We want to take a different direction today, to focus on other multiples. If you are multiple we would love to hear from you. Below are a series of questions. Feel free to answer any and/or all of them and in whatever way makes sense to you. You can do it through the comments section on our blog, at the end of each post, or you can email your answers to us and let us know if you wish to share them on our blog which we will then do. Also feel free to ask, if you don’t understand one of our questions, and to let us know again through the comments section or send us an email.
And if you are not multiple, are there questions that you would like to ask that aren’t here. Comment or email.
At one time we wanted to ask many multiples these questions but found that it was very time consuming. We did manage to ask two women about their experiences. At some point we can share our own answers.
Our email address is rcaerweber@shaw.ca
General questions about multiple personality and your system of personalities/alters
1 If someone were to ask you what multiple personality is how would you define and describe it? How do you understand the condition?
2 Do you think you fit the “classical” description of multiple personality – very clearly multiple, very different and distinct alters, very obvious switching from one to another or do you have more grey areas?
3 Do some or all of you have time loss and/or memory lapses? How do you cover it up?
4 Do you have a “host” personality – someone who has more contact with other people than other alters in your system? Do they have “executive control” most of the time or are they more like Shell who feels she is “always the passenger and never the driver”? If you don’t have a host do you have someone in the system who has the role of more contact with people? could you describe their role more specifically?
5 Do you have an internal world? Can you describe it? (We are trying to find out how common this is as the literature doesn’t really talk much about it)
Recovery and healing
6 a) At what point do you think your recovery began? Did something happen to initiate it?
b) Was there a specific time that one, or some, or all of you, found out that you were multiple (or when the condition became evident) or did you always know?
7 How do you define recovery and healing? What do they mean to you? Is there a specific goal that you have, or had?
8 Has integration ever been a goal for you? Why? Why not?
9 a) What aspect(s) of recovery do you find/have you found most difficult?
b) What aspect(s) do you find/have you found to be the most rewarding, the most profound?
10 a) What kinds of things do you/did you do to feel safe?
b) What kinds of things do/did you do in order to get what you need (e.g., spend time alone, rest, go away, withdraw, meditate, art....)?
11 How do/did memories of abuse surface? At home first or in therapy or ...? Do/did you “relive” them in therapy or simply talk about them with your therapist? Do/did they come in dreams? In little bits and pieces or more complete?
12 a) Have you tried support groups? What kind? Were they helpful?
b) Have you tried “alternative” therapies – art, music, dance, homeopathy, etc? Have they been helpful?
Having a therapist
13 Do/did you have a therapist to work with?
14 What prompted you to see one in the first place?
15 Does/did it matter what gender a therapist is/was? Do you know why?
16 How long have/did you work with your therapist?
17 What is/was your therapist’s profession – psychiatrist, psychologist, counsellor or...?
18 Do you know how much experience your therapist has/had with multiple personality – in terms of years, or number of clients s/he has who are multiple or, as far as you know, you are her/his own multiple client?
19 a) What do you want from a therapist? What’s important to you? What don’t you want?
b) How do you feel overall about working with your therapist?
c) How good a match do you think you and your therapist are/were?
20 a) Do/did you work in a very structured way together or more informal than that?
b) Do/did you use any specific techniques such as hypnosis, EMDR?
c) Does/did your therapist “call out” alters to work with? How is/was that for you? Does/did it feel okay or feel as if s/he had too much control?
21 Is/was your therapist available outside session times for crisis calls? Can/could you phone any time? If not, how is/was that for you? What do/did you do when you are/were in crisis?
22 Do/did you have to pay for your therapist? If so, does that affect how often you see her/him?
23 How long are/were your sessions? Is/was this long enough? If not, how long do/did you think you need?
24 Do/did you take any medications? What are/were they for? Do/did they help?
25 Do/did you have any contracts with your therapist? What kind? Are/were they helpful or do/did they hinder? Did your therapist suggest them? Do/did you feel forced to agree?
26 a) Do/did you do any type of self harm? What kind? How does/did your system deal with it?
b) Are/were some of you suicidal? How does/did your system deal with it?
c) Any substance abuse? What kind? How does/did your system deal with it?
More general questions
27 a) What aspect of the multiplexity have you found the most difficult?
b) What do you like about being multiple?
28 a) What would you say to inexperienced therapists who are about to work with a multiple? What would you emphasize?
b) what would you like the world to know about multiplexity? What are you dying to tell them?
Thank you so much for answering these questions.
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