AT THE height of her illness, Carol had dozens of different personalities. Two were small children: Lucy, aged 9, and "little Carol", aged 5, who liked to watch children's television.
Another was an older female called Louise who had recovered disturbing memories: when younger, Carol/Louise had been sexually abused by her parents and forced to make child pornography. Then there was a more aggressive persona, who acted as Carol's protector and during questioning would fly into a rage.
While Carol's case sounds like an extreme example of multiple personality disorder (MPD), the reality, as Carol eventually discovered, is even stranger.
None of those details are true. Not the pornography, not the sexual abuse, and not the different personalities; they had all been summoned into existence by Carol's psychiatrist. "This doctor [was] very charismatic and manipulative," says Carol.
If Carol's case were isolated, it might be put down to a vulnerable ...
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