Resources for Trauma, Dissociation, and Treatment

Description of book may possibly trigger.

Safe Passage to Healing by Chrystine Oksana is also a very helpful book and workbook specifically for survivors of ritual abuse. There is much information about DID in it.

Both Are Excellent Resources On &
About Complex PTSD ...

An excellent book on the psychotherapy process if you struggle with dissociative difficulties is Richard A. Chefetz's book: Intensive Psychotherapy for Persistent Dissociative Processes. It was published in March 2015 and was winner of the International Society for the Study of Trauma & Dissociation's (ISSTD) Pierre Janet Writing Award. It was written mainly for clinicians but I found his writing clear, concise and respectful of clients. It's one of the best books I've read on Dissociation (Chefetz calls doesn't like the word "disorders" as he very clearly indicates that all human's dissociate to a degree and it is only when the process gets in the way of one's functioning in life that it becomes troublesome). He includes excellent examples of how he works, and he wasn't in the least afraid of giving his readers examples of his mistakes

I need some advice..... I am about to start therapy in January for a rape that happened when I was 15 (I'm 27 now) and I have pushed this down for over a decade and it is now starting to resurface over the last year. I've always has nightmares so in a sense I haven't completely pushed it down like I thought I had, my pdoc told me at my visit last week that I have a dissociative disorder as a result of this, and in all honestly I am scared to death to revisit what happened. My husband will be going with me and he has no idea how "dark" I am inside and I don't know how to prepare him for what he will be hearing, I just don't know what to expect of myself when I start talking, if I talk on the first visit. When I was 15,16, and 17 I had blackouts because of the rape, (oh how I hate using that word) and I am afraid that might happen again and it can't because I have two young children to look after and I am just a mess over this.

Probably ought to move this post, but I have no clue how to do that. In the meantime, you definitely do not have to tell your whole story at your first appointment with the therapist. In fact, you probably won't have time

It's cool to wait until a future appointment to share the dark with your t, and also ok to wait to tell hubby about it all.

Depending on the type of therapy you are doing, you may not need to ever tell about the actual event. EMDR and Somatic Experiencing both do not require you to tell what happened. With EMDR you start with something that triggers you, and then let your mind wander. It sounds strange but it does work. With Somatic Experiencing you find where in your body the memory is stored, and then work on releasing the trauma-but you never have to dredge up the traumatic experience.

In our area there is really only one good intensive trauma/ dissociation program. They do not accept our insurance. We tried to get into program yrs ago when we did have right insurance but we were put on a long waiting list then eventually denied bc our therapy treatment team was not at one of their primary hospitals or at their facility. They keep you on the,waiting list for a yr and if nothing opens up. You get taken off and denied. Priority is given to those who see drs connected to them so we just kept getting bumped down. Also we were homeless for a short time and being homeless excludes you from program criteria. Mean ppls.

Isst-d.org & traumadissociation.com

I like www.patientslikeme.com I also like DBSA, NAMI, Free CBT Worksheets For Therapists To Share | Psychology Tools, www.getselfhelp.co.uk .

Grounding Techniques

Thank you @DocJohn

Over the years, I found the following helpful:

1. Book: A Fractured Mind by Robert B. Oxnam
2. Hospital: River Oaks (Trauma Center), New Orleans, LA
3. Web searches (bringing me to various websites)
4. Peer-reviewed research articles and news about research (e.g., Brand's works, Kluft's works, Lowenstein's works) - that is, when I was a student

I've not always found online support groups for DID helpful. Some were okay for a while, but then it became either retraumatizing for me or even for others from me. I suppose "hurting people hurt people" is a real thing.

For those who are struggling with finding a trauma-and-dissociation specialist, here are some helpful links to guide you in seeking a qualified therapist to diagnose and/or treat dissociative disorders:

How to find a therapist for a dissociative disorder
Written by Carolyn Spring
12 April 2020

AAMFT - Dissociative Identity Disorder

Therapy Tribe - Dissociative Identity Disorder Therapy

Good Therapy - Dissociation

Good Therapy - Get Help for Dissociation

American Psychiatric Association - What are Dissociative Disorders? (Psychiatry.org)

Mayo Clinic - Dissociative Disorders

OUTSIDE OF THE USA:

UK - Dissociation and Dissociative Disorders

UK - NHS - Dissociative Disorders

Australia - Better Health Channel - Dissociation and Dissociative Disorders

There are many more resources in Australia and around the globe, so you would need to do a search with the key words "dissociative disorder" and your specific country to find those resources.

Unfortunately, the United States lacks on resources for dissociative disorders, but you can still find some providers near or close to your region, if you can't find one locally within your state or town.

We have a really awesome sister who is a system too and she is passionate about helping people who have no access to or have been burned by the mental health system in our country. I admin on all her pages. Check out her links at @Unicorn_DID_mentoring | Linktree

We also have this FB group that is super safe and supportive Unicorn System's D.I.D & Trauma Survivors Support Group we have secret groups for system Littles, middles and non human headmates too!! And your support person is welcome to join the group too!! 😎

I came across this fabulous manual for every therapist supporting those with DID or DDNOS:

Title: Coping with Trauma-Related Dissociation

(Skills Training for Patients and Therapists)

Authors: Suzette Boon, Kathy Steele, Onno van der Hart

Publisher: W.W. Norton & Company

Year: 2011

(Note: There may be a more recent edition.)