When we started learning about psychological disorders, I was looking forward to two specific ones: Dissociative Fugue and Dissociate Identity Disorder. These two disorders are so often used to create some drama and twists on television shows that they seem common to me. I guess that just shows how the media really does impact how we think. Anyway, after we learned about them in class, I realized that they are definitely not common and one of them might not even be real! Dissociative Identity Disorder is pretty controversial, like hypnosis it. For that reason, I will not even waste precious blog space writing about it. Its just too troubling to me. I will instead shift my focus to Dissociative Fugue--otherwise known as the amnesia that makes you forget your identity (but you still, for some odd reason, remember how to speak english). Even though it's rare, there are cases where people have had a sudden loss of identity. Let's take a look at the case of John Ingram.
Ingram's finacee told police that he was on his way to visit a friend in Canada who was dying from cancer. She believed that the stress and grief might have caused the amnesia. On September 10, 2006, Ingram wound up in a hospital in Denver after asking several people on the street for help since he could not remember who he was. There, he was diagnosed with the mysterious disorder of Dissociative Fugue. Experts have said that this disorder is typically linked to stress so it's definitely possible that that is what caused it. For the next few months, Ingram was featured on some news shows in hopes someone would recognize him. His finacee's brother recognized him and within a few days, John and his finacee were reunited. He still did not regain his memory, but the two have been working on it ever since.
Just a few years ago, another story was featured in the New York Times about a young teacher who went missing and was also diagnosed with Dissociative Fugue when she was found. Apparently, those who have this disorder tend to have a sudden impulse to travel away from their homes. It's just such a weird disorder. The scariest part is that it can happen at any time. The disorder is such a mystery to psychologists that they cannot identify the cause. It can strike at any time. Some say stress is partly the cause but we do not know for sure. Like all psychological disorders, this one really does impede your functioning--after all, once it hits, you're just lost.
Depending on which perspective you take, there are a few ways of treating this disorder. Psychotherapy, as in counseling, is the main way it is treating. The therapist attempts to gain insight into whatever is causing the sudden memory loss. Medication is not used for this disorder unless there are also signs of another disorder, such as depression. Clinical hypnosis has been used before to try to bring hidden memories and thoughts out from the unconscious. Different creative therapies such as music and art therapy have been used as well as family therapy. Most of the time Dissociative Fugue vanishes on its own--because it's just that weird.
Anyway, what do you guys think the weirdest/scariest disorder is? How would you treat Dissociative Fugue?
This was a very interesting blog post, Alyssa. When I was watching One Tree Hill (tears), one of the characters had dissociative fugue and was found sleeping on playgrounds at night with a completely different identity. He was sent to a rehabilitation center, and the psychologist there used free association to uncover what it was that was causing the dissociative fugue. It turns out that he had repressed the memory of his son after his wife died, as the reminder of his son was too much to bear. After he figured this out, the dissociative fugue also vanished and was never manifested again. It was really weird to watch, and certainly frightening, especially when these different identities overtook him and he had no recollection of the people in his life.
ReplyDeleteDissociative Fugue is definitely on my "top 5 worst fears that don't cause anxiety on a regular basis" list. I have no idea how to treat it or even how to begin treating it, but completely forgetting your identity seems like a pretty scary way to wake up one morning. On a more scientific note, this disorder is both saddening and interesting to observe because it provides insights into what people are like when they're not bogged down by the weight of the past. Honestly, I'd rather keep the weight of the past and all of my memories and identity and I hope they find some kind of treatment for this terrifying disorder in the near future.
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