210 • Introduction to Art Therapy
Dissociative Identity Disorder (Multiple Personality Disorder)
Closely related to being a survivor of abuse is the defensive development of dissociative iden-
tity disorder (DID). Art is often the preferred language of some of the alters—split-off parts
of the self that “went away” while the abuse was occurring as a way of defending against an
intolerable trauma, as in Sybil (Schreiber, 1974) and The Three Faces of Eve (Sizemore, 1977;
Thigpen & Cleckley, 1957).
Readers and viewers of Sybil (Schreiber, 1974) may recall the drawings by her alters of
different ages and personalities. Christine Sizemore (1977), whose story was told in the film
The Three Faces of Eve, spoke at the 1980 AATA Conference (Proceedings) about how helpful
her own painting had been to her. Several have written about the treatment of dissociative
identity disorder through art therapy (Cohen & Cox, 1995; Cohen & Giller, 1991; Gerity,
1999; Kluft, 1993; Spring, 2001; Virshup, 1993).
Formerly known as multiple personality disorder (MPD), this painful condition is caused
by severe early trauma, usually some kind of sexual, physical, and/or psychological abuse.
At the Intensive Trauma Therapy Institute in Morgantown, West Virginia, art therapist
Linda Gantt and psychiatrist Louis Tinnin have developed an innovative method for treat-
ing patients with this disorder. An excerpt from a session is on the DVD (L).
From Depression to Dissociation: The Story of ELAINE (40)
A Life of Sadness and the Search for Solace When I f irst met Elaine she was in her mid-
forties and couldn’t remember ever being happy (DVD 9.10). In a family drawing done
at age 4½ she looks really sad in contrast to her sister and parents (A). Indeed, she had
been deeply depressed, having first sought treatment as soon as she got away from her
controlling mother while feeling suicidal in college. From that time on, she had seen a
therapist for most of her adult life.
At first it seemed that her problem was major depression along with compulsive over-
eating, but as she recalled more and more of the abuse she had repressed, she began to cut
herself compulsively, and it eventually became clear that she suffered from a dissociative
identity disorder. We worked together for a number of years, and there is no question that I
learned as much from her as she felt she was helped by me and art therapy.
The following autobiographical statement was written at a point when she was feeling
excited about what she was learning in art therapy.
Elaine’s Art & Therapy Autobiography (DVD 9.10) Art seems to me to be a wonderful
and a scary process all mixed together in a way that can be freeing and rather astonishing.
I came to art in a different way. I had been raised in a family where being able to draw and
paint was taken for granted—at least by the adults. Both of my grandparents painted—my
grandfather in oils and my grandmother painted delicate patterns and flowers on china.
My mother also painted in oils, used pastels, and did cartooning. My sister too seemed
to be accomplished with pen and ink drawing. I, on the other hand, was convinced that I
was unable to draw or paint since what I wanted to do NEVER matched what I was able
to accomplish.
Curiosity was further hindered by a mom who, as I grew older, did all of my art assign-
ments for me. The only area she was not able to “mess with” was clay since that HAD to be
done at school, because the clay couldn’t be brought home and we didn’t have the materials
at home. My seventh grade art folder, which was supposed to be decorated and designed
by myself, was done by my mom with much more beautiful results than I could ever have