Dissociative identity disorder (DID), previously known as multiple personality disorder, is a misunderstood and often underdiagnosed condition. Whether you are a new social worker or an experienced frontline staffer who is new to DID, Diagnosing and Treating Dissociative Identity Disorder is the resource that can help.

Clinicians are often too cautious about asking the right questions or believe the disorder is so rare that they do not accept what is being presented to them by the client. In turn, clients may mask their distinct internal identities if they sense that they will not be heard, understood, or believed. Further complicating matters, it is often newer clinicians working in underfunded community mental health centers who will encounter DID clients, many of whom have never sought treatment, have experienced unsuccessful or even harmful treatment, have learned to survive through problematic behaviors, or are experiencing co-occurring disorders such as addiction.

Using case studies, diagnostic tools, and clinician self-care, Gregory L. Nooney demonstrates how to confirm a DID diagnosis and establish a therapeutic relationship; assist the client in developing internal communication, cooperation, and co-consciousness; mitigate the risk of breaking dissociative barriers too quickly; manage the risk of rapid switching and decompensation, including suicidal risk; and lead the client from emotional rigidity and chaos to integration. Fortunately, because of the brain’s plasticity and the effectiveness of trauma-specific treatments, healing is possible even for individuals who have experienced severe childhood trauma and attachment wounds. Though the challenges of diagnosing and treating DID are vast, the rewards of helping this misunderstood and underserved population are enormous.

Learning Objectives:

• Understand the significant role that attachment wounds and early childhood trauma plays in the development of mental illness in general and dissociative disorders in particular.
• Incorporate dissociative-related enquiries into initial assessments.
• Differentiate DID from other disorders in order to make an accurate diagnosis.
• Be aware of significant challenges involved in this work including the risk of compassion fatigue and countertransference.
• Understand and be prepared to utilize the eleven-step process of stabilization for clients with DID.
• Become familiar with how trauma-specific treatment modalities can be utilized with clients with DID.