Have any AP's seen this? (Child Dissociative Checklist)

See also

A friend sent me a copy of a checklist for me to check-out. The test is designed to help determine if your (adopted) child exhibits signs of Dissociative Identity Disorder, as it would be seen in school/the classroom.

I myself reviewed the list, and not surprisingly, answered yes to all. However, when I was in school, there were various types of abuse taking place at home... but rather than any of my nurses/teachers seeing my behaviors as clear warning signs, my teachers wrote on report cards various aspects of my behavior needed improvement. These "unwanted behaviors" were interpreted by my Aparents as a lack of effort made on my part. [I go into much further detail in a post in our Adult Aftermath section: Making it Personal ]

I am not comfortable going into more personal detail in this particular post, but readers can get a sense of what happens to adoptees who don't perform as parents want/expect before school starts (as in potty training), or when an AP decides it's best if the adopted child is home-schooled. The implications related to poor behavior and automatic triggered response is huge, and not limited to the adoptee given a new label.

Thanks to this find that was sent to me, I'm just now reading more about Dissociative Identity Disorder, and how it relates to stress, trauma, PTSD and other labels given to adoptees. [Is this the newest version of Reactive Attachment Disorder and Attachment Disorder... or is it a new spin to the old term "“Multiple Personality Disorder"?]

I was wondering if/how many AP's are being told by their child's teacher, "Your child needs to be tested... for placement reasons" (?) And if the AP is being told "your (adopted) child needs to be tested", what sort of tests are these para-professionals presenting... what sort of therapy are they suggesting?

For those interested, below is a sample of a quiz sent to me to review. How many AP's have seen this, too?

Below is a list of behaviors that describe children. For each item that describes your child NOW or WITHIN THE PAST 12 MONTHS, please circle 2 if the item is VERY TRUE of your child. Circle 1 if the item is SOMEWHAT or SOMETIMES TRUE of your child. If the item is NOT TRUE of your child, circle 0.

0 1 2	1.	Child does not remember of denies traumatic or painful experiences that are know to have occurred.
0 1 2	2.	Child goes into a daze or trance-like state at times or often appears "spaced-out." Teachers may report that he or she "daydreams" frequently in school
0 1 2	3.	Child shows rapid changes in personality. He or she may go from being shy to being outgoing, from feminine to masculine, from timid to aggressive.
0 1 2	4.	Child is unusually forgetful or confused about things that he or she should know, e.g. may forget the names of friends, teachers or other important people, loses possessions or gets easily lost.
0 1 2	5.	Child has a very poor sense of time. He or she loses track of time, may think that it is morning when it is actually afternoon, gets confused about what day it is, or becomes confused about when something has happened.
0 1 2	6.	Child shows marked day-to-day or even hour-to-hour variations in his or her skills, knowledge, food preferences, athletic abilities, e.g. changes in handwriting, memory for previously learned information such as multiplication tables, spelling, use of tools or artistic ability.
0 1 2	7.	Child shows rapid regressions in age-level behavior, e.g. a twelve-year-old starts to use baby-talk sucks thumb or draws like a four-year old.
0 1 2	8.	Child has a difficult time learning from experience, e.g. explanations, normal discipline or punishment do not change his or her behavior.
0 1 2	9.	Child continues to lie or deny misbehavior even when the evidence is obvious.
0 1 2	10.	Child refers to himself or herself in the third person ( .g. as she or her) when talking about self, or at times insists on being called by a different name. He or she may also claim that things that he or she did actually happened to another person.
0 1 2	11.	Child has rapidly changing physical complaints such as headache or upset stomach. For example, he or she may complain of a headache one minute and seem to forget about it the next.
0 1 2	12.	Child is unusually sexually precocious and may attempt age-inappropriate sexual behaviour with other children or adults.
0 1 2	13.	Child suffers from unexplained injuries or may even deliberately injure self at times.
0 1 2	14.	Child reports hearing voices that talk to him or her. The voices may be friendly or angry and may come form "imaginary companions" or sound like the voices of parents, friends or teachers.
0 1 2	15.	Child has a vivid imaginary companion or companions. Child may insist that the imaginary companion(s) is responsible for things that he or she has done.
0 1 2	16.	Child has intense outbursts of anger, often without apparent cause and may display unusual physical strength during these episodes.
0 1 2	17.	Child sleepwalks frequently.
0 1 2	18.	Child has unusual nighttime experiences, e.g. may report seeing "ghosts" or that things happen at night that he or she can't account for (e.g. broken toys, unexplained injuries).
0 1 2	19.	Child frequently talks to him or herself, may use a different voice or argue with self at times.
0 1 2	20.	Child has two or more distinct and separate personalities that take control over the child's behavior.

by Kerry on Monday, 01 August 2011