Jeannie in NJ Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 dd is taking psychology next semester and we were discussing this. I know that recently Sybil turned out to be fake but other than that, is the disorder real? Anyone actually know a person that had split or multiliple personalities? If so, how were you sure that it was real? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
********* Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 Ha. A Ha ha. :lurk5: :001_huh: This should be interesting. :D I'm not trying to be mean, OP, seriously. But, that's quite the topic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justamouse Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 Yes, I believe it's real and yes, I have a dear friend who has it. She suffered such ongoing trauma as a child, it was her only way to make it out alive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Veritaserum Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 Yes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3peasinWa Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 why wouldn't it be real? What do you think it is? Do you think people just make up their personalities? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
butterflymommy Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 I guess it depends on your definition of "real" and what "personality" means. I encountered someone who claimed to have multiple personalities (I know there's PC term for that but I can't remember what it is). Here's the thing though-- one of his personalities was a person with kanner's autism (low functioning). Yes other personalities were perfectly articulate and high functioning/ neurotypical. Obviously the same brain cannot be both autistic, and not autistic. So in that sense I realized this couldn't be "real." However, I think as a coping mechanism, a person can "develop" multiple personalities to get by. "Faking it" sounds harsh but perhaps people "construct" different ways of behaving in order to survive trauma. In some cases this could be a wholly unconscious event, not an intentional ruse. There is another, more spiritual, possibility that different people or souls can enter a person as a sort of possession. Judaism actually calls some possessions "walk ins" where a soul-- sometimes benevolent and sometimes not-- "walks in" to a person and determines their behavior. The Iroquois also believed that souls could be transferred body to body. I'm sure there are other traditions with similar beliefs. Spooky! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-rap Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 Yes, it is real. Sometimes when a person (most likely a child, I believe) goes through a terrible ordeal, it is their coping mechanism. They "become" someone else so they don't have to face the terrible reality around them. I've never known anyone who has had this disorder personally, but I've read about it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kalanamak Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 why wouldn't it be real? What do you think it is? Do you think people just make up their personalities? Many do act the part. It is possibly real. I have never seen a real case, but I've met several fakers/handy hysterics, who, once their busted up lives are taken care of (10K debt forgiven, assault charges dropped, Sec 8 arranged, visitation rights re-established), suddenly have only one. The more effectively they hold people around them hostage with their actions, the tighter they cling to the various behaviors. I could tell you stories that would make you drop your dinner plate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LauraGB Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 Of course I believe it is real. Mental illness is not a cookie cutter sort of thing. It's terribly unfortunate that the person who penned that particular book was a liar. The fact that the whole book/Hollywood thing has warped a legitimate issue is not a new thing, regardless of how rare that particular issue may be. No, I feel pretty positive it is an actual disorder. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
********* Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 Well, since I posted up thread, I thought I might share my opinion here. The title is : Do you believe mutiple personality is real. My answer is no. And I will expound if you want, but, you know, you may not want. :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarlett Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 dd is taking psychology next semester and we were discussing this. I know that recently Sybil turned out to be fake but other than that, is the disorder real? Anyone actually know a person that had split or multiliple personalities? If so, how were you sure that it was real? Wait. Sybil was faked!!!!!!! No way! Off to google. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NicAnn Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 Of course it's real. It most certainly does not happen as often as portrayed in media/books what have you, but it is real. Now, I think that it is often a response to a trauma and can be "fixed". I don't think there are many cases of someone just developing it out of the blue (I could be wrong). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nakia Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 I don't really know how to answer. I'm not all that familiar with MPD, but in my heart, I can understand how/why it would happen. So actually I guess my answer is yes. I can't help but wonder why we never see a thread titled, "Do you believe diabetes is real?" I'm not picking on the op, but why is mental illness always questioned, mocked (as in "she's so bipolar" which I saw in another thread a few days ago), and torn to shreds. It is very sad. I guess it hits close to home for me since I suffer from a (VERY REAL) mental illness. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JudoMom Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 Wait. Sybil was faked!!!!!!! No way! Off to google. I'm nearly done with the book Sybil Exposed, and it has been very interesting. Before I read the book, I would've answered this question "Yes". Now, I'm not so sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rivka Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 I think that multiple personalities are mostly iatrogenic, which means "produced by treatment." People who are suggestible and prone to dissociation meet up with therapists who are true believers in MPD, and who use therapeutic techniques like hypnosis which are known to produce false memories. Exposure to popular literature about MPD can also produce MPD-like symptoms in some people, in some circumstances. I don't think it's as simple as "people are faking it," although I'm sure that some are. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NicAnn Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 I don't really know how to answer. I'm not all that familiar with MPD, but in my heart, I can understand how/why it would happen. So actually I guess my answer is yes. I can't help but wonder why we never see a thread titled, "Do you believe diabetes is real?" I'm not picking on the op, but why is mental illness always questioned, mocked (as in "she's so bipolar" which I saw in another thread a few days ago), and torn to shreds. It is very sad. I guess it hits close to home for me since I suffer from a (VERY REAL) mental illness. I totally agree. Honestly, I think we view it so poorly because it has been taken advantage of..by individuals, law enforcement, doctors, teachers, etc. It has become an answer for so many things, and we forget that there are people who really DO suffer from these things. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 Since at least two people on this forum have been open about having multiple personalities, I think this could be a very upsetting topic for them to see debated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 Yes, I believe it is a real mental illness. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarlett Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 Yes, I believe it is a real mental illness. I do too. Or rather, I have no reason to believe it isn't real. Mental illness is very complicated . I don't dare to presume I know enough to dismiss something like that as fake. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spy Car Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 One of my personalities thinks it is real, the other one doesn't :D Bill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 You DO strike me as the evil twin type... LOL! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosie_0801 Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 Since at least two people on this forum have been open about having multiple personalities, I think this could be a very upsetting topic for them to see debated. :iagree: Often I'd say people need to put on their big girl panties and deal, but these peeps already have theirs on. Dh had a friend with this condition. I only met one of the personalities and I liked him well enough. Rosie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kalanamak Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 I think that multiple personalities are mostly iatrogenic, which means "produced by treatment." There are also the other problems that can mimic this. Very rapid cycling bipolars can have a very flamboyant side that "doesn't remember" the sober side, but who respond to mood stabilizers. And the idea of multiple avenues of behavior is a feast for a clever BPD. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kalanamak Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 One of my personalities thinks it is real, the other one doesn't :D Bill You are so black and white. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 I think that multiple personalities are mostly iatrogenic, which means "produced by treatment." People who are suggestible and prone to dissociation meet up with therapists who are true believers in MPD, and who use therapeutic techniques like hypnosis which are known to produce false memories. Exposure to popular literature about MPD can also produce MPD-like symptoms in some people, in some circumstances. I don't think it's as simple as "people are faking it," although I'm sure that some are. That was the gist of the conclusion I came to after to listening to all the various discussions when that most recent book about Sybil came out a few months ago. I don't know that much about the field of psychology, but this aspect of it is always so interesting to me - how pop culture, knowing a disorder exists and also finding a therapist or doctor who pushes a certain perspective changes the individual who has the problem... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommybee Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 I'm nearly done with the book Sybil Exposed, and it has been very interesting. Before I read the book, I would've answered this question "Yes". Now, I'm not so sure. I've been waiting for this book at the library forever.....can't wait to read it. I thought Sybil turned out to have multiple personality, just not as many as the original story suggested. Is that not the case?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommaduck Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 (edited) Multiple, no. Split, yes. Please note that this is my initial response to the subject. I do not have any professional expertise on the matter, so it might even be worth the two cents usually quoted. Edited December 19, 2011 by mommaduck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TravelingChris Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 No, I don't believe in MPD. I do think that some people believe they have it but that like someone else said, it is due to bad treatment, not that they really do have it. Oh, and I am a real believer in mental illness and personality disorders-just not this one. And yes, like some others have expressed here, I used to think that it was possible but have since read a lot more about it and no longer think this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathleen in VA Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 Since at least two people on this forum have been open about having multiple personalities, I think this could be a very upsetting topic for them to see debated. :iagree: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JudoMom Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 I've been waiting for this book at the library forever.....can't wait to read it. I thought Sybil turned out to have multiple personality, just not as many as the original story suggested. Is that not the case?? Nope. I think it was bad therapy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daisy Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 There are also the other problems that can mimic this. Very rapid cycling bipolars can have a very flamboyant side that "doesn't remember" the sober side, but who respond to mood stabilizers. And the idea of multiple avenues of behavior is a feast for a clever BPD. I have a family member with what you just described above. Childhood trauma, bipolar, compartmentalized memories, and she was diagnosed with MPD. BUT it looks NOTHING like Sybil's "condition". Do I think it is real? I'm going to pull the line used by a famous politician and say the answer to that is above my pay grade. If MPD isn't real, I'd say the person still has SOME kind of dissociative disorder. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommybee Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 Nope. I think it was bad therapy. oh ok, I didn't realize that. How very sad! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JudoMom Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 oh ok, I didn't realize that. How very sad! It really is. Just a warning--I don't know if it was my mood or what, but it took me a bit to get into the book (I was waiting for it forever at the library, too). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rivka Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 No, I don't believe in MPD. I do think that some people believe they have it but that like someone else said, it is due to bad treatment, not that they really do have it. If MPD is induced by treatment, that doesn't mean that people "don't really have it." The whole essence of the disorder is what you believe about yourself and how you experience yourself. However that understanding was created, that's the understanding the person has. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sukale Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 Yes, 100% real but few cases. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Night Elf Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 Well, there are people who don't think autism is real. And people who think depression is nothing but a person being overly dramatic. And PPD is just a new mom trying to get attention away from the baby and onto her. I'm sure we can think of lots more of these. I think the problem is that if a person looks "normal" then they must be normal. If they have physical features like a Downs Syndrome person might have, then it's okay to say they aren't "normal". So because Sybil's story isn't true, then no one must really have a multiple personality disorder. :confused: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
annandatje Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 I think that multiple personalities are mostly iatrogenic, which means "produced by treatment." People who are suggestible and prone to dissociation meet up with therapists who are true believers in MPD, and who use therapeutic techniques like hypnosis which are known to produce false memories. Exposure to popular literature about MPD can also produce MPD-like symptoms in some people, in some circumstances. I don't think it's as simple as "people are faking it," although I'm sure that some are. :iagree: Similar sequences of events have transpired to create repressed memories and past lives. It is the same erosion from reason to hysteria that brings us travesties like the McMartin Preschool case or our own local preschool tragedy where a woman's family was destroyed by ridiculous allegations, an overzealous prosecutor, and gullible jurors. The shame in this case was that every link in the criminal justice system failed the accused woman at every juncture. Three and four years old made outlandish claims that they were taken away from preschool in airplanes for satanic abuse. It truly was a modern day witch hunt even though the convictions ultimately were overturned. Of course horrible evil child abuse occurs regularly but a false conviction fails everyone, most of all the victims. People develop coping mechanisms to deal with abusive situations but I have my doubts that MPD is an authentic stand alone disorder. I thought that MPD (multiple personality disorder) was removed from DSM-IV but maybe I am mistaken. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2cents Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 I think that Sybil's diagnosis may have been a product of a doctor that for whatever reasons (fame or inexperience possibly) may have unintentionally led her patient to adapt to the diagnosis. I have read about the relationship Sybil had with her Doctor and it is very possible. Do cases of dissociative identity disorder exist? I absolutely believe that they do. IMO a better book to read is When Rabbit Howls by Truddi Chase. There has to my knowledge been no question that she suffered from the disorder. I think it is unfortunate that doubt about the Sybil case could cast doubt on dissociative identity disorder in general. :( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momma aimee Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 I think it IS realy but much like ADD / AHDH it is ofent "misdisgonosed" and an abuse DX. a lot of kids labaled ADD are NOT ADD -- a lot of times the MPD dx is tossed around it is medial hype or grandstanding -- but that doens't mean ADD or MPD doesn't really exist Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scuff Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 One of my personalities thinks it is real, the other one doesn't :D Bill :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kalanamak Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 So because Sybil's story isn't true, then no one must really have a multiple personality disorder. :confused: I didn't get anyone making that point. I read people saying that because of this Sybil thing, they started looking into it, and changed their minds. Perhaps they'd never looked into it before. Reading up on opinions about MPD is not a common layman's pursuit. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dustybug Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 One of my personalities thinks it is real, the other one doesn't :D Bill :tongue_smilie::lol: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrothead Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 Well, there are people who don't think autism is real. And people who think depression is nothing but a person being overly dramatic. And PPD is just a new mom trying to get attention away from the baby and onto her. I'm sure we can think of lots more of these. I think the problem is that if a person looks "normal" then they must be normal. If they have physical features like a Downs Syndrome person might have, then it's okay to say they aren't "normal". So because Sybil's story isn't true, then no one must really have a multiple personality disorder. :confused: :iagree: And I do believe the correct medical term is dissociative identity disorder. I do believe that DID is a very real disorder. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommaduck Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 :iagree: And I do believe the correct medical term is dissociative identity disorder. I do believe that DID is a very real disorder. Which to me is more accurate than "multiple" personalities. This is why I said "split personalities". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rivka Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 I think it is unfortunate that doubt about the Sybil case could cast doubt on dissociative identity disorder in general. :( It's not just the Sybil case. I read a very convincing book-length analysis of the research and clinical literature about MPD/DID when I was in grad school for clinical psychology back in the mid-90s. There was already substantial evidence calling the validity of the diagnosis into question even then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zaichiki Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 One of my personalities thinks it is real, the other one doesn't :D Bill :lol: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zaichiki Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 There are also the other problems that can mimic this. Very rapid cycling bipolars can have a very flamboyant side that "doesn't remember" the sober side, but who respond to mood stabilizers. And the idea of multiple avenues of behavior is a feast for a clever BPD. This was, at one point, a close family member's experience. I think it's easy for those who *would* fake, to choose mental illness as the illness to fake. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denisemomof4 Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 Yes, I believe it's real and yes, I have a dear friend who has it. She suffered such ongoing trauma as a child, it was her only way to make it out alive. :sad: I'm glad she has a good friend in you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nmoira Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 :iagree: Similar sequences of events have transpired to create repressed memories and past lives. It is the same erosion from reason to hysteria that brings us travesties like the McMartin Preschool case or our own local preschool tragedy where a woman's family was destroyed by ridiculous allegations, an overzealous prosecutor, and gullible jurors. The shame in this case was that every link in the criminal justice system failed the accused woman at every juncture. Three and four years old made outlandish claims that they were taken away from preschool in airplanes for satanic abuse. It truly was a modern day witch hunt even though the convictions ultimately were overturned. Of course horrible evil child abuse occurs regularly but a false conviction fails everyone, most of all the victims.This woman ended up committing suicide. Tragic. http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2011/dec/11/carole-myers-satanic-child-abuse Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denisemomof4 Posted December 19, 2011 Share Posted December 19, 2011 I think the problem is that if a person looks "normal" then they must be normal. If they have physical features like a Downs Syndrome person might have, then it's okay to say they aren't "normal". yes! :iagree: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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