Fragmented selves: a first person account on trauma and dissociation

Abstract

This first person account on recovery from trauma and dissociation has been written by a social scientist who went through a long journey in mental health care before receiving adequate treatment. A steady therapeutic relationship paired with different resources of the Comprehensive Resource Model eventually provided enough stability to overcome dissociation and process trauma. Although traditional psychotherapy is based on a psychoanalytical framework, it was helpful to look for framings that affirm a social and hermeneutic dialogue. This paper provides reflections that have proven to be helpful for the author and that might be helpful for others with similar problems. first person account; recovery from psychiatric disability; trauma; dissociation