“Losing the Atmosphere” a memoir by Vivian Conan (post 2): Therapist diagnoses multiple personality, infers “attachment trauma,” but fails to report memory gaps

“Losing the Atmosphere,” says Jeffery Smith, MD, “is more than an account of living with multiple personalities…what made Vivian split into distinct parts was attachment trauma” (due to problems with parenting in childhood) (1, pp. 441-442).

Comment: I don't know if attachment theory improves treatment of multiple personality.

Dr. Smith says Vivian clearly has multiple personality, which, he adds, “is far more common than many people, even experts, realize" (1, p. 442), but his overview of the case (1, pp. 441-450) makes no mention of memory gaps, a required criterion for making the diagnosis (2, p. 292).

Comment: I do know that awareness of memory gaps will improve a therapist's results.

The memoir itself supports the diagnosis of multiple personality; for example, Vivian sees other personalities when she looks in the mirror.

Search “mirror,” “mirrors," and "memory gaps” for past posts on these symptoms.

1. Vivian Conan. Losing the Atmosphere, a Memoir: A Baffling Disorder, a Search for Help, and the Therapist Who Understood. Afterword by Jeffery Smith, MD. New York, N.Y., Greenpoint Press, 2020.

2. American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition [DSM-5]. Arlington, VA., American Psychiatric Association, 2013.

Added next day: The question arises as to whether Dr. Smith's failure to find any memory gaps means he never became aware of all her personalities.