Bible-Scriptures, Stories, & Music,
Of DID and Hope
Zephaniah 3:17 (New International Version)
The LORD your God is with you,
he is mighty to save.
He will take great delight in you,
he will quiet you with his love,
The LORD your God is with you,
he is mighty to save.
He will take great delight in you,
he will quiet you with his love,
Jeremiah 29:11-12 (New International Version)
For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you.
For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you.
2 Corinthians 4:16-18 NIV
Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
Job 13:15
Though he slay me, yet will I hope in him;
I will surely defend my ways to his face
Though he slay me, yet will I hope in him;
I will surely defend my ways to his face
The Women called Sybil
Shirley A. Mason's life story, told under the pseudonym Sybil, garnered
international interest and scrutiny in the 1973 national best seller
book, "Sybil", written by Flora Schreiber in collaboration with
Dr. Cornelia Wilbur. A movie by the same title was released in 1976,
staring Sally Field as Sybil and Joanne Woodward as Dr. Wilbur. The
movie earned Sally Field an Emmy Award for outstanding achievement as an
actress.The
story of Shirley Mason is one of a woman who triumphed over incredible
odds. Abused by her mother throughout her young life, Shirley's mind
protected the innocent child by splitting into various dissociative
states or “personalities” to absorb the experience and shield her from
the disturbing memories. In all, sixteen personalities were identified
over the course of Shirley’s eleven year sojourn through psychotherapy
with Dr. Wilbur.
 |
| Mason Known as Sybi |
Through
the efforts of Dr. Wilbur, coupled with the self determination of this
emotionally damaged young woman, all the selves integrated into one,
allowing Shirley almost total recall of her life and feelings. And
although individual courage and an irresolute determination to get
better were the foundation of her recovery, Shirley discovered along the
way that creative expression provided an important healing dimension in
her struggle to get well.
Shirley Ardell Mason was born January 25, 1923 in Dodge Center, Minnesota, and died February 26, 1998, in Lexington, Kentucky. Shirley graduated from Dodge Center High School in 1941, and attended Mankato State Teachers College (now known as Minnesota State University, Mankato) in the 1940's, receiving a Bachelor of Science degree in English and Art in 1949.
began undergoing psychotherapy in 1954 with Dr. Cornelia Wilbur
who diagnosed her with Multiple Personality Disorder. It was not until
two years into her psychotherapy that Dr. Wilbur made Shirley aware of
the autonomy and control the sixteen alternate selves had over her.
Shirley received a Master’s degree in Art Education from Columbia University's Teachers College in 1956 and later taught art at Rio Grande College in Ohio, before moving to Lexington, Kentucky in 1974.
Shirley, became a highly regarded and commercially successful artist, signing only those works that she recognized as her own. Other earlier works of art, presumably created by one or more of the alternative selves, were many times not signed or signed by others, providing the only tangible evidence of Shirley’s dissociative states, in which she created art but did not acknowledge the works as her own.
Shirley received a Master’s degree in Art Education from Columbia University's Teachers College in 1956 and later taught art at Rio Grande College in Ohio, before moving to Lexington, Kentucky in 1974.
Shirley, became a highly regarded and commercially successful artist, signing only those works that she recognized as her own. Other earlier works of art, presumably created by one or more of the alternative selves, were many times not signed or signed by others, providing the only tangible evidence of Shirley’s dissociative states, in which she created art but did not acknowledge the works as her own.
A
cache of 103 paintings were found locked in a closet in the basement of
Shirley Mason’s Lexington home, hidden for nearly a quarter century,
until they were located shortly after her death in 1998.
These paintings, many of which were unsigned, span the years of 1943, eleven years before starting psychotherapy with Dr. Wilbur, to 1965, the year of her successful integration, and include the only examples of artwork presumably created by the alternate selves.
These paintings, many of which were unsigned, span the years of 1943, eleven years before starting psychotherapy with Dr. Wilbur, to 1965, the year of her successful integration, and include the only examples of artwork presumably created by the alternate selves.
Shirley
did not put her name on any piece of art that she didn’t recognize as
her own. It was a disturbing occurrence for her to enter her studio
and find work on the easel of which she had no conscious memory. This
must have been an already frequent happening while she was a student at Mankato
in the early 1940’s where she wrote numerous articles for the student
paper concerning the use of pseudonyms and pen names. In one article
Shirley stated it was the "what" not the "who" that was important,
and no artist should put their name on any work or creation that was not
their own. Other students may have thought this a curious topic to be
so passionate about, but they didn’t know then what we know now about
Ms. Mason’s surrealistic reality. And in a final twist of irony,
Shirley Mason, known to the world as Sybil... a pseudonym, is
demonstrating that while these pieces are interesting, it's the "who",
not the "what" that makes them important.
The selected
prints included here reveal the layers of mystery that was Shirley
Mason, as specific themes and images repeat themselves across the
different personalities and styles – some unexplainable. For example,
the appearance of utility poles within the different works – most easily
seen in the several paintings of boats where many of the sailing masts
look very much like utility poles.
Trauma and Integration in Shirley Mason's Art
"...The sensory experience of Mason's art may mirror the relative presence and absence manifest from the inner/outer shifting moments of selfhood, as different aspects of her subjectivity inhabit conscious control. Rather than visualize difference embedded in the visual forms and styles, as has often been noted, I ask the viewer to susend such pronouncements. Instead, reflect upon the freshness of the experience of Mason's art; it is palpable when one confronts, through immersion, the vastness of this project. For this author the cohesiveness and integrative capacity, the traumatic experiences embedded in the art evoke certainly the stifling effects of splintering, but also much more, the congruent balance between difference, the potential self-acceptance, the healing action of and the promise of self reparation.
Another feeling from the work is a sense of urgency, of profound significance, struggling to be heard, seen and witnessed. There is a hallucinatory feeling after travelling through her work, again signalling the complex contradictions - the scream of silence and stillness. I increasingly found myself asking, where is Shirley Mason?
Mason's art is a living testament to resilience, determination and artistic legacy, in the face of unspeakable trauma. Vigilance pervades the work, searching for understanding, and the elusive comfort, amidst the sadness and poignancy of pain transcribed in every mark, in the affective traces of a hard-fought self-presence. The disquiet posits on of the enduring threads that permeate Mason's art, giving the viewer access to a reception of the empathic sensory experience of her life..."
- Geoffrey Thompson, American Art Therapy
"...The sensory experience of Mason's art may mirror the relative presence and absence manifest from the inner/outer shifting moments of selfhood, as different aspects of her subjectivity inhabit conscious control. Rather than visualize difference embedded in the visual forms and styles, as has often been noted, I ask the viewer to susend such pronouncements. Instead, reflect upon the freshness of the experience of Mason's art; it is palpable when one confronts, through immersion, the vastness of this project. For this author the cohesiveness and integrative capacity, the traumatic experiences embedded in the art evoke certainly the stifling effects of splintering, but also much more, the congruent balance between difference, the potential self-acceptance, the healing action of and the promise of self reparation.
Another feeling from the work is a sense of urgency, of profound significance, struggling to be heard, seen and witnessed. There is a hallucinatory feeling after travelling through her work, again signalling the complex contradictions - the scream of silence and stillness. I increasingly found myself asking, where is Shirley Mason?
Mason's art is a living testament to resilience, determination and artistic legacy, in the face of unspeakable trauma. Vigilance pervades the work, searching for understanding, and the elusive comfort, amidst the sadness and poignancy of pain transcribed in every mark, in the affective traces of a hard-fought self-presence. The disquiet posits on of the enduring threads that permeate Mason's art, giving the viewer access to a reception of the empathic sensory experience of her life..."
- Geoffrey Thompson, American Art Therapy
A mesmerizing journey inside the mind and life of a victim of dissociative identity disorder (DID). Christine Ducommun eloquently
shares her story of her descent into madness, struggling to regain her
sanity as four personalities compete for control of her mind and protect
her from the demons of her childhood. A story of courage, healing,
identity, hope, and love.Therapy helps to reveal the personalities, but Christine has much work to do to grasp their individual strengths and weaknesses and understand how each helped her cope and survive her childhood as well as the latent influences they've had in her adult life. Fully reawakened and present, the personalities struggle for control of Christine's mind and her life tailspins into unimaginable chaos, leaving her to believe she may very well be losing the battle for her sanity.
Christine's only hope to regain her sanity was to integrate each one's emotional maturity while jettisoning the rest, until at last their chatter in her head could cease. A riveting story of one woman's decent into madness and how she was able to become whole again-finally, the director of her own life.
Integration is the real victory. There have been other books done on the topic of multiple personalities, but what makes this one special is that few therapists focus on integration as the best way to treat the patient (because of the rigor, time and training involved). Ms. Ducommun's therapist focused on integration of her four alters and achieved it.
We Are Annora: A True Story of Surviving Multiple Personality Disorder
We Are AnnoraA True Story of Surviving Multiple Personality Disorder
Marital and parental responsibilities can be enough of a challenge for two
working adults. Add in one spouse who has intensifying bouts of amnesia and
you have a recipe for disaster. But disaster was not an option for Annora. She
grew up in an orphanage and so the preservation of her precious family was
her number one commitment. But that commitment was threatened when,
during marital counseling, Annora's therapist began to recognize even more
unusual and abnormal behaviors in her.
Marital and parental responsibilities can be enough of a challenge for two
working adults. Add in one spouse who has intensifying bouts of amnesia and
you have a recipe for disaster. But disaster was not an option for Annora. She
grew up in an orphanage and so the preservation of her precious family was
her number one commitment. But that commitment was threatened when,
during marital counseling, Annora's therapist began to recognize even more
unusual and abnormal behaviors in her.
Annora was diagnosed with Dissociative Identity Disorder, also
known as Multiple Personality Disorder. But that wouldn’t stop Annora from
known as Multiple Personality Disorder. But that wouldn’t stop Annora from
declaring her sanity to her husband and begging him to find them a new
therapist.Annora reveals the complex issues of her experience in this easy-to-read story
that begins with a car accident and then travels through a world of horrifying
challenges laced with enough hope and vision to pull her through. It seems that
survival is in Annora’s genes and she is anything but a coward, though she
accuses herself of just that. “Maybe having alters is just a coward’s way of
putting my memories and emotions some place outside of me so that I don’t
have to feel their pain.”
therapist.Annora reveals the complex issues of her experience in this easy-to-read story
that begins with a car accident and then travels through a world of horrifying
challenges laced with enough hope and vision to pull her through. It seems that
survival is in Annora’s genes and she is anything but a coward, though she
accuses herself of just that. “Maybe having alters is just a coward’s way of
putting my memories and emotions some place outside of me so that I don’t
have to feel their pain.”
Music Of Hope
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