NICKELS: Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) ~Review & Giveaway~

April 30 - May 6

Hosted by eReading on the Cheap & Slap Dash Mom

 

 Nickels  

A Tale of Dissociation

Christine Stark

What is DID? 

 Dissociative identity disorder (DID, also known as multiple personality disorder in the ICD-10^[1]) is a psychiatric diagnosis whose essential feature, according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), "...is the presence of two or more distinct identities or personality states...that recurrently take control of behavior."^[2] The diagnosis requires that at least two personalities (one may be the host) routinely take control of the individual's behavior with an associated memory loss that goes beyond normal forgetfulness; in addition, symptoms cannot be the temporary effects of drug use or a general medical condition.^[3] Memory loss will occur in those with DID when an alternate part of the personality becomes dominant. DID is less common than other dissociative disorders, occurring in approximately 10% of dissociative disorder cases^[4] and 1% of the general population.^[5] Diagnosis is often difficult as there is considerable co-morbidity with other conditions and many symptoms overlap with other types of mental illness.^[2] It is diagnosed significantly more frequently in North America than in the rest of the world.^{[6][7]  Wikipedia}

Nickels is a one of a kind story. It pulls one in from the start because it shows us a little girl grow up before our eyes and experience what we can only imagine of the worst. As the table of contents shows, it allows us to follow her from age 4 through 26. The author writes in fragments, or thoughts, in a first person point of view.  The tone of Nickels is strong and clear, beginning on the very first page.  As the reader we travel through the horrible experience of Little Miss So and So from school to home, to friendship, to love, to anger, and finally survival healing.  After reading the very first chapter you become engrossed in the story, no matter how horrible it seems, because events like this are real, sadly.  Unfortunately, as a teacher I ran across events such as this.  They were each heartbreaking and made me become quite cold-hearted towards parents, like Little Miss So and So's mother, who chose to ignore events such as the ones that develop in the book.  With the resilience of a bumblebee, the main character comes to terms with what has happened in her life and decides to help herself and leave her "nickel" life behind. 

 Nickels follows a biracial girl named "Little Miss So and So", from age 4-1/2 into adulthood. Told in a series of prose poems, Nickels' lyrical and inventive language conveys the dissociative states born of a world formed by persistent and brutal incest and homophobia. The dissociative states enable the child's survival and, ultimately, the adult's healing. The story is both heartbreaking and triumphant. Nickels is the groundbreaking debut of Minneapolis-area author and artist Christine Stark.

Christine Stark is an amazing person, writer, and healer. Christine has been speaking about sexual exploitation and other social justice issues at law schools, national and international conferences, rallies, Take Back the Nights, universities, shelters, and rape crisis centers for over twenty years. She has also appeared on NPR’s Justice Talking and numerous radio and television shows. Christine teaches writing at Metropolitan State University in the Twin Cities where she lives with her partner and their animals.

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