The Magic Daughter, written by Jane Phillips, intimately portrays her life events of horrific experiences and living in fear of her psychological illness. Jane Phillips focuses on the hardships, stigma, triggers, and coping techniques for someone who is diagnosed with Multiple Personality Disorder. Her story began as a suicidal note, but soon became a source in identifying and accepting her psychological disorder. The Magic Daughter, brings traumatic events to subconscious awareness. Jane Phillips testimony details the traumas she faced during childhood and the difficulty in overcoming and confronting her disorder. This emotional novel explores the distress, fear, and functional impairments. Such of violence and abuse during childhood. After
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Today this psychological disorder is known as Dissociative Identity Disorder, according to the DSM-5. Jane Phillips displayed symptoms of DID, such as having two or more distinct personality states. She referred her alters as “the Kids” and “my selves”. Throughout the book the reader explores the severe distress and impaired functioning, due to the Dissociative Identity Disorder. Jane Phillips describes her switches, also known as a quick transition from one personality to another, as irritable, frantic, and restlessness. Her psychological disorder caused many disturbances in her daily life. At one point in the book she feared sleeping due to the nightmares. On page 172 in The Magic Girl, Phillips states, “I woke screaming at night feeling a hand on my throat”. Other signs of Dissociative Identity Disorder that Phillips expressed were, restless headaches, feeling anxious, amnesia and blackouts. Phillips also experienced auditory and visual hallucinations. For instance, “the Kids” demand she buy a teddy bear. When selecting the teddy bear for “the Kids” they become Fearful of the clerk trying to assist her, she states, “had he been able to hear the kids?” (Phillips, 1995, p.163). Phillips also touches the sensitive topic of suicide. She shares her suicidal thoughts and her standing on the bridge contemplating if she would grant her self another year to
Today this psychological disorder is known as Dissociative Identity Disorder, according to the DSM-5. Jane Phillips displayed symptoms of DID, such as having two or more distinct personality states. She referred her alters as “the Kids” and “my selves”. Throughout the book the reader explores the severe distress and impaired functioning, due to the Dissociative Identity Disorder. Jane Phillips describes her switches, also known as a quick transition from one personality to another, as irritable, frantic, and restlessness. Her psychological disorder caused many disturbances in her daily life. At one point in the book she feared sleeping due to the nightmares. On page 172 in The Magic Girl, Phillips states, “I woke screaming at night feeling a hand on my throat”. Other signs of Dissociative Identity Disorder that Phillips expressed were, restless headaches, feeling anxious, amnesia and blackouts. Phillips also experienced auditory and visual hallucinations. For instance, “the Kids” demand she buy a teddy bear. When selecting the teddy bear for “the Kids” they become Fearful of the clerk trying to assist her, she states, “had he been able to hear the kids?” (Phillips, 1995, p.163). Phillips also touches the sensitive topic of suicide. She shares her suicidal thoughts and her standing on the bridge contemplating if she would grant her self another year to