Memoirs of A Healer/Clinical Social Worker: Autobiography of Bruce Whealton

Chapter 44: Identifying Dissociative Identity Disorder & Treatment

[Disclaimer: I have used aliases to protect the confidentiality and identity of clients or patients. No other names have been changed.]

I did get a few new clients because of what they read in the newspaper. Two individuals said they saw the article and they wanted to see if I could work with them. Their names were Patricia and Sadie who said they believed they had DID – Dissociative Identity Disorder – meaning they had different personalities and other dissociative experiences.

It was brave of them to approach me knowing that they had little means to pay for therapy. I mean, speaking from personal experience, I am very hesitant to ask for help for myself when I cannot pay for something.

I then met with Patricia and Sadie who were to become my clients. I agreed to see them pro-bono (for free). Neither of them had insurance that I could bill nor did they have a decent income.

I had explained to the best of my ability the extent of my experience and expertise in the field. I didn't want anyone to think that I was an expert with years of experience in the field.

Just like I had felt when I noticed that I could help people with schizophrenia without having been an expert in that area. The fact that people with certain disorders might have trouble getting psychotherapy was a key motivator for me.

I couldn't help but want to donate some of my time to be there for those individuals who had been harmed so profoundly early in life. After I met with them, it was clear that they had been abused, betrayed, and hurt by people who should have provided for them and protected them.

My dedication to providing the best possible services and availability to them was not diminished by their inability to pay for services.

I spent a great deal of time learning from them. Asking open-ended questions. Listening.

I cannot remember the exact questions that I asked them but they would have been the standard questions that relate to dissociative experiences, which I describe in more detail below.

Patricia and Sadie had said that they already knew that they had different personalities and that that they could relate to the description of DID from the newspaper article. As mental health professionals, we have to start where the client is. So, if they say that there are other personalities that are "out" at different times and go by different names, one would accept and respect their "experience" or their "reality."

An Unusual Referral

Another referral that I received was a bit unusual. I was at the office when the receptionist called me and said that a John Freifeld was on the phone.

I picked up and John began to speak to me. He said he found the article online about Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) and had found my website where I announced my private practice.

He said that he had been meeting online with a woman named Jessica who might have DID and she lives in my area, but he is not local.

He said that he has a chat room that he operates.

Okay. He explained that he wasn't a therapist just a "support person" who runs a recovery forum and chatroom online for alcoholics and people with other addictions.

The fact that there is no relationship between alcoholism/addictions and dissociative disorders didn't register as important to me at that moment. How would a layperson know this?

John asked if I could see Jessica for therapy. I agreed. I was eager to see if I could help. At the time it seemed like a great opportunity to help someone who seemed confused.