MULTIPLE PERSONALITY & DEMONIC POSSESSION
Jill Stefko
Dr. Allison pioneered the treatment of MPD, multiple personality disorder, now called dissociative identity disorder in the DSM. When he had his first client with MPD in 1972, there was scant information about MPD in literature about psychology. The Three Faces of Eve was one of the scarce sources of information about MPD. The Three Faces of Eve, published in 1957, was one of the first books written about a woman with MPD. It was made into a movie for which Joanne Woodward won an Oscar portraying Eve Black, Eve White and Jane. The next popular book was Sybil. It was a made for TV movie starring Joanne Woodward as Dr. Cornelia Wilbur, the psychiatrist who treated Sybil. Sally Fields portrayed Sybil and won an Emmy in 1976. Later, in Allison’s practice, his work with MPDs made him consider the possibility of possession.
In 1980, Dr. Allison wrote a groundbreaking book about MPD, “Minds in Many Pieces.” He documents cases of MPD that involved both spirit and demonic possession in this work.
According to Dr. Allison, the DSM II was the reference and MPD did not have its own classification. During the time he was actively practicing, the DSM III was created. MPD was given its own classification in the category of dissociative disorders.
Before the DSM IV was created, a committee of experts was formed to decide which disorders should be listed. Two groups comprised the committee, the psychiatrists who were therapists and those who were teachers and researchers.
The teachers wanted to eliminate the MPD label and replace it with DID, dissociative identity disorder, while the therapists wanted to keep it. The teachers’ argument was that people are born with one personality, so a multiple personality disorder could not exist. The therapists knew that people with the disorder behaved as if there were multiple personalities, therefore MPD was accurate.
Obviously, the teachers won because MPD is DID in the DSM IV and IV TR. I agree with Dr. Allison in that the better term is MPD and use this one.
In 1981, Kenneth Bianchi, one of the Hillside Stranglers, tried to convince people he had MPD as a defense. He called his alter Steve Walker. The examining psychologist was skeptical and interviewed him at length. Bianchi had one personality that had antisocial personality disorder, also referred to a psychopath and sociopath.
In 1983, M. Scott Peck wrote his pioneering book, “People of the Lie,” a book about the reality of human evil. He described himself as a “hardheaded scientist.” Two of his MPD patients were demonically possessed in addition to having alters.
Dissociation is a mental process whereby the person “distances,” and thoughts, feelings, actions, memories and the sense of identity are disconnected. This is, to a degree, normal. We can get lost in a book, movie, music or daydreams. Sometimes, when people go through a major trauma, the person may forget the event entirely. People can and do dissociate without getting MPD.
It is believed that MPD is the result of extensive trauma in childhood from harsh repeated sexual, physical and/or emotional trauma. In MPD, the person’s personality fragments and alters come into existence. The core personality may have no allergies and be a morally upstanding person. One of the alters may have allergies and exhibit physical symptoms of them. This personality may also be coarse and vulgar. The three faces of Eve were Eve White, a quiet mousey mother and housewife who had headaches and occasional memory losses. Eve Black was wild and loved fun and did things White would not have done. Jane, the third alter, was relatively stable.
The goal of therapy for the MPD is fusion of the alters into one healthy functioning personality.
What happens when demonic possession co-exists with MPD? How is this discovered and what is done?
M. Scott Peck writes about two of his patients who were possessed and of their exorcisms at which he attended in Chapter 5 of his book, “Of Possession and Exorcism.” He refers readers to Malachi Martin’s “Hostage to the Devil,” an excellent book I used as a reference in my thesis. The background knowledge helped me in better understanding Peck’s chapter.
Peck writes that he had not believed in possession, however, two of his patients brought him into open-mindedness about the possibility. He treated them five years before. He had not seen a case of possession and doubted that he ever would. He decided to try to find a case of possession and let this be known. The first two referrals turned out to be people with psychiatric disorders, which is what he suspected he would discover.
The third case was one of genuine possession. There would be another case of possession that he would also be deeply involved in. Peck attended both exorcisms. He did not go into detail about these cases, and referred readers to Martin’s book that describes five cases of possession.
In traditional psychotherapy, it is the therapist and patient, one on one. The patient is free to stop therapy at any time. There is no use of power or the therapists imposing his or her will on the patient. The atmosphere is relaxed and consists of total freedom and acceptance. The sessions have time boundaries, usually an hour.
In exorcisms, there is a team consisting, usually of three people, the exorcist, his assistant who is also a priest and a doctor. In exorcisms, the team is united in releasing the possessed. The possessed cannot stop the exorcisms. At times, the possessed has to be restrained physically. The team, by ritual and prayer, calls upon the power of God and Jesus to expel the demons to heal the victim. It is the divine, not the team, who do the healing. The purpose of the exorcism is to identify the demons so they may be expelled.
The two patients had different levels of intelligence, average and very superior. One was hypomanic and, at times, psychotic while the other was depressed, but non-psychotic. One was a good, loving parent, the other, abusive.
There were similarities. Both were desperately lonely and seemed to have invited the demons as companions. Possession is a gradual process. One patient became involved with the occult at twelve years of age which is when the process of possession began. The other was five. Bother were exposed to horrendous trauma and were the victims of human abuse.
The diagnosis of possession is complex. The major distinction between possession and MPD is that, in MPD, the core personality is unaware of the existence of the alters until well into therapy. While the alters may be the aggressive or morally loose ones, they are not evil. There is true dissociation. In possession, the victim either is aware of or quickly made aware of an alien personality which is self-destructive and evil. The demon is extraordinarily brilliant and extraordinarily stupid. It is to intense pride and narcissism that the demon reveals itself when the Pretense goes into Breakpoint.
Peck noted that, during the exorcism, the Presence was felt. This is a cloying intense evil that is not felt with MPD.
Allison, in Chapter 8, “Possession and the Spirit World,” writes that he, also, was skeptical about possession. While treating patients with MPD, he found aspects of his patient’s personalities that were not true alters, but were entities.
Alters have a purpose which is to cope with a situation or trauma that the person cannot handle. There is a logical reason for the alter’s creation and a known time of this. When entities are discovered, they do not have a logical purpose. They often call themselves spirits.
PART II
I find the subject of possession one of the most intriguing aspects of the paranormal. Can a person actually be possessed, demonically or otherwise? Could this be a psychiatric disorder? According to the DSM, there is a disorder involving a spiritual or religious problem, which could lend credence that possession is a type of a psychiatric disorder. Could an alter in MPD be a demon or discarnate? The Wicklands, Bull, Pearce-Higgins, Peck and Allison believe this is possible. Fiore admits she is not sure.
Carl Wickland published his book, “Thirty Years Among the Dead” in 1924. He began to believe that spirits played a role in some psychiatric illnesses. He theorized that the discarnate did not know he was dead and was confused. To facilitate the process of convincing the entity that he was dead, the discarnate was allowed to posses Anna. He invented a machine that provided a low voltage electric shock, a forerunner of the machines used to provide ECT therapy that caused discomfort to the spirit. The spirit, then, departed.
Wickland did not concern himself with trying to prove the identity of the spirits because he believed the information about itself would not be accurate due to the state of confusion. Some spoke in languages unknown to Carl and Anna.
Titus Bull, while a practicing psychiatry, neurology and general medicine became aware of the work of James Hyslop, a psychical researcher, dealing with obsession. He began to believe possessing spirits were not evil, but were confused. The spirit did not cause psychiatric disorders, but was a complicating factor in these.
Anglican John D. Pearce-Higgins, former canon residentiary and vice-provost of London’s Southwark Cathedral was one of the founders of the Church’s Fellowship for Psychical and Spiritual studies and chaired its Psychic Phenomena Committee. He believed that the possessing spirit was not a devil, demon or evil spirit, but was an earthbound who was possibility confused and was attached to a person or a place.
His non-demonic approach to earthbounds clashed with the interpretations of the Catholic, Anglican, Episcopal and other traditional churches. Pearce-Higgins believed in the doctrine of Fallen Angels. Demons were Fallen Angels and fallen humans. He believed they remained children of God and were capable of redemption.
Pearce-Higgins approach to depossession and releasement was kind, yet firm. He soothed the discarnate, treating like a frightened, confused child. He emphasized that before performing a depossession and forms of mental and physical illnesses have to be explored, then ruled out. He was knowledgeable in psychology and was extremely careful in ruling out psychiatric disorders as a factor.
Ralph Allison, the pioneer in works about MPD, believed that possession could be a factor in this disorder or a disorder in itself.
He, from his experience, theorized there were five levels in spirit possession.
Grade I could also be labeled as OCD, obsessive-compulsive disorder. One of his patients had depression and an obsession to wash her hands. She developed a phobia to using public restrooms. Many years before, water from a public toilet had splashed into her eye and caused conjunctivitis. She fixated on the idea that if water from a public toilet splashed in her eye, she would become blind. Because of this, she had to stop working and had no social life.
The treatment was one on one therapy and group therapy. In group therapy, the “exorcism” is initiated by the patient and supported by the group which leads to healing.
Grade II is MPD. The possession is caused by the developing of a negative alter. One of Allison’s patients created an imaginary fried when he was nine and hiding under his bed to escape one of his mother’s frequent and violent fits. This alter hated all females. The patient raped and killed six women while the primary personality had a responsible job, lived with his girlfriend and was a good father. His core personality had no memory of the rapings and murders.
When he was placed in a deep hypnotic trance, the psychological roots of the alter’s creation was clearly shown. There was nothing paranormal about this. It was clearly and only psychological.
Grade III possession is when it is another living person seems to be controlling the victim. Witchcraft may be involved. One of Allison’s patients was depressed and weak. The symptoms began when her nephew was killed in a car accident the night before his wedding. The patient did not believe in witchcraft. Her sister, the nephew’s mother, and the patient’s own mother were seen visiting a black witch. Other family members saw the two women perform black magic rites done to harm the patient.
Allison hypnotized the patient and a strange voice, identifying itself as the sister, spoke. She said she hated her sister and had caused the suffering and pain the patient had been feeling. Allison told the sister to return to her body. When the patient came out of the trance, she had no memory of what had happened, but no longer had the depression and weakness.
The patient’s sister and mother believed in witchcraft and the power of its spells while, the patient, on a conscious level, did not. Jung theorized about the collective unconsciousness and the influence this can have on a person. I believe that it is possible that, on this level the patient believed in witchcraft, therefore the spells worked.
Grade IV possession is that of control of a spirit on a person’s mind. One of Allison’s patients had MPD. The women felt compelled to walk to the harbor, but she did not know why. She had no recall of what had transpired when she regained consciousness and control of her body.
While in a trance, a voice said she was the spirit of a women who had drowned while searching the boats in the harbor for her husband and children who had deserted her. Once the spirit of the woman left, the patient no longer desired to walk about the harbor. The spirit had not completed what she felt she had to do, finding her family, when she died and denied the death of her physical body. This was not the first time the patient had been possessed by entities who claimed to be spirits, both good and evil.
Grade V possession is possession by an entity who either never had its own life history or who was evil in life as another person. It identifies itself as evil. Please refer to my articles, An Exorcism in Earling, Iowa, Part I and Earling Iowa Exorcism, Part II, for a case history of this type of possession. My article, Demonic Possession and Exorcism explains the stages of possession and exorcism.
Edith Fiore believes that earthbounds are confused. They do not realize the physical bodies are dead. Others are ashamed and have remorse about what they have done in life and do not want to see their loved ones’ spirits. Some believe they will go to hell for misdeeds committed in life and refuse to go on. Some are so attached that they feel they must remain earthbound to help loved ones. Sometimes, it is the loved ones who hang one and will not allow the spirits to go on.
There are those spirits who hang about for malicious reasons. Some do this to continue to control their victims; others do this for revenge. This is extremely rare; however, there have been documented cases.
Fiore also theorizes, based on her experience with patients that the spirits of those who were addicted in life, such as alcoholics, drug, sex, nicotine and food addicts want to possess another’s body so they can re-experience the physical pleasures of their addictions. Possessing spirits are confused, frustrated and unhappy. Their influence on their hosts’ lives, without exception, is negative.
Some of the effects are physical, mental and emotional disorders, addiction and problems with weight, sex and relationships.
I believe it is possible to release earthbounds and to perform depossession. The process is similar in both. Treat the spirit as a frightened and confused child. Soothe it. Act with compassion and understanding and not with judgment. If there are fears, dispel them. Ask for the help of the angels and spirits of loved ones to help in the transition. I have researched NDEs, near death experiences, and, many times when people have these, they see the spirits of departed loved ones, angels and other religious spirits. Then, gently urge the earthbound to go to the Light.
Bottom line, is possession a reality of its own? Is it a psychiatric disorder? Could it be the delusions of the human mind? Could it be telepathy that is operating? When more than one person is involved, is this a form of folie a deux, trois, quatre, etc, a delusion shared by two or more?
Logically, I think about argumentum absurdum and argumentum ignoratum. The former is an argument that something could be trued is absurd and silly, so ridicule the idea. Get others to laugh at the idea and, ridicule alternatives these people may choose and give them the only option that you have not derided.
The latter is when you believe something is false and that it can not be proven true or that it is true and cannot be proven false.
This is the case when the paranormal is explored. It can not be scientifically proven as fact. The scientific method cannot replicate the same results without variation. Scientifically, each time you combine two molecules of hydrogen and one of oxygen, the result is water. This does not exist in the realms of the paranormal, psychology or religion.
Then, there is argumentum ad nauseum which is when an idea is believed to be accepted the more frequently it is heard.
Do I have the answers? No, but I have what I believe might be possible and am open to other ideas….
