous & Mental Disease:
April 2013 - Volume 201 - Issue 4 - p 353–354
doi: 10.1097/NMD.0b013e318288d27f
Letters to the Editor
http://journals.lww.com/jonmd/Citation/2013/04000/Growing_Not_Dwindling__International_Research_on.15.aspx
Disinformation About Dissociation Dr Joel Paris’s Notions About Dissociative Identity Disorder
To the Editor:
We write to record our objections to both the form and the content of Dr Joel Paris’s recent article entitled The Rise and Fall of Dissociative Identity Disorder (Paris, 2012). His claim that dissociative identity disorder (DID) is a ‘‘medical fad’’ is simply wrong, and he provides no substantive evidence to support his claim. From the mistaken identification of Pierre Janet as a psychiatrist in the first line (Janet was the most famous psychologist of his day), it is replete with errors, false claims, and lack of scholarship and just plainly ignores the published literature. Dr Paris provided a highly biased article that is based on opinion rather than on science. His review of the literature is extremely selective. Of 48 references, Dr Paris cites exactly 7 peer-reviewed articles published from 2000 onward (7/48 references equals 14%) and only
8 peer-reviewed, data-driven articles from before 2000 (8/48 equals 16%). Rather than relying on the recent peer-reviewed, scientific literature, Paris relied almost entirely on the non-peer-reviewed books, including a popular press book written by a journalist whose methods and conclusions have been strongly challenged.
He claims that interest and research in DID have waned, yet he fails to cite the multitude of studies that have been conducted about it. In fact, Dalenberg et al. (2007) documented evidence of the exact opposite pattern described by Paris: ‘‘A search of the PILOTS database offered by the National Center for Posttraumatic
Stress Disorder for articles on dissociation reveals 64 studies in 1985-1989, 236 published in 1990-1994, 426 published in 1995-1999 and 477 in the last 5-year block (2000-2004)’’ (p. 401)....
In addition, he fails to cite a variety of neurobiological and psychophysiological studies of DID documenting similar brain morphology abnormalities in patients with DID to those of other traumatized patients (Reinders et al., 2006; Vermetten et al., 2006). Despite failing to review this and other relevant research, Dr Paris made the claim that ‘‘Neither the theory behind the diagnosis nor the methods of treatment are consistent
with the current preference for biological theories’’ (p. 1078). Furthermore, he fails to cite any research that has been done by researchers outside North America. For example, Vedat Sar, MD, in Turkey has published more than 70 articles and chapters on dissociative disorders and trauma (http://vedatsar.com/ index_2.htm), but Dr Paris failed to mention a single one....
A recent review in Psychological Bulletin by 2012) found strong support for the etiological relationship of trauma and dissociation. These included several large meta-analyses, some of which focused on patients with DID. Dalenberg et al. (2012) found an effect size of r = 0.52 and 0.54 for the relationship between childhood physical abuse and sexual abuse, respectively, in studies that compared individuals with dissociative disorders with those without dissociative disorders. In addition, Dalenberg et al. (2012) tested eight different predictions of the trauma versus the fantasy (sociocognitive/iatrogenic) model of dissociation. On each, careful of reviews of the literature, including meta-analyses, on memory, suggestibility, and neurobiology, among others, Dalenberg et al. (2012) found minimal scientific evidence to support the fantasy model. Further, reviews have shown that there are no research studies in the literature in any population studied to support the iatrogenic/sociocognitive etiology of DID promulgated by Dr Paris (Brown et al., 1999; Loewenstein, 2007)....
In summary, disagreement is healthy for our field. However, Dr Paris’s article does not provide scholarly criticism based upon peer reviewed research, scientific data, or accurate discussion of the history of psychiatry. His point of view is incorrect and outmoded. It is the so-called false-memory, iatrogenesis model of the dissociative disorders that is the fallen fad, buried under the weight of rigorous data that contradict it. Dissociative disorders have not risen and fallen. These existed before the fields of psychiatry and psychology did. These are, alas, here to stay but are amenable to better understanding and improved treatments.
Bethany Brand, PhD
Department of Psychology
Towson University, MD
Richard J. Loewenstein, MD
The Trauma Disorders Program
Sheppard Pratt Health System
Baltimore, MD
Department of Psychiatry
University of Maryland School of Medicine
Baltimore
David Spiegel, MD
Department of Psychiatry
and Behavioral Sciences
Stanford University School of Medicine
CA
Journal of Nervous & Mental Disease:
April 2013 - Volume 201 - Issue 4 - p 354–356
doi: 10.1097/NMD.0b013e318288d2ee
Letters to the Editor
http://journals.lww.com/jonmd/Citation/2013/04000/Disinformation_About_Dissociation__Dr_Joel_Paris_s.16.aspx
Growing Not Dwindling: Worldwide Phenomenon of Dissociative Disorders
To the Editor:
In the December 2012 issue of the Journal, Joel Paris, MD, wrote an article about the current status of dissociative identity disorder (DID) and the dissociative disorder field in general. He suggests that DID is merely a ‘‘fad’’ and that there is no credible evidence to connect traumatic experiences with the development of DID. We refute several of the claims made by Dr Paris.
Our biggest concern as non-North American researchers is that Dr Paris does not reference a single international study related to dissociative disorders and DID, despite the considerable and increasing empirical literature from around the world. His speculation that DID is not diagnosed outside clinics that specialize in treating dissociation is not consistent with current data. DID and dissociative disorders have been reliably found in general psychiatric hospitals; psychiatric emergency departments; and private practices in countries including England, the Netherlands, Turkey, Puerto Rico, Northern Ireland, Germany, Finland, China, and Australia, among many others.
Much of the international research, using sophisticated epidemiological and clinical research methods, has replicated dozens of times the finding that dissociative processes and disorders (including DID) can be reliably detected in a wide spectrum of different societies. Epidemiological general population studies indicate that 1.1% to 1.5% meet diagnostic criteria for DID; and 8.6% to 18.3%, for any DSM-IV dissociative disorder (Johnson et al., 2006; Sar et al., 2007a). The international literature on DID and dissociative disorders has been widely published in mainstream journals of psychiatry and psychopathology and is inconsistent with Dr Paris’s conclusions....
Dr Paris also opines that there is only a ‘‘weak link’’ between child abuse and psychopathology, quoting an article published 17 years ago. Current research illustrates a very different picture. Persons with early abusive experiences demonstrate increased illnesses (Green and Kimerling, 2004), impaired work functioning (Lee and Tolman, 2006), serious interpersonal difficulties (Van der Kolk and d’Andrea, 2010), and a high risk for traumatic revictimization (Rich et al., 2004). The Adverse Childhood Experiences Study, an American epidemiological study, has provided retrospective and prospective data from more than 17,000 individuals on the effects of traumatic experiences during the first 18 years of life.
This large study demonstrated the enduring, strongly proportionate, and frequently profound relationship between adverse childhood experiences and emotional states, health risks, disease burdens, sexual behavior, disability, and health care costs, even decades later (Felitti and Anda, 2010). Specifically, child sexual abuse (CSA) has been related in various epidemiological studies to the subsequent onset of a variety of psychiatric disorders....
In conclusion, Dr Paris’s assessment of the supposedly dwindling fad of DID and dissociative disorders is not in keeping with current peer-reviewed international research. The dissociative disorder field has been producing solid and consistent evidence that provides guidance to clinicians and researchers about the epidemiology, phenomenology, diagnosis, and treatment of DID (and closely related conditions).
Alfonso Marti´nez-Taboas, PhD
Department of Psychology
Carlos Albizu University
San Juan, Puerto Rico
Martin Dorahy, PhD
Department of Psychology
University of Canterbury
Christchurch, New Zealand
Vedat Sar, MD
Department of Psychiatry
Istanbul University
Istanbul, Turkey
Warwick Middleton, MD
Department of Psychiatry
University of Queensland
St Lucia, Australia
Christa Kru¨ger, MD
Department of Psychiatry
University of Pretoria
Pretoria, South Africa
Journal of Nervous & Mental Disease:
April 2013 - Volume 201 - Issue 4 - p 353–354
doi: 10.1097/NMD.0b013e318288d27f
Letters to the Editor
http://journals.lww.com/jonmd/Citation/2013/04000/Growing_Not_Dwindling__International_Research_on.15.aspx
Disinformation About Dissociation Dr Joel Paris’s Notions About Dissociative Identity Disorder
To the Editor:
We write to record our objections to both the form and the content of Dr Joel Paris’s recent article entitled The Rise and Fall of Dissociative Identity Disorder (Paris, 2012). His claim that dissociative identity disorder (DID) is a ‘‘medical fad’’ is simply wrong, and he provides no substantive evidence to support his claim. From the mistaken identification of Pierre Janet as a psychiatrist in the first line (Janet was the most famous psychologist of his day), it is replete with errors, false claims, and lack of scholarship and just plainly ignores the published literature. Dr Paris provided a highly biased article that is based on opinion rather than on science. His review of the literature is extremely selective. Of 48 references, Dr Paris cites exactly 7 peer-reviewed articles published from 2000 onward (7/48 references equals 14%) and only
8 peer-reviewed, data-driven articles from before 2000 (8/48 equals 16%). Rather than relying on the recent peer-reviewed, scientific literature, Paris relied almost entirely on the non-peer-reviewed books, including a popular press book written by a journalist whose methods and conclusions have been strongly challenged.
He claims that interest and research in DID have waned, yet he fails to cite the multitude of studies that have been conducted about it. In fact, Dalenberg et al. (2007) documented evidence of the exact opposite pattern described by Paris: ‘‘A search of the PILOTS database offered by the National Center for Posttraumatic
Stress Disorder for articles on dissociation reveals 64 studies in 1985-1989, 236 published in 1990-1994, 426 published in 1995-1999 and 477 in the last 5-year block (2000-2004)’’ (p. 401)....
In addition, he fails to cite a variety of neurobiological and psychophysiological studies of DID documenting similar brain morphology abnormalities in patients with DID to those of other traumatized patients (Reinders et al., 2006; Vermetten et al., 2006). Despite failing to review this and other relevant research, Dr Paris made the claim that ‘‘Neither the theory behind the diagnosis nor the methods of treatment are consistent
with the current preference for biological theories’’ (p. 1078). Furthermore, he fails to cite any research that has been done by researchers outside North America. For example, Vedat Sar, MD, in Turkey has published more than 70 articles and chapters on dissociative disorders and trauma (http://vedatsar.com/ index_2.htm), but Dr Paris failed to mention a single one....
A recent review in Psychological Bulletin by 2012) found strong support for the etiological relationship of trauma and dissociation. These included several large meta-analyses, some of which focused on patients with DID. Dalenberg et al. (2012) found an effect size of r = 0.52 and 0.54 for the relationship between childhood physical abuse and sexual abuse, respectively, in studies that compared individuals with dissociative disorders with those without dissociative disorders. In addition, Dalenberg et al. (2012) tested eight different predictions of the trauma versus the fantasy (sociocognitive/iatrogenic) model of dissociation. On each, careful of reviews of the literature, including meta-analyses, on memory, suggestibility, and neurobiology, among others, Dalenberg et al. (2012) found minimal scientific evidence to support the fantasy model. Further, reviews have shown that there are no research studies in the literature in any population studied to support the iatrogenic/sociocognitive etiology of DID promulgated by Dr Paris (Brown et al., 1999; Loewenstein, 2007)....
In summary, disagreement is healthy for our field. However, Dr Paris’s article does not provide scholarly criticism based upon peer reviewed research, scientific data, or accurate discussion of the history of psychiatry. His point of view is incorrect and outmoded. It is the so-called false-memory, iatrogenesis model of the dissociative disorders that is the fallen fad, buried under the weight of rigorous data that contradict it. Dissociative disorders have not risen and fallen. These existed before the fields of psychiatry and psychology did. These are, alas, here to stay but are amenable to better understanding and improved treatments.
Bethany Brand, PhD
Department of Psychology
Towson University, MD
Richard J. Loewenstein, MD
The Trauma Disorders Program
Sheppard Pratt Health System
Baltimore, MD
Department of Psychiatry
University of Maryland School of Medicine
Baltimore
David Spiegel, MD
Department of Psychiatry
and Behavioral Sciences
Stanford University School of Medicine
CA
Journal of Nervous & Mental Disease:
April 2013 - Volume 201 - Issue 4 - p 354–356
doi: 10.1097/NMD.0b013e318288d2ee
Letters to the Editor
http://journals.lww.com/jonmd/Citation/2013/04000/Disinformation_About_Dissociation__Dr_Joel_Paris_s.16.aspx
Sunday, January 6, 2013
Epidemiology of Dissociative Disorders: An Overview
Epidemiology of Dissociative Disorders: An Overview
Vedat Sar - Department of Psychiatry, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Turkey 2011
General psychiatric assessment instruments do not cover DSM-IV dissociative disorders. Many large-scale epidemiological studies led to biased results due to this deficit in their methodology. Nevertheless, screening studies using diagnostic tools designed to assess dissociative disorders yielded lifetime prevalence rates around 10% in clinical populations and in the community. Special populations such as psychiatric emergency ward applicants, drug addicts, and women in prostitution demonstrated the highest rates. Data derived from epidemiological studies also support clinical findings about the relationship between childhood adverse experiences and dissociative disorders. Thus, dissociative disorders constitute a hidden and neglected public health problem. Better and early recognition of dissociative disorders would increase awareness about childhood traumata in the community and support prevention of them alongside their clinical consequences.
http://downloads.hindawi.com/journals/eri/2011/404538.pdf
excerpts:
"Most of the published clinical case series are focused on chronic and complex forms of dissociative disorders.
Data collected in diverse geographic locations such as North America [2], Puerto Rico [3], Western Europe [4], Turkey [5], and Australia [6] underline the consistency in clinical symptoms of dissociative disorders. These clinical case series have also documented that dissociative patients report highest frequencies of childhood psychological trauma among all psychiatric disorders. Childhood sexual (57.1%–90.2%), emotional (57.1%), and physical (62.9%–82.4%) abuse and neglect (62.9%) are among them (2–6)."
"Several studies conducted on consecutive series of inpatients and outpatients in general psychiatric settings in diverse countries yielded results depending on the hinterland of the particular institution (Table 1).
Two studies in North America demonstrated that 13.0–20.7 % of psychiatric inpatients had a dissociative disorder [22, 23]. Studies on dissociative disorders in Istanbul, Turkey, yielded a prevalence slightly above 10% among psychiatric inpatients and outpatients [8, 24, 25]. Although still considerable, these rates were lower in the Netherlands [26], Germany [18], and Switzerland [27] among inpatients, that is, between 4.3%–8.0%. A Finnish study [28] reported higher rates for psychiatric outpatients (14.0%) and inpatients (21.0%).
Emergency admissions of a university psychiatric clinic in Istanbul, Turkey yielded the highest rate in the country: 35.7% [29]. In a study from Zurich, Switzerland, among severely impaired psychiatric outpatients, prevalence of all dissociative disorders were 25.0% [30]. Two recent studies on inpatient and outpatient psychiatric units in North America reported higher rates than those of the previous studies [31, 32]."
Vedat Sar - Department of Psychiatry, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Turkey 2011
General psychiatric assessment instruments do not cover DSM-IV dissociative disorders. Many large-scale epidemiological studies led to biased results due to this deficit in their methodology. Nevertheless, screening studies using diagnostic tools designed to assess dissociative disorders yielded lifetime prevalence rates around 10% in clinical populations and in the community. Special populations such as psychiatric emergency ward applicants, drug addicts, and women in prostitution demonstrated the highest rates. Data derived from epidemiological studies also support clinical findings about the relationship between childhood adverse experiences and dissociative disorders. Thus, dissociative disorders constitute a hidden and neglected public health problem. Better and early recognition of dissociative disorders would increase awareness about childhood traumata in the community and support prevention of them alongside their clinical consequences.
http://downloads.hindawi.com/journals/eri/2011/404538.pdf
excerpts:
"Most of the published clinical case series are focused on chronic and complex forms of dissociative disorders.
Data collected in diverse geographic locations such as North America [2], Puerto Rico [3], Western Europe [4], Turkey [5], and Australia [6] underline the consistency in clinical symptoms of dissociative disorders. These clinical case series have also documented that dissociative patients report highest frequencies of childhood psychological trauma among all psychiatric disorders. Childhood sexual (57.1%–90.2%), emotional (57.1%), and physical (62.9%–82.4%) abuse and neglect (62.9%) are among them (2–6)."
"Several studies conducted on consecutive series of inpatients and outpatients in general psychiatric settings in diverse countries yielded results depending on the hinterland of the particular institution (Table 1).
Two studies in North America demonstrated that 13.0–20.7 % of psychiatric inpatients had a dissociative disorder [22, 23]. Studies on dissociative disorders in Istanbul, Turkey, yielded a prevalence slightly above 10% among psychiatric inpatients and outpatients [8, 24, 25]. Although still considerable, these rates were lower in the Netherlands [26], Germany [18], and Switzerland [27] among inpatients, that is, between 4.3%–8.0%. A Finnish study [28] reported higher rates for psychiatric outpatients (14.0%) and inpatients (21.0%).
Emergency admissions of a university psychiatric clinic in Istanbul, Turkey yielded the highest rate in the country: 35.7% [29]. In a study from Zurich, Switzerland, among severely impaired psychiatric outpatients, prevalence of all dissociative disorders were 25.0% [30]. Two recent studies on inpatient and outpatient psychiatric units in North America reported higher rates than those of the previous studies [31, 32]."
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
Bleach Attack on Advocate for Jewish Victims of Sexual Abuse, Common Forms of Misinformation and Tactics of Disinformation about Psychotherapy for Trauma Originating in Ritual Abuse and Mind Control
Bleach Attack on Advocate for Jewish Victims of Sexual Abuse
A fishmonger hurled bleach at an advocate for victims of sexual abuse. Both are members of Brooklyn's Orthodox Jewish community. By Chana Ya'ar 12/14/2012
A Williamsburg fishmonger hurled a cup of bleach Tuesday at a rabbi who advocates for victims of sexual abuse. Both are members of Brooklyn's Orthodox Jewish community.
Police have charged 36-year-old Williamsburg resident Meilech Schnitzler, for allegedly throwing the chemical at Rabbi Nuchem Rosenberg as he walked near Schnitzler's fish store on Tuesday. For years, Rosenberg has been blogging about sexual abuse in the hareidi-religious Jewish community.
The rabbi's face and eyes were burned by the bleach, and his clothes were ruined as well, according to a police report....
Rosenberg, 62, has told media that in the past, efforts to intimidate him have not been taken seriously by the office of Brooklyn District Attorney Charles J. Hynes. He also accused Hynes of turning a blind eye to crime in the Brooklyn hareidi-religious community for financial and political gain. The position of district attorney in New York is an elective office.
Tensions are high this week, due to the conviction on Monday of Rabbi Nehemia Weberman, a prominent self-styled “counselor” in New York's hareidi-religious Jewish community. Weberman was convicted on 59 counts of sexual abuse.
However, police said there appeared to be no connection between the attack on Rosenberg and the conviction of Weberman, who had the backing of the community's rabbinical leaders as well as much of the Jewish community both in the United States and abroad.
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/163119#.UNFBMax1tPg
Common Forms of Misinformation and Tactics of Disinformation about Psychotherapy for Trauma Originating in Ritual Abuse and Mind Control
By Ellen Lacter, Ph.D., December 18, 2012.
This page on my website seeks to expose a number of common forms of misinformation and tactics of disinformation about psychotherapy for trauma originating in ritual abuse and mind control. Disinformation is distinguished from misinformation in that it is intentionally fraudulent.
Misinformation and disinformation about ritual abuse and mind control trauma and psychotherapy to treat such trauma appear in both paper and electronic media, but are particularly abundant on the Internet on websites of individuals and organizations, bookseller reviews, blogs, newsletters, online encyclopedias, social networking sites, and e-group listservs....
Therefore, the Internet serves as something of an unregulated court of public opinion, where, to a large degree, allegedly falsely accused perpetrators of child abuse and their advocates and alleged victims of child abuse and their therapists and advocates, argue about:
(a) whether child abuse is in itself traumatic
(b) the existence of ritual abuse and mind control
(c) the validity of recovered memories of abuse
(d) the validity of dissociative disorders, especially DID
(e) the practice of psychotherapy in relation to all of the above
All of this occurs with no rules of order, no penalties for perjury, and an uneven playing field that causes psychotherapists and psychology researchers to have to pull their punches.
I believe that this fight is being waged, in great part, to prevent child abuse survivors, especially survivors of ritual abuse and mind control, from receiving the help and support that they need to heal from their abuse, from receiving any sense of validation about their abuse, from recalling any dissociated parts of their abuse, from reporting their abusers to the authorities, from suing their abusers, from activism against child abuse, ritual abuse, and mind control, and in some cases, from even breaking away from their abusers.
http://endritualabuse.org/activism/common-forms-of-misinformation-and-tactics-of-disinformation-about-psychotherapy-for-trauma-originating-in-ritual-abuse-and-mind-control/
A fishmonger hurled bleach at an advocate for victims of sexual abuse. Both are members of Brooklyn's Orthodox Jewish community. By Chana Ya'ar 12/14/2012
A Williamsburg fishmonger hurled a cup of bleach Tuesday at a rabbi who advocates for victims of sexual abuse. Both are members of Brooklyn's Orthodox Jewish community.
Police have charged 36-year-old Williamsburg resident Meilech Schnitzler, for allegedly throwing the chemical at Rabbi Nuchem Rosenberg as he walked near Schnitzler's fish store on Tuesday. For years, Rosenberg has been blogging about sexual abuse in the hareidi-religious Jewish community.
The rabbi's face and eyes were burned by the bleach, and his clothes were ruined as well, according to a police report....
Rosenberg, 62, has told media that in the past, efforts to intimidate him have not been taken seriously by the office of Brooklyn District Attorney Charles J. Hynes. He also accused Hynes of turning a blind eye to crime in the Brooklyn hareidi-religious community for financial and political gain. The position of district attorney in New York is an elective office.
Tensions are high this week, due to the conviction on Monday of Rabbi Nehemia Weberman, a prominent self-styled “counselor” in New York's hareidi-religious Jewish community. Weberman was convicted on 59 counts of sexual abuse.
However, police said there appeared to be no connection between the attack on Rosenberg and the conviction of Weberman, who had the backing of the community's rabbinical leaders as well as much of the Jewish community both in the United States and abroad.
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/163119#.UNFBMax1tPg
Common Forms of Misinformation and Tactics of Disinformation about Psychotherapy for Trauma Originating in Ritual Abuse and Mind Control
By Ellen Lacter, Ph.D., December 18, 2012.
This page on my website seeks to expose a number of common forms of misinformation and tactics of disinformation about psychotherapy for trauma originating in ritual abuse and mind control. Disinformation is distinguished from misinformation in that it is intentionally fraudulent.
Misinformation and disinformation about ritual abuse and mind control trauma and psychotherapy to treat such trauma appear in both paper and electronic media, but are particularly abundant on the Internet on websites of individuals and organizations, bookseller reviews, blogs, newsletters, online encyclopedias, social networking sites, and e-group listservs....
Therefore, the Internet serves as something of an unregulated court of public opinion, where, to a large degree, allegedly falsely accused perpetrators of child abuse and their advocates and alleged victims of child abuse and their therapists and advocates, argue about:
(a) whether child abuse is in itself traumatic
(b) the existence of ritual abuse and mind control
(c) the validity of recovered memories of abuse
(d) the validity of dissociative disorders, especially DID
(e) the practice of psychotherapy in relation to all of the above
All of this occurs with no rules of order, no penalties for perjury, and an uneven playing field that causes psychotherapists and psychology researchers to have to pull their punches.
I believe that this fight is being waged, in great part, to prevent child abuse survivors, especially survivors of ritual abuse and mind control, from receiving the help and support that they need to heal from their abuse, from receiving any sense of validation about their abuse, from recalling any dissociated parts of their abuse, from reporting their abusers to the authorities, from suing their abusers, from activism against child abuse, ritual abuse, and mind control, and in some cases, from even breaking away from their abusers.
http://endritualabuse.org/activism/common-forms-of-misinformation-and-tactics-of-disinformation-about-psychotherapy-for-trauma-originating-in-ritual-abuse-and-mind-control/
Sunday, September 16, 2012
Emotional Freedom Techniques for MC and RA Recovery - Survivorship Webinar
Upcoming Webinar:
Saturday, October 20
12:00 noon Pacific Time
Presenter: Melisa Noel (EFT Practitioner & Consultant)
"Emotional Freedom Techniques for MC and RA Recovery"
Melisa Noel has nineteen years in the trauma recovery field in a variety of roles. As a professional therapeutic foster parent, she specialized in severely traumatized children with dissociative “disorders,” autistic spectrum, borderline family systems, and much more. In addition to her Bachelors in Sociology, she has extensive training in attachment work, sexually and physically aggressive youth, sexual abuse and domestic violence, cult/mind control/torture/programming patterns, working with cultural and sexual minorities, mediation and conflict resolution. Melisa wrote and presented multiple research papers in Social Psychology at academic symposiums around the U.S., and was awarded Excellence in Undergraduate Research by the National Science Foundation in 2002. She also received two years of intensive training on EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) specifically for trauma recovery. In addition to her professional experiences, Melisa is an adult survivor of a pedophile porn ring. She began her personal recovery journey in 1993, at age nineteen, before organized commercialized crime against children was a recognized form of abuse. Melisa has used EFT as a primary tool in her own recovery process, and is now an EFT practitioner, as well as a consultant, presenter and workshop facilitator on the latest research and applications for trauma recovery.
What is EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques)? How and why does it work for trauma? And why are practitioners falling in love with it? In this webinar, EFT Practitioner, Melisa Noel, will introduce current research showing EFT to be as effective as EMDR, with some of the latest science supporting these findings. Participants will receive a brief introduction to a few of the EFT techniques designed for working with trauma. Additionally, we’ll talk about how EFT is particularly helpful when working gently and lovingly with protector parts that can often create flooding, overwhelm, self-harm and destructive relationship patterns. Lastly, we’ll touch on some pieces to notice when using EFT with dissociative genius (a.k.a. “disorders”), and/or with MC/RA survivors. Opportunities for Q & A with the presenter will be included. Whether you’re a survivor or a practitioner, if you want to know more about EFT from an integrated perspective with science, practical application, and compassion, this is a great introduction.
REGISTRATION
Registration closes Thursday evening October 18th , 2012
To reserve a space in the webinar, e-mail Shamai at shamai@survivorship.org and give her this information:
1. Your name
2. The webinar you wish to attend: "Emotional Freedom Techniques for MC and RA Recovery"
3. Amount and method of payment (check, PayPal, money order)
4. Your preferred e-mail address (so we can send you instructions)
5. The name you will be using for the webinar. (This does not have to be your real name or your message board screen name.)
You will receive a confirmation email immediately and an invitation link and instructions after the registration closes
COST
Webinars are on a sliding scale from $50.00 to full scholarship (while we offer full scholarships for webinars please consider paying whatever you are able to. Even $5 will help to cover the cost of the webinar provider). Please remember to factor in the cost of the telephone call if you don’t have a computer headset. The PayPal button is near the bottom of the page at http://www.survivorship.org/webinars.html
If you wish to pay by check please send it to: Survivorship, Family Justice Center, 470 27th Street, Oakland, CA 94612.
PAST WEBINARS
Survivorship members may listen to past webinars in the members’ section.
We strive to present all webinars in our archives, and sometimes, for technical reasons, we are unable to.
For information on joining Survivorship, go to http://www.survivorship.org/about/membership.html
Complete details on all our webinars are at http://www.survivorship.org/webinars.html
Saturday, October 20
12:00 noon Pacific Time
Presenter: Melisa Noel (EFT Practitioner & Consultant)
"Emotional Freedom Techniques for MC and RA Recovery"
Melisa Noel has nineteen years in the trauma recovery field in a variety of roles. As a professional therapeutic foster parent, she specialized in severely traumatized children with dissociative “disorders,” autistic spectrum, borderline family systems, and much more. In addition to her Bachelors in Sociology, she has extensive training in attachment work, sexually and physically aggressive youth, sexual abuse and domestic violence, cult/mind control/torture/programming patterns, working with cultural and sexual minorities, mediation and conflict resolution. Melisa wrote and presented multiple research papers in Social Psychology at academic symposiums around the U.S., and was awarded Excellence in Undergraduate Research by the National Science Foundation in 2002. She also received two years of intensive training on EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) specifically for trauma recovery. In addition to her professional experiences, Melisa is an adult survivor of a pedophile porn ring. She began her personal recovery journey in 1993, at age nineteen, before organized commercialized crime against children was a recognized form of abuse. Melisa has used EFT as a primary tool in her own recovery process, and is now an EFT practitioner, as well as a consultant, presenter and workshop facilitator on the latest research and applications for trauma recovery.
What is EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques)? How and why does it work for trauma? And why are practitioners falling in love with it? In this webinar, EFT Practitioner, Melisa Noel, will introduce current research showing EFT to be as effective as EMDR, with some of the latest science supporting these findings. Participants will receive a brief introduction to a few of the EFT techniques designed for working with trauma. Additionally, we’ll talk about how EFT is particularly helpful when working gently and lovingly with protector parts that can often create flooding, overwhelm, self-harm and destructive relationship patterns. Lastly, we’ll touch on some pieces to notice when using EFT with dissociative genius (a.k.a. “disorders”), and/or with MC/RA survivors. Opportunities for Q & A with the presenter will be included. Whether you’re a survivor or a practitioner, if you want to know more about EFT from an integrated perspective with science, practical application, and compassion, this is a great introduction.
REGISTRATION
Registration closes Thursday evening October 18th , 2012
To reserve a space in the webinar, e-mail Shamai at shamai@survivorship.org and give her this information:
1. Your name
2. The webinar you wish to attend: "Emotional Freedom Techniques for MC and RA Recovery"
3. Amount and method of payment (check, PayPal, money order)
4. Your preferred e-mail address (so we can send you instructions)
5. The name you will be using for the webinar. (This does not have to be your real name or your message board screen name.)
You will receive a confirmation email immediately and an invitation link and instructions after the registration closes
COST
Webinars are on a sliding scale from $50.00 to full scholarship (while we offer full scholarships for webinars please consider paying whatever you are able to. Even $5 will help to cover the cost of the webinar provider). Please remember to factor in the cost of the telephone call if you don’t have a computer headset. The PayPal button is near the bottom of the page at http://www.survivorship.org/webinars.html
If you wish to pay by check please send it to: Survivorship, Family Justice Center, 470 27th Street, Oakland, CA 94612.
PAST WEBINARS
Survivorship members may listen to past webinars in the members’ section.
We strive to present all webinars in our archives, and sometimes, for technical reasons, we are unable to.
For information on joining Survivorship, go to http://www.survivorship.org/about/membership.html
Complete details on all our webinars are at http://www.survivorship.org/webinars.html
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Correlations between dissociation, DID and child abuse in different parts of the world
Epidemiology of Dissociative Disorders: An Overview
Epidemiology Research International
Volume 2011 (2011), Article ID 404538, 8 pages
doi:10.1155/2011/404538
Vedat Sar Department of Psychiatry, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul University, 34390 Capa, Istanbul, Turkey
excerpts:
....screening studies using diagnostic tools designed to assess dissociative disorders yielded lifetime prevalence rates around 10% in clinical populations and in the community. Special populations such as psychiatric emergency ward applicants, drug addicts, and women in prostitution demonstrated the highest rates. Data derived from epidemiological studies also support clinical findings about the relationship between childhood adverse experiences and dissociative disorders.
.... Data collected in diverse geographic locations such as North America [2], Puerto Rico [3], Western Europe [4], Turkey [5], and Australia [6] underline the consistency in clinical symptoms of dissociative disorders. These clinical case series have also documented that dissociative patients report highest frequencies of childhood psychological trauma among all psychiatric disorders. Childhood sexual (57.1%–90.2%), emotional (57.1%), and physical (62.9%–82.4%) abuse and neglect (62.9%) are among them.
....Two studies in North America demonstrated that 13.0–20.7 % of psychiatric inpatients had a dissociative disorder [22, 23]. Studies on dissociative disorders in Istanbul, Turkey, yielded a prevalence slightly above 10% among psychiatric inpatients and outpatients [8, 24, 25]. Although still considerable, these rates were lower in the Netherlands [26], Germany [18], and Switzerland [27] among inpatients, that is, between 4.3%–8.0%. A Finnish study [28] reported higher rates for psychiatric outpatients (14.0%) and inpatients (21.0%). Emergency admissions of a university psychiatric clinic in Istanbul, Turkey yielded the highest rate in the country: 35.7% [29]. In a study from Zurich, Switzerland, among severely impaired psychiatric outpatients, prevalence of all dissociative disorders were 25.0% [30].
....Overall, the prevalence of dissociative disorders in inpatient and outpatient psychiatric settings seems to be around 10%, while approximately half of them (5%) has DID, the most severe type of dissociative disorders.
.... A screening study on a representative sample...in Manitoba, Canada, using the DDIS yielded 11.2% prevalence for all DSM-III-R dissociative disorders [36]. Two large-scale studies were conducted in the general population of Sivas City, Turkey, supported these findings gathered in North America. The first one was conducted on a representative sample of 994 participants from both genders [37]. Approximately 3/4 of the probands dropped-out who were selected for a second and third diagnostic interview due to their elevated DES scores. Despite of this high loss in data, 0.4% of the original sample was diagnosed as having clinically confirmed DID. The second study in Sivas City, Turkey was conducted on a representative female sample of 648 participants in the same city using a structured diagnostic interview, that is, the DDIS [38]. The overall prevalence of dissociative disorders was 18.3%. 1.1% of the population had DID. However, the largest group was DDNOS (8.3%). Conditions based primarily on the presence of distinct personality states (i.e., DID and DDNOS-1) built up a prevalence of 5.2% for chronic complex dissociative disorders.
....In a recent North American study conducted in the community (New York,...the prevalence was 8.6% for all DSM-IV dissociative disorders observed in the past year [39]....A further study [42] documented that 6.3% of the general population suffered from three or more frequently occurring dissociative symptoms possibly representing a dissociative disorder. In The Netherlands, 378 subjects from a non-clinical population were screened using the dissociation questionnaire (DIS-Q), a self-rating scale of European origin [43, 44]. 2.1% of the participants had a score above the cutoff point (score of 2.5), and 0.5 % had a score comparable to those of patients with dissociative disorders (scores of 3.0 or higher).
....Among consecutive inpatients admitted to a dependency treatment unit of a large state mental hospital in Istanbul, Turkey, the lifetime prevalence of DSM-IV dissociative disorders was 17.2% [45]. These rates were 9.0% for alcohol dependency only [46] and 26.0% for patients with chemical dependency [47]. Those rates were between 15.0% and 39.0% [48–50] for patients with chemical dependency in North America.
....In Germany, a screening study was conducted on 51 male criminal offenders admitted to a medicolegal institution by the court so as to understand diminished or lack of responsibility for the offence due to psychiatric disorder, including a large group of persons with substance-use disorders [56]. Using the SCID-D, a high prevalence of dissociative symptoms and disorders (23.5%), mostly DDNOS, was demonstrated. 22.6% of the group had a DES score 20.0 or higher. In Turkey [57], 26.8% of 108 male prisoners in a regular correctional center had a DES score 20 or above. This rate was 18.5% for DES scores 30 or above which is known to be the cut-off level for chronic dissociative disorders [58]. Nevertheless, according to the SCID-D, 15.7% of the subjects had a dissociative disorder, that is, either DDNOS or dissociative amnesia. Exotic dancers and women in prostitution have also been demonstrated as risk groups for dissociative disorders [52–55, 59]. This seem to be due to the highly traumatic background of the probands.
....Epidemiological studies also documented the relationship between dissociative disorders and childhood trauma, an association clinicians and researchers are familiar with [32, 71, 72]. A screening study conducted on consecutively admitted psychiatric outpatients yielded elevated rates for sexual (27.8%), physical (50.0%,), and emotional (72.2%) abuse and neglect (83.3%) among dissociative patients in comparison to nondissociative controls [24]. In the inpatient psychiatric unit of the same institution, these rates were 58.8%, 82.4%, 70.6%, and 58.8%, respectively [25]. Apparently, patients with childhood sexual and/or physical abuse were hospitalized more readily pointing to a more crisis-prone and severe general condition. On the other hand, dissociative outpatients and dissociative subjects identified in non-clinical settings report emotional abuse and neglect predominantly [24, 38]. Nevertheless, in a Turkish study in the community, subjects with dissociative or conversion disorder (somatic dissociation) reported significantly higher levels of childhood traumata than the remaining participants [38, 69]. In a case series and also in the community, conversion disorder patients with a concurrent dissociative disorder reported childhood traumata more frequently than those without.
http://www.hindawi.com/journals/eri/2011/404538/
Epidemiology Research International
Volume 2011 (2011), Article ID 404538, 8 pages
doi:10.1155/2011/404538
Vedat Sar Department of Psychiatry, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul University, 34390 Capa, Istanbul, Turkey
excerpts:
....screening studies using diagnostic tools designed to assess dissociative disorders yielded lifetime prevalence rates around 10% in clinical populations and in the community. Special populations such as psychiatric emergency ward applicants, drug addicts, and women in prostitution demonstrated the highest rates. Data derived from epidemiological studies also support clinical findings about the relationship between childhood adverse experiences and dissociative disorders.
.... Data collected in diverse geographic locations such as North America [2], Puerto Rico [3], Western Europe [4], Turkey [5], and Australia [6] underline the consistency in clinical symptoms of dissociative disorders. These clinical case series have also documented that dissociative patients report highest frequencies of childhood psychological trauma among all psychiatric disorders. Childhood sexual (57.1%–90.2%), emotional (57.1%), and physical (62.9%–82.4%) abuse and neglect (62.9%) are among them.
....Two studies in North America demonstrated that 13.0–20.7 % of psychiatric inpatients had a dissociative disorder [22, 23]. Studies on dissociative disorders in Istanbul, Turkey, yielded a prevalence slightly above 10% among psychiatric inpatients and outpatients [8, 24, 25]. Although still considerable, these rates were lower in the Netherlands [26], Germany [18], and Switzerland [27] among inpatients, that is, between 4.3%–8.0%. A Finnish study [28] reported higher rates for psychiatric outpatients (14.0%) and inpatients (21.0%). Emergency admissions of a university psychiatric clinic in Istanbul, Turkey yielded the highest rate in the country: 35.7% [29]. In a study from Zurich, Switzerland, among severely impaired psychiatric outpatients, prevalence of all dissociative disorders were 25.0% [30].
....Overall, the prevalence of dissociative disorders in inpatient and outpatient psychiatric settings seems to be around 10%, while approximately half of them (5%) has DID, the most severe type of dissociative disorders.
.... A screening study on a representative sample...in Manitoba, Canada, using the DDIS yielded 11.2% prevalence for all DSM-III-R dissociative disorders [36]. Two large-scale studies were conducted in the general population of Sivas City, Turkey, supported these findings gathered in North America. The first one was conducted on a representative sample of 994 participants from both genders [37]. Approximately 3/4 of the probands dropped-out who were selected for a second and third diagnostic interview due to their elevated DES scores. Despite of this high loss in data, 0.4% of the original sample was diagnosed as having clinically confirmed DID. The second study in Sivas City, Turkey was conducted on a representative female sample of 648 participants in the same city using a structured diagnostic interview, that is, the DDIS [38]. The overall prevalence of dissociative disorders was 18.3%. 1.1% of the population had DID. However, the largest group was DDNOS (8.3%). Conditions based primarily on the presence of distinct personality states (i.e., DID and DDNOS-1) built up a prevalence of 5.2% for chronic complex dissociative disorders.
....In a recent North American study conducted in the community (New York,...the prevalence was 8.6% for all DSM-IV dissociative disorders observed in the past year [39]....A further study [42] documented that 6.3% of the general population suffered from three or more frequently occurring dissociative symptoms possibly representing a dissociative disorder. In The Netherlands, 378 subjects from a non-clinical population were screened using the dissociation questionnaire (DIS-Q), a self-rating scale of European origin [43, 44]. 2.1% of the participants had a score above the cutoff point (score of 2.5), and 0.5 % had a score comparable to those of patients with dissociative disorders (scores of 3.0 or higher).
....Among consecutive inpatients admitted to a dependency treatment unit of a large state mental hospital in Istanbul, Turkey, the lifetime prevalence of DSM-IV dissociative disorders was 17.2% [45]. These rates were 9.0% for alcohol dependency only [46] and 26.0% for patients with chemical dependency [47]. Those rates were between 15.0% and 39.0% [48–50] for patients with chemical dependency in North America.
....In Germany, a screening study was conducted on 51 male criminal offenders admitted to a medicolegal institution by the court so as to understand diminished or lack of responsibility for the offence due to psychiatric disorder, including a large group of persons with substance-use disorders [56]. Using the SCID-D, a high prevalence of dissociative symptoms and disorders (23.5%), mostly DDNOS, was demonstrated. 22.6% of the group had a DES score 20.0 or higher. In Turkey [57], 26.8% of 108 male prisoners in a regular correctional center had a DES score 20 or above. This rate was 18.5% for DES scores 30 or above which is known to be the cut-off level for chronic dissociative disorders [58]. Nevertheless, according to the SCID-D, 15.7% of the subjects had a dissociative disorder, that is, either DDNOS or dissociative amnesia. Exotic dancers and women in prostitution have also been demonstrated as risk groups for dissociative disorders [52–55, 59]. This seem to be due to the highly traumatic background of the probands.
....Epidemiological studies also documented the relationship between dissociative disorders and childhood trauma, an association clinicians and researchers are familiar with [32, 71, 72]. A screening study conducted on consecutively admitted psychiatric outpatients yielded elevated rates for sexual (27.8%), physical (50.0%,), and emotional (72.2%) abuse and neglect (83.3%) among dissociative patients in comparison to nondissociative controls [24]. In the inpatient psychiatric unit of the same institution, these rates were 58.8%, 82.4%, 70.6%, and 58.8%, respectively [25]. Apparently, patients with childhood sexual and/or physical abuse were hospitalized more readily pointing to a more crisis-prone and severe general condition. On the other hand, dissociative outpatients and dissociative subjects identified in non-clinical settings report emotional abuse and neglect predominantly [24, 38]. Nevertheless, in a Turkish study in the community, subjects with dissociative or conversion disorder (somatic dissociation) reported significantly higher levels of childhood traumata than the remaining participants [38, 69]. In a case series and also in the community, conversion disorder patients with a concurrent dissociative disorder reported childhood traumata more frequently than those without.
http://www.hindawi.com/journals/eri/2011/404538/
Sunday, July 31, 2011
WI lawmakers look to pass "Caylee's Law", Trauma and Dissociation in China
"There is virtually no popular or professional knowledge of dissociative identity disorder in China, and therefore professional and popular contamination cannot exist."
"Dissociative disorders were diagnosed in 24 respondents by structured interview, and 15 respondents fell into the dissociative taxon on the Dissociative Experiences Scale."
Trauma and Dissociation in China
Zeping Xiao, M.D., Heqin Yan, Zhen Wang, M.D., Zheng Zou, M.D., Yong Xu, M.D., Jue Chen, M.D., Haiyin Zhang, M.D., Colin A. Ross, M.D., and Benjamin B. Keyes, Ph.D.
Am J Psychiatry 163:1388-1391, August 2006
doi: 10.1176/appi.ajp.163.8.1388
2006 American Psychiatric Association
OBJECTIVE: In order to determine whether pathological dissociation occurs in China, the authors conducted a survey among psychiatric inpatients, outpatients, and the general population in Shanghai, China. There is virtually no popular or professional knowledge of dissociative identity disorder in China, and therefore professional and popular contamination cannot exist.
METHOD: Chinese versions of the Dissociative Experiences Scale and the Dissociative Disorders Interview Schedule were administered to 423 inpatients, 304 outpatients, and 618 factory workers in Shanghai by Chinese psychiatrists working at the Shanghai Mental Health Center.
RESULTS: Dissociative disorders were diagnosed in 24 respondents by structured interview, and 15 respondents fell into the dissociative taxon on the Dissociative Experiences Scale. The outpatients reported the highest rates of childhood physical and/or sexual abuse and of pathological dissociation.
ONCLUSIONS: Pathological dissociation can be detected readily among psychiatric outpatients in China but is much less common in the general population. Pathological dissociation is more frequent in more traumatized subsamples of the Chinese population. The findings are not consistent with the sociocognitive, contamination, or iatrogenic models of dissociative identity disorder.
http://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/cgi/content/abstract/163/8/1388
Trauma and Dissociation in China
Zeping Xiao, M.D., Heqin Yan, Zhen Wang, M.D., Zheng Zou, M.D., Yong Xu, M.D., Jue Chen, M.D., Haiyin Zhang, M.D., Colin A. Ross, M.D., and Benjamin B. Keyes, Ph.D.
Am J Psychiatry 163:1388-1391, August 2006
doi: 10.1176/appi.ajp.163.8.1388
2006 American Psychiatric Association
quotes:
"China is a country in which there is little public or cultural
awareness of dissociative identity disorder or other forms of chronic, complex, pathological dissociation. We are not familiar with any representation of the disorder on television, in film, in novels or plays, or in popular folklore. The trauma model of dissociation is not taught at medical schools in China, and dissociative disorders are very rarely
diagnosed by mental health professionals. China, therefore, is virtually free of cultural or professional contamination concerning dissociative disorders."
"The results of our study support the epidemiological
prediction of the trauma model of dissociation and are not
consistent with the sociocognitive model. Pathological dissociation was reported by Chinese respondents, despite the lack of contamination, role demands, and iatrogenic suggestion in China."
"As shown in Table 1, there are hints in the secondary features of dissociative identity disorder that full or partial forms of dissociative identity disorder could affect more than 2.3% of the Chinese outpatient sample (the sum of the frequencies of these two diagnoses on the Dissociative Disorders Interview Schedule). For instance, 3.6% of the Chinese outpatients said that they have another person inside of them.
The outpatients reported more childhood trauma than the other two groups. The outpatients had more dissociative disorders on the Dissociative Disorders Interview
Schedule, more members of the dissociative taxon on the Dissociative Experiences Scale, higher average scores on the Dissociative Experiences Scale, and more secondary features of dissociative identity disorder on the Dissociative
Disorders Interview Schedule. Thus, the outpatients were more dissociative than the other two groups on four different ways of assessing dissociation. The fact that they
also reported more childhood abuse is consistent with the trauma model of pathological dissociation."
"China provides an example of a culture largely uncontaminated by popular or professional knowledge of dissociative identity disorder and therefore is suitable for testing the epidemiological predictions of the trauma and sociocognitive models."
full text at http://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/cgi/reprint/163/8/1388.pdf
WI lawmakers look to pass "Caylee's Law"
Jul 31, 2011 By Megan Wiebold
Eau Claire (WQOW) - After the acquittal of Casey Anthony in the death of her daughter, Caylee, many lawmakers clamored to create a law that would punish parents for failing to alert police when their son or daughter is missing. Wisconsin is just one of nearly two dozen states that are looking into creating a measure that would be called "Caylee's Law".
2-year-old Caylee Anthony had been missing for 31 days before police knew about her disappearance. Wisconsin lawmakers say they've gotten hundreds of e-mails and phone calls about creating a law to punish parents who do not report their child missing.
....There are currently no laws in Wisconsin that punish parents for failing to report a missing child. Lawmakers say it's an issue that's been discussed for years.
....Currently, there are two versions of the law being drafted.
http://www.wqow.com/story/15182706/wi-lawmakers-look-to-pass-caylees-law
"Dissociative disorders were diagnosed in 24 respondents by structured interview, and 15 respondents fell into the dissociative taxon on the Dissociative Experiences Scale."
Trauma and Dissociation in China
Zeping Xiao, M.D., Heqin Yan, Zhen Wang, M.D., Zheng Zou, M.D., Yong Xu, M.D., Jue Chen, M.D., Haiyin Zhang, M.D., Colin A. Ross, M.D., and Benjamin B. Keyes, Ph.D.
Am J Psychiatry 163:1388-1391, August 2006
doi: 10.1176/appi.ajp.163.8.1388
2006 American Psychiatric Association
OBJECTIVE: In order to determine whether pathological dissociation occurs in China, the authors conducted a survey among psychiatric inpatients, outpatients, and the general population in Shanghai, China. There is virtually no popular or professional knowledge of dissociative identity disorder in China, and therefore professional and popular contamination cannot exist.
METHOD: Chinese versions of the Dissociative Experiences Scale and the Dissociative Disorders Interview Schedule were administered to 423 inpatients, 304 outpatients, and 618 factory workers in Shanghai by Chinese psychiatrists working at the Shanghai Mental Health Center.
RESULTS: Dissociative disorders were diagnosed in 24 respondents by structured interview, and 15 respondents fell into the dissociative taxon on the Dissociative Experiences Scale. The outpatients reported the highest rates of childhood physical and/or sexual abuse and of pathological dissociation.
ONCLUSIONS: Pathological dissociation can be detected readily among psychiatric outpatients in China but is much less common in the general population. Pathological dissociation is more frequent in more traumatized subsamples of the Chinese population. The findings are not consistent with the sociocognitive, contamination, or iatrogenic models of dissociative identity disorder.
http://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/cgi/content/abstract/163/8/1388
Trauma and Dissociation in China
Zeping Xiao, M.D., Heqin Yan, Zhen Wang, M.D., Zheng Zou, M.D., Yong Xu, M.D., Jue Chen, M.D., Haiyin Zhang, M.D., Colin A. Ross, M.D., and Benjamin B. Keyes, Ph.D.
Am J Psychiatry 163:1388-1391, August 2006
doi: 10.1176/appi.ajp.163.8.1388
2006 American Psychiatric Association
quotes:
"China is a country in which there is little public or cultural
awareness of dissociative identity disorder or other forms of chronic, complex, pathological dissociation. We are not familiar with any representation of the disorder on television, in film, in novels or plays, or in popular folklore. The trauma model of dissociation is not taught at medical schools in China, and dissociative disorders are very rarely
diagnosed by mental health professionals. China, therefore, is virtually free of cultural or professional contamination concerning dissociative disorders."
"The results of our study support the epidemiological
prediction of the trauma model of dissociation and are not
consistent with the sociocognitive model. Pathological dissociation was reported by Chinese respondents, despite the lack of contamination, role demands, and iatrogenic suggestion in China."
"As shown in Table 1, there are hints in the secondary features of dissociative identity disorder that full or partial forms of dissociative identity disorder could affect more than 2.3% of the Chinese outpatient sample (the sum of the frequencies of these two diagnoses on the Dissociative Disorders Interview Schedule). For instance, 3.6% of the Chinese outpatients said that they have another person inside of them.
The outpatients reported more childhood trauma than the other two groups. The outpatients had more dissociative disorders on the Dissociative Disorders Interview
Schedule, more members of the dissociative taxon on the Dissociative Experiences Scale, higher average scores on the Dissociative Experiences Scale, and more secondary features of dissociative identity disorder on the Dissociative
Disorders Interview Schedule. Thus, the outpatients were more dissociative than the other two groups on four different ways of assessing dissociation. The fact that they
also reported more childhood abuse is consistent with the trauma model of pathological dissociation."
"China provides an example of a culture largely uncontaminated by popular or professional knowledge of dissociative identity disorder and therefore is suitable for testing the epidemiological predictions of the trauma and sociocognitive models."
full text at http://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/cgi/reprint/163/8/1388.pdf
WI lawmakers look to pass "Caylee's Law"
Jul 31, 2011 By Megan Wiebold
Eau Claire (WQOW) - After the acquittal of Casey Anthony in the death of her daughter, Caylee, many lawmakers clamored to create a law that would punish parents for failing to alert police when their son or daughter is missing. Wisconsin is just one of nearly two dozen states that are looking into creating a measure that would be called "Caylee's Law".
2-year-old Caylee Anthony had been missing for 31 days before police knew about her disappearance. Wisconsin lawmakers say they've gotten hundreds of e-mails and phone calls about creating a law to punish parents who do not report their child missing.
....There are currently no laws in Wisconsin that punish parents for failing to report a missing child. Lawmakers say it's an issue that's been discussed for years.
....Currently, there are two versions of the law being drafted.
http://www.wqow.com/story/15182706/wi-lawmakers-look-to-pass-caylees-law
Saturday, April 30, 2011
Healing Together - an Educational and Support Conference on DID
An Infinite Mind is proud to announce Healing Together - an Educational and Support Conference on DID held in beautiful Lake Buena Vista, FL on January 28th-29th 2012 at the beautiful Wyndham Lakes Resort. Escape the winter blues and come to sunny Florida for an amazing weekend of learning, healing, and fun.
Who should attend?
*Survivors with all types of dissociative disorders, especially those with DID.
*Supporters and loved ones of people with dissociative disorders and DID.
*Mental Health Professionals who currently treat dissociative clients or would like to learn more about treating dissociation and DID.
http://www.aninfinitemind.com/healing-together.html
Who should attend?
*Survivors with all types of dissociative disorders, especially those with DID.
*Supporters and loved ones of people with dissociative disorders and DID.
*Mental Health Professionals who currently treat dissociative clients or would like to learn more about treating dissociation and DID.
http://www.aninfinitemind.com/healing-together.html
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