When I was in my teens, I was diagnosed with some form of personality disorder. I went for counselling and therapy, which I thought was pretty useless. They just wanted the patients to open up and talk. And talk and talk. Frankly, I dun see that any helping my condition.
I did not know what kind of personality disorder I had, cos I was not allowed to see my own medical files and also the psychologist and psychiatrist did not informed me.
Over the years, I got better. And I have not seek medical help since those few times in teenage years.
I do think I have dissociative disorder. I did have some of the symptoms. I am dissociated from the society and my environment.
Even SO said that I am living in my own world. And in a way, I am. My world is rather small. And mostly involves around SO and me. And the dogs.
As for external social and leisure activities outside the home...there is hardly any. I am almost like a hermit most times.
But frankly, it's not that bad. I could still function in normal society rather well, most of the time. I am no raving lunatic. I have proper trains of thoughts. And read my blog, they dun sounded too crazy, do they?
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The Straits Times
15 Aug 2008
Dissociative disorder often lasts
NEW YORK - DISSOCIATIVE disorder that begins in childhood or adolescence frequently persists into adulthood and is often followed by other psychiatric disorders, according to a report published online in the journal Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health.
Dr Thomas Jan from the University of Wuerzburg, Germany and colleagues analyzed the long-term clinical outcomes of 27 former patients with juvenile dissociative disorder (two of whom had committed suicide). The average age at onset of dissociative disorder was 12 years old.
According to the researchers, 89 per cent of these patients had 'recovered or had markedly reduced symptoms' after treatment during childhood.
However, at follow-up an average of 12.4 years after the initial diagnosis, 83 per cent of the patients 'met the criteria for some form of psychiatric disorder'.
Dissociative disorder is characterised by psychiatric symptoms such as the disruption of consciousness, identity, memory, behavior or awareness of the environment, according to the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Text Revision.
Dissociative disorder may take the form of altered consciousness as a reaction to overwhelming psychological trauma.
Psychiatrists suggest these memories are encoded in the mind, but have been repressed.
Review of the follow-up data revealed that more than one quarter of patients (26 per cent) still suffered from a dissociative disorder, the report indicates, and 48 per cent had a personality disorder.
Compared with a control group, the patients previously diagnosed with dissociative disorder were less likely to have financial and emotional independence from their parents, more likely to still be living with their parents, and less likely to have social leisure activities outside the home, the researchers note.
Only 8 per cent of patients, however, had serious impairment of social, occupational, and psychological functioning, and only 4 per cent were unable to function in all these areas, the investigators say.
'Treatment strategies have to consider that in a significant portion of young patients, initial recovery may not be stable over time', the authors conclude.
Even after patients are stabilised, they recommend that these patients see a mental health provider periodically to detect recurrence of dissociative or other psychopathological symptoms. -- REUTERS
I did not know what kind of personality disorder I had, cos I was not allowed to see my own medical files and also the psychologist and psychiatrist did not informed me.
Over the years, I got better. And I have not seek medical help since those few times in teenage years.
I do think I have dissociative disorder. I did have some of the symptoms. I am dissociated from the society and my environment.
Even SO said that I am living in my own world. And in a way, I am. My world is rather small. And mostly involves around SO and me. And the dogs.
As for external social and leisure activities outside the home...there is hardly any. I am almost like a hermit most times.
But frankly, it's not that bad. I could still function in normal society rather well, most of the time. I am no raving lunatic. I have proper trains of thoughts. And read my blog, they dun sounded too crazy, do they?
--------------------------
The Straits Times
15 Aug 2008
Dissociative disorder often lasts
NEW YORK - DISSOCIATIVE disorder that begins in childhood or adolescence frequently persists into adulthood and is often followed by other psychiatric disorders, according to a report published online in the journal Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health.
Dr Thomas Jan from the University of Wuerzburg, Germany and colleagues analyzed the long-term clinical outcomes of 27 former patients with juvenile dissociative disorder (two of whom had committed suicide). The average age at onset of dissociative disorder was 12 years old.
According to the researchers, 89 per cent of these patients had 'recovered or had markedly reduced symptoms' after treatment during childhood.
However, at follow-up an average of 12.4 years after the initial diagnosis, 83 per cent of the patients 'met the criteria for some form of psychiatric disorder'.
Dissociative disorder is characterised by psychiatric symptoms such as the disruption of consciousness, identity, memory, behavior or awareness of the environment, according to the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Text Revision.
Dissociative disorder may take the form of altered consciousness as a reaction to overwhelming psychological trauma.
Psychiatrists suggest these memories are encoded in the mind, but have been repressed.
Review of the follow-up data revealed that more than one quarter of patients (26 per cent) still suffered from a dissociative disorder, the report indicates, and 48 per cent had a personality disorder.
Compared with a control group, the patients previously diagnosed with dissociative disorder were less likely to have financial and emotional independence from their parents, more likely to still be living with their parents, and less likely to have social leisure activities outside the home, the researchers note.
Only 8 per cent of patients, however, had serious impairment of social, occupational, and psychological functioning, and only 4 per cent were unable to function in all these areas, the investigators say.
'Treatment strategies have to consider that in a significant portion of young patients, initial recovery may not be stable over time', the authors conclude.
Even after patients are stabilised, they recommend that these patients see a mental health provider periodically to detect recurrence of dissociative or other psychopathological symptoms. -- REUTERS
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