Book Review—Crazy: Reclaiming Life From the Shadow of Traumatic Memory

     There are few diagnoses that carry as much stigma or misunderstanding as Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID), previously known as Multiple Personality Disorder. The general public views people with DID as violent and dangerous, thanks in part to films like Psycho, Fight Club, and Split, which portray murderous intention as a function of the disorder. As practitioners and social workers, many of us know these depictions to be inaccurate and harmful. I have often wished for more first-person narrative around the realities of DID and how people with it experience everyday life. When Barrett’s book was recently published, I couldn’t wait to read it.

     Lyn Barrett is a mother of three, married to her husband, and living in a beautiful house in her late 30s. She finds herself experiencing a parade of negative self-talk and self-blame, often perceiving multiple narratives in her mind at the same time. After her husband reveals a long history of infidelity and following a contentious divorce, Barrett begins to realize she is “crazy.” She uses this word to describe her myriad symptoms, such as disassociation, chronic pain throughout her body, intrusive thoughts, suicidal thoughts, and a suicide attempt. Her book details her journey through several treatment methodologies. She is an avid journaler, and many direct journal entries are reflected within the memoir. Barrett reveals several hurdles within her mental health as she navigates a demanding career, motherhood, and self-care.

     There are many useful components within this book. For one, as clinicians and practitioners, we can never stop considering how diagnoses feel to the people who have been given them. All symptoms that we are trained to notice from the DSM are external, things that we perceive from the outside. It was empowering to read Barrett entering into a strengths-based mindset regarding her “alters” (the different personalities or voices someone with DID may have), highlighting which of them is the best mother, school administrator, protector, and so on. 

     This is a simple, quick read. I finished this book during a 3-hour flight with time to spare. The language is plain and simple, and one does not need to be a clinician to grasp the author’s meanings. This book is useful to anyone seeking to understand more about DID and the various challenges it can pose.

Reviewed by Libby Trammell, LCSW, in Missouri, Program Manager, Healing Action.