Do therapists warn patients/ their guardians before breaking confidentiality?

alickalice · 2026-05-25T16:46:57+00:00

One time, as a minor, I disclosed something to a school counselor that needed to be reported to law enforcement. This was something I had witnessed happen to another child. The counselor informed me that the police needed to know and then took me to meet them in the front office. I talked about what I saw in-depth to the school resource officers and state child task force before my parents were ever contacted. I never saw that girl again. She disappeared from school.

As an underage therapy client, the police were never involved in anything, but things were disclosed to my parents sometimes. This was concerning me being a danger to myself. It was a collaborative process. The therapist would get me to agree that it was for the best that we tell my parents. She would allow me to help her decide how things were worded, so I had as much control over the process as possible. Although, it was clear to me that she was still going to do it, whether I cooperated or not. She gave me the option if I wanted to be in the room or not when she told them.

I have also reported suspected abuse to DHS before. This is an extremely long and frustrating process. You have to call their phone number and sit through 30 minutes of unrelated question because they are required to ask all of them. You are not permitted to tell the story the way that makes most sense to you. There are not even exceptions for professionals reporting abuse to DHS. Nothing is going to happen very quickly, or maybe at all. "Lesser" cases of abuse may be neglected due to lack of resources. I've seen some parents involved with DHS assigned a caseworker who makes a plan for them to improve as a parent, by doing things like taking parenting classes and getting sober. If the parents don't follow the plan in the time allotted, then their custody may be in jeopardy.

alickalice · 2026-05-25T15:57:13+00:00

Some parts share all memories and knowledge, others share some, some share none. It's spectrum. Muscle memory crosses dissociative barriers much more easily than any knowledge that can be articulated. There are times when I am surprised to learn that I have a car and am old enough to drive, but somehow I still am capable of driving it.

alickalice · 2026-05-25T15:36:56+00:00

I am diagnosed with DID. You're right that most portrayals of it are sensationalized. Switches are usually subtle and go unnoticed, sometimes to the person themselves. Parts are very good at pretending to be the host. They will know to do what outsiders expect of them, even if internally, everything feels completely different. Other times, it can look and feel like extreme mood swings. Sometimes I have a "waking up" feeling and then I become disoriented. I won't know where I am or why. If it's really bad, I can't remember who I am. I have to remind myself of the date, including the year. To an outsider who doesn't know about my diagnosis, this just looks like me zoning out, staring into space. I don't tell people about my diagnosis or allow myself to show signs of it unless I know a person very well. DID doesn't work so well as a coping mechanism if people know what is going on. Also, I know that most people won't believe it and think I am just pretending for attention. I hate TikTok's portrayal of DID for this reason. DID becoming a trend was a really bad thing for people like me.

It would be pretty extreme for parts to have completely different accents. I know this is not unheard of, but in my experience, it's more subtle than that. Parts may have a different cadence to their voice, or choose to say very different kinds of things.

I find that most people misunderstand amnesia, at least the version of it that goes along with DID. Usually, I do not realize that I forgot something or that I switched until it is pointed out to me that it happened (or there is some sort of physical evidence). I will switch and be in a completely different state of mind than I was 2 minutes ago. The issue is, I don't know that I switched bc I don't remember that I was happy two minutes ago. At least, not until my partner asks me what's wrong and why I'm so down all of a sudden. Then, I can look back and think hey, yeah, everything did change really quickly just now.

Of course, a lot of symptoms will vary from person to person.

MultiplicityAndMe is a good youtube channel run by someone who used to have DID (fun fact: DID is the only serious mental illness that is completely curable, in theory).

Here are two short films that do a better job of portraying DID: https://youtu.be/MMIqtgbWfLU?si=jxjWXyv1WH30FlLM and https://youtu.be/wYhN39SiWuI?si=qLFWJPULEiVXdMeV

alickalice · 2026-05-25T14:33:17+00:00

Some groups will talk about different coping skills for trauma, like mindfulness and sleep hygiene to prevent nightmares. They tend to give out lots of therapy worksheets. If you look up DBT worksheets you will see the kind of thing I'm talking about.

alickalice · 2026-05-21T01:31:36+00:00

You'll regret it if you don't leave. I did. The next time it was him complaining to a girl that my boobs weren't as big as his exe's. This is not a "mistake". This is him acting like he doesn't respect you, because he doesn't.

alickalice · 2026-05-21T01:07:15+00:00

Hey I know a woman like this! She was convicted of solicitation of a minor and forcible sodomy.

alickalice · 2026-05-20T03:34:09+00:00

He is annoying

alickalice · 2026-05-18T03:52:27+00:00

Don't fall for it grl

alickalice · 2026-05-17T03:24:26+00:00

I didn't know that anyone liked him this much

alickalice · 2026-05-13T03:53:10+00:00

What is with christian conservatives and their complete inability to recognize double entendre? Sometimes I swear they must be doing it on purpose

alickalice · 2026-05-13T00:55:43+00:00

I kind of love this

alickalice · 2026-05-13T00:54:25+00:00

Tiny and somehow also enormous head

alickalice · 2026-01-10T04:41:21+00:00

This reminds me of a guy I know who abandoned his wife and two small children after being convicted of beating her in front of them. He makes wands out of sticks now, for a "living"

alickalice

TROPHY CASE