A Couple of Multiples: The Reality of Living with Dissociative Identity Disorder
There’s never a dull moment for hosts, Drew and Garden System, who are a couple that have both been diagnosed with Dissociative Identity Disorder. While they are navigating their healing journey, they continue to manage full time careers, raise four teenagers and a house full of pets. Not only do they aim to speak to people who have lived experience with DID and their supporters, but also therapists and anyone who wants to learn more. The podcast talks about Dissociative Identity Disorder in a way that someone who knows nothing about DID will be able to understand, and at the same time is designed to be a resource for therapists, while supporting and validating those with lived experience. Dissociative Identity Disorder is a highly stigmatized mental health diagnosis that has been subject to many myths and misinformation over the years. These myths, along with highly-sensationalized media portrayals, have led to many who still believe this disorder is not real and simply created by therapists who impose themselves on highly suggestible clients. The goal of the podcast is to dispel these myths and educate the world at large the truth about Dissociative Identity Disorder, and the reality of what having this diagnosis really looks like. The brain had to find a unique way to cope in order to survive the trauma people with DID faced from a very young age. Also, this condition is not rare, although many reputable sources still cite it as such. People with DID are ordinary members in your community that you might encounter in your daily life. Drew and Garden System want to shed light on the challenging symptoms people with DID face and share how they have overcome those challenges and found the gifts of joy that all of their parts bring to each other.
A Couple of Multiples: The Reality of Living with Dissociative Identity Disorder
You Lied to Me About God: An Interview with Dr. Jamie+ Marich
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Drew & Garden System have an important conversation with Dr. Jamie+ Marich about her upcoming memoir, You Lied to Me About God. You can pre-order a copy now anywhere books are sold! They discuss the impact of religious trauma and spiritual abuse and how it can contribute to dissociation. They each share personal stories about their journeys of coming out as people with dissociative systems and being part of the LGBTQIA+ community. Also discussed is the impact of purity culture and sexual abuse. Please take care of your selves while listening!
Dr. Jamie Marich (she/they/we) is the author of the popular Dissociation Made Simple: A Stigma-Free Guide to Embracing Your Dissociative Mind and Navigating Life (2023), now available as both a book and a clinical flipchart. She is the author of over 10 other books and manuals in the field of trauma, addiction recovery, and the expressive arts. They are an EMDR Therapy trainer and founder of The Institute for Creative Mindfulness, one of the largest training organizations in North America that works to create an inclusive space for plural trainees and others with dissociative responses. In 2019, the EMDR International Association awarded Jamie with their Advocacy Award for her work in destigmatizing dissociative disorders and other mental health concerns. Personally, Jamie+ is known as the Unicorn System and is a long-time presenter at Healing Together. In October of 2024, her first full memoir comes out called You Lied to Me About God, focusing on her experiences with spiritual abuse and religious trauma. They are based in Akron, Ohio on Erie Nation Land.
Please visit https://acoupleofmultiples.com to sign up for our mailing list where you can learn more about our online community, Hearts Multiplied, for those living with a dissociative disorder, their supporters, and mental health professionals.
We are honored to have a gold plus sponsor for season 2! The Institute for Creative Mindfulness is one of the largest EMDR Therapy training programs in North America, founded and directed by Dr. Jamie+ Marich, author of Dissociation Made Simple. Dr. Jamie is the only EMDR therapy trainer who is "out" as a plural, and since 2015 she's offered the full EMDR Therapy basic training in a way that honors lived experience and destigmatizes dissociation in clinical work. We have never felt more accepted and validated as a multiple than when we were able to show up
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Visit our website: acoupleofmultiples.com to sign up for our mailing list, join our private, on-line community Hearts Multiplied, register for peer coaching, consultations, and workshops!
Remember, this podcast is not a substitute for therapy. The purpose of this podcast is to educate and provide information on dissociative identity disorder. We share our personal stories, interview guests who also live with DID, and we interview mental health professionals to share their clinical knowledge.
And most importantly: remember that every system is different. What works for one may not work for another—and that’s okay. Your journey is valid, your healing is real, and we’re so glad you’re hanging out with A Couple of Multiples.
Articles cited in Seasons 4 & 5:
Brand, B. L., Sar, V., Stavropoulos, P., Krüger, C., Korzekwa, M., Martínez-Taboas, A., & Middleton, W. (2016). Separating Fact from Fiction: An Empirical Examination of Six Myths About Dissociative Identity Disorder. Harvard review of psychiatry, 24(4), 257–270. https://doi.org/10.1097/HRP.0000000000000100
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