Hypnosis, Dissociation and Survivors of Child Abuse: Understanding and Treatment

259 Pages·2006·1.81 MB·English

by  Marcia Degun-Mather

HYPNOSIS,
DISSOCIATION AND
SURVIVORS OF
CHILD ABUSE
Understanding and Treatment
Marcia Degun-Mather

HYPNOSIS, DISSOCIATION
AND SURVIVORS
OF CHILD ABUSE
HYPNOSIS,
DISSOCIATION AND
SURVIVORS OF
CHILD ABUSE
Understanding and Treatment
Marcia Degun-Mather
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Degun-Mather, Marcia.
Hypnosis, dissociation, and survivors of child abuse : understanding and
treatment / Marcia Degun-Mather.
p. ; cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN-13: 978-0-470-03254-1 (cloth : alk. paper) ISBN-13: 978-0-470-01945-0 (pbk. : alk. paper)
ISBN-10: 0-470-03254-5 (cloth : alk. paper) ISBN-10: 0-470-01945-X (pbk. : alk. paper)
1. Adult child abuse victims–Rehabilitation. 2. Adult child abuse
victims–Mental health. 3. Hypnotism. I. Title.
[DNLM: 1. Hypnosis. 2. Memory. 3. Child Abuse–psychology.
4. Dissociative Disorders–therapy. 5. Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic–therapy.
6. Survivors–psychology. WM 415 D319h 2006]
RC569.5.C55D44 2006
616.85′822390651–dc22 2006010698
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
ISBN-13 978-0-470-03254-1 (hbk) 978-0-470-01945-0 (pbk)
ISBN-10 0-470-03254-5 (hbk) 0-470-01945-X (pbk)
Typeset in 10/12 pt Palatino by SNP Best-set Typesetter Ltd., Hong Kong
Printed and bound in Great Britain by TJ International, Padstow, Cornwall
This book is printed on acid-free paper responsibly manufactured from sustainable forestry
in which at least two trees are planted for each one used for paper production.
CONTENTS
About the Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii
Acknowledgements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ix
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xi
1 Hypnosis and Memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
2 The Nature of Trauma Memory with Particular Reference to
Experiences Following Childhood Abuse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
3 The Nature of Dissociation and the Long-Term Consequences
of Childhood Abuse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
4 Hypnotic Interventions to Resolve Trauma Memories in the
Treatment of Survivors of Childhood Abuse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
5 The Treatment of Survivors of Childhood Abuse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
6 Illustrations of Therapeutic Work with Hypnosis in Survivors
of Childhood Abuse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Marcia Degun-Mather is a Consultant Clinical Psychologist in private
practice, and a lecturer and supervisor on the Diploma Course in Applied
and Clinical Hypnosis for qualifi ed health practitioners at University College
London. She is an Associate Fellow of the British Psychological Society, and
Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine (Hypnosis and Psychosomatic Medi-
cine Section). She has worked as a clinical psychologist in the mental health
service of the NHS for 40 years. During this time she was made Head of
the Psychology Department of Warley Psychiatric Teaching Hospital in
Brentwood, Essex, where she worked and pioneered, with the help of a few
colleagues, the fi rst professional Hypnosis Training Workshops for health
professionals which included a mix of psychologists, doctors and psychia-
trists. She was also a founder member of the British Society of Experimental
and Clinical Hypnosis.
She has contributed to two authoritative books on the application of hyp-
nosis in psychotherapies, namely Hypnosis: Current Clinical, Experimental, and
Forensic Practices edited by M. Heap (Croom Helm 1988), and Hypnotherapy:
A Handbook edited by M. Heap and W. Dryden (Open University Press 1991).
Her specialist interests in the mental health fi eld are Post Traumatic Stress
Disorder (simple and complex), eating disorders, and psychosexual dysfunc-
tions. The application of hypnosis in the psychological treatment of these
problems is the subject matter of her teaching on the Diploma Course at
University College London. Before retiring from the NHS in 2003, she was
Lead Psychologist of the Eating Disorder Service in North East London
Mental Health Trust for 6 years. In her private practice now, she covers a
wide range of psychological problems, many of which are the result of child-
hood trauma, abuse or neglect.