Psychosis, trauma and dissociation new insights and new ... - ISPS-US

Psychosis, trauma and dissociation: new insights and new approachesTuesday 7 th December 2010Westleigh Conference Centre, Lea Road, Preston PR4 0RB.Conference overviewLay opinion sees schizophrenia as a split personality, or a personality flipping between parts.Professionals have traditionally protested that this Jekyll and Hyde situation is not the case.Dissociation is a word used to describe varieties of experience in which parts becomeseparated from the whole personality; a self divided. States currently classified as dissociative(conversion) disorders in the World Health Organization's Classification include states thatwere once called hysterical, such as paralyses and fugues, but do not include schizophrenia orother psychoses. Dissociation may also be an everyday experience. We may all have times ofpsychic overload or the 'head too full syndrome' in which we feel unable to concentrate on thenext social task expected of us, and become preoccupied by a cacophony of internal events. .There is now evidence that both "dissociation" and "psychosis" are associated with variousforms of trauma. Could it be that psychosis and schizophrenia are best understood asdissociative experiences? Does therapy which addresses splitting and dissociation offer betterhope of recovery? This conference aims to bring together a diverse group of people seeking tointegrate multiple perspectives on this issue and explore possible ways forward.Conceptual and therapeutic overlaps between dissociation and psychosisDr Angela KennedyAngela will present evidence for role of dissociation in psychosis, and discuss what theories canbe drawn on to disentangle the two concepts, and implications for therapists.Dissociative disorders and schizophrenia: Similarities and differencesDr A.A.T.Simone Reinders and Andrew MoskowitzAs the DSM‐V schizophrenia committee is recommending that auditory hallucinations – acommon symptom in dissociative disorders and schizophrenia – be de‐emphasized in thefuture diagnostic criteria for schizophrenia, the time is right for a consideration of our currentknowledge about the overlap between the dissociative disorders and schizophrenia. In thispresentation, recent empirical research using rating scales, psychological instruments andcognitive tasks, to compare persons with dissociative identity disorder and schizophrenia, willbe reviewed. In addition, novel data from an ongoing study directed by Simone Reinders willbe presented for the first time. Research reveals areas of similarity between the disorders,particularly with regard to auditory hallucinations (probably a dissociative symptom) andchildhood trauma, but also important differences, notably in (other) dissociative symptomssuch as amnesia, and in interpersonal relatedness and cognitiveNew approaches to working with voices in state‐run services.Trevor Eyles and Anders SchakowRecovery‐oriented practice has become the norm in Aarhus Kommunes’ social‐psychiatricservices. In respect of hearing negative/distressing voices, the aim has been to provide a broadspectrum of ideas from which the users themselves can choose, according to their own specificand respective needs. We work very closely with the service user. Main areas of focus are selfhelpgroups, systematic individual work (i.e. Maastricht Interview), or simple informal one‐toonesessions to identify options and/or problems. Results have persuaded management toestablish, and develop this area of work.