Balancing the Healer and the Human
A social worker blog
Hello All,
The last few weeks have been difficult. I’ve been fighting my chronic illness, fighting a toxic work environment, and trying to help my soon to be father in law.
I’m running out of the spoons and feel like I have to play super woman all the time. the ball got dropped on my writing and I am so sorry.
I will be coming back with reviews for the rest of what I read, some self care lessons, and more on DID.
I love and light!
Hello Lovelies!
I am unfortunately facing some family drama. Dear fiancé’s Dad is in intensive care. Please send us good energy. I will post as much as I can during this trying time.
Love and light.
DID Journal Review 1
Citation- Gillig, P. M. (2009). Dissociative Identity Disorder: A controversial diagnosis. Psychiatry (Edgmont), 6(3), 24-29. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/
I am reviewing the article Dissociative Identity Disorder: A controversial diagnosis in this post. Above is the APA citation for this article which you can use to retrieve it for your own review. I will take this time to note my bias, I do believe this diagnosis is real and that regardless of a clinicians feeling they need to honor a client’s lived experiences and symptoms. It is a diagnosis according to the DSM and that is what we use to decide if a patient meets criteria and then how to treat the patient.
The Critical View:
In a 1988 article surveying responses clinicians had received about their patient’s who suffered for DID, formerly MPD. These reactions included forced hospitalizations, and forced discharge from care. It is suspected these reactions are from the “controversy” surrounding the diagnosis. Clinicians wonder if the diagnosis is real, a type of malingering, or something made up by other clinicians. Underneath this is the fear that criminals will use this diagnosis to get out of charges for crimes. Additionally, some case studies have been refuted due to suggestibility of patients of “social contamination”/
Moving along to a paper in 1993 it was believed that DID was a form of borderline Personality Disorder. The following Chart is based upon the Information in DSM III which would have been available when this study was published. DSM came out the year following this articles publication.
| Symptoms | Borderline Personality Disorder | Dissociative Identity Disorder |
| Unpredictable/Impulsive Behavior | X | |
| Pattern of unstable/Intense relationships | X | |
| Inappropriate/Intense Anger | X | |
| Identity Disturbance | X | |
| Intolerance of being alone | X | |
| Self-Harm | X | |
| Existence of 2 or more distinct personalities | X | |
| Personality that is dominant determines behavior | X | |
| Each Personality is distinct | X |
I don’t see it unless a distinct personality has BPD but I am a product of DSM IV and DSM 5 so I may be missing relevant information based in the time period and culture. DSM III accessed here: http://aditpsiquiatriaypsicologia.es/images/CLASIFICACION%20DE%20ENFERMEDADES/DSM-III.pdf
The Acceptance View:
Those practitioners who accept this diagnosis as valid propose that the diagnosis is born from ambivalent attachment, extreme and/or repeated abuse. There is a belief that the disorder could start with an imaginary friend which could then become a distinct personality due to the development stage practitioners assume the trauma occurred.
Practitioners assume there is a role for attachment theory, parenting theory(authoritarian), and narcissistic abuse ( parentified child relationships).
The article then reviews current studies on DID and attention, DID and memory, and the average patient. Due to the purpose of the article review I will stop here. However, I encourage all who are interested to read the article in full.
Love and Light.
Hello All,
I have finished the last three titles on my TBR for Mythothon. I will review those below but keep an eye out for a review of the other books I have squeezed into my April schedule. So far I have 3.
Sir Percival- Ever Worlds- 1/5
I finished this book quickly because I wanted to get it over with to read something better. I understand why my fiancé recommended it, it includes a lot of mythology. However it is so white washed it is painful to read. The book also didn’t age well.
Sir Bedivere- Vampire Knight vol 1 – 5/5
I love this manga series! This was a re-read for me and it did not disappoint. I love the sparks of romance, vampires, and academy themes of this manga. My wallet however is sad. At around 9-12 dollars a volume for the rest of the series it is an investment. However, it’s worth it to me!
Camelot- Other Words for Home 5/5
I was not sure about this book when I realized it was written in verse. However, I found it on audiobook from my library and listened. The more I heard the more drawn in I was. I love the perspective, and growth shown in this novel! I would recommend this whole heartedly!
Sorry about the late update readers! I am catching up on all the partial drafts I wrote before all the family illness hit. Soon to follow is what I read for the rest of April and beginning of May.
Hello All,
Per my previous post it has been a wild ride this week! I managed to read Imzadi after buying the audiobook. Ya’all! IT IS READ BY JONATHAN FRAKES! It even has sound effects. This makes the book an easy read as it feels like watching an episode Star Trek the Next Generation, albeit with a gruff traumatized Will Riker.
The book makes me feel as though I made the correct choice for the Sir Tristan legendary romance prompt. Imzadi brings new meaning to the word. In the TV series it is a term of endearment meaning beloved. With the addition of the book to cannon it means so much more. Imzadi in the book means the first, not in the misogynist virginity taking way, but more of a soul, mind, and body connection.
The bond between Will and Deanna is so strong that they have a mind connection. They support each other through tick and thin. Through love and loss of other partners. They can be best friends and soothe each other’s broken hearts. They allow each other to mature without trying to force their relationship to work. Once they are both mature enough, Will takes command of the Titan and they marry. If they had tried to force the relationship earlier, they would not have had the maturity to make it work. But with time, they were able to learn themselves and then share each other.
Without the context of this novel their relationship lacks depth, you know they love each other and marry, but you don’t truly understand why they don’t make a go of being together. When the depth of Imzadi I finally understand why their bond is so strong.
May all my readers find their Imzadi.
In other reading news, I was able to listen to Inheritance by Christopher Paolini and The Fork the Witch and the Worm by Christopher Paolini with a section written by Angela Paolini.
Hello All!
As many of you may have realized by now I work on the front lines of this pandemic as a hospital social worker. My jurisdiction has seen a spike in COVID and over all hospitalizations the pst three weeks. I managed to avoid over time for the first week but now I am pulling late nights and weekend shifts. Please hold tight while I figure out how to adjust to this new normal!
Love and light!
I read this book in bits and pieces because it is not a good book to read over dinner as the main character does autopsies. Overall I loved this book. The Victorian themes, murder mystery, historical fiction, steam ounk aspects, and character development was wonderful. Next time I want to pick up a book I will be getting the sequels.
I love the Kaitlin bevis books and I feel like Aphrodite is an under hyped character in Greek Mythology. While I don’t love Aphrodite in the part of Daughters of Zeus she really comes into her own in this installment.
Persephone and Aphrodite are half sisters and their sibling bond is very important in this section of the daughters of Zeus. Aphrodite also faces a lot of hardship and really learns who she is in this book.
This is one of the newest books added to my TBR since I just added the entire series. I love how Aphrodite and Ares develop as a couple in this book. In other Greek mythos fictions Ares and Aphrodite burn hot and then burn out. In this series they burn hot, the relationship ends. Then the embers get fanned. It is the definition of a slow burn.
As you can see I currently have a Greek Mythos obsession. Don’t judge me, lol. I love Percy’s sassy take on the heroes. I listened to this on audio book from my library and I like it enough that when I have the money I want a hard copy.
This week I am reading Through the Evernight and I am hoping to get to Imzadi or Ever World.
Love and Light!
Also known as why I now will not be looking at hiring any male photographers.
So I posted in a local wedding group that I was looking for a photographer, general location details, and my proposed budget.
I get 30 or so responses pretty quickly which is overwhelming but manageable. Then one of the photographers who commented on my post called and left a voicemail. Then they sent seven texts showing some of their work and giving their name, ect.
This would be normal ish, however I didn’t put my phone number out there to the world. It’s not public on my Facebook page, nor does the name on my Facebook page reflect my given name so social work clients can’t try and friend me.
So now I’m at work racking my brain about how this man found me and if he can find me can my past abusers find me. Can my clients find me? Am I safe?
So now I will only be contacting photographers who do not represent themselves as cis men. It’s not safe.
D.I.D. Is the acronym for Dissociative Identity Disorder, formerly known as MPD, or Multiple personality disorder.
NAMI- National Association on Mental Illness- has a great two page brief on this particular illness. Please see the following link- https://www.nami.org/NAMI/media/NAMI-Media/Images/FactSheets/Dissociative-Disorders-FS.pdf
Dissociative identity disorder is a disorder marked by amnesia, 2 or more district personalities, loss of time, out of body experiences, and detachment. Also a lack of self-identity is a characteristic. With all that going on I feel like there are enough battles for these folx to face. We do not need them to face a system stacked against them.
I will be doing a series on this disorder as advocation, psycho education, and just trying to do my part to fight the stigma! Next up will be a journal review.
Since watching Deadly Illusions this week and writing my post yesterday it has come back to my attention that DID needs more information.
Education can fight hate and dismissal of this vulnerable population. I will be writing a post about the generalities of the diagnosis, using the DSM criteria, a post or two that include journal reviews, and a list of resources. Let me know if there are specific questions you have.
Love and light,
Sarah
