Sarah Olson

I am the author of 'Becoming One: A Story Of Triumph Over Multiple Personality Disorder', and have maintained an online presence since 1993. Each Friday, I post 'Best Tweets for Trauma and PTSD Survivors', an annotated compilation of links tweeted in the previous week. I also maintain the Dissociation Blog Showcase, an index of ~180 blogs which discuss dissociation primarily from a personal experience perspective. Having survived a violent, secretive childhood, I know the craving for security, love, and hope that is so often missing in adult survivors' lives. I understand feeling crazy and continually misunderstood. I also know how hard it is to find help to move beyond the pain and daily challenges of trying to put a different life together. What I've learned over many years is that there is always hope. Always. My premise is that 'becoming one' is an ongoing process that is always coming into shape and focus. And it always requires diligence, honesty, and integrity to make it real. It's a journey that does not have to be done alone, either. There are hundreds of great resources for trauma survivors and their supporters, many of them organized by category on my website. Be proactive, and be your own best advocate.

Author's posts

Zero Tolerance Extreme

This is a disturbing story from last week that I keep coming back to. A Michigan father marched his 15 year old son to a vacant lot, made him strip naked, and shot him execution style upon learning the son had confessed to his mother about having sexual contact with his three year old half-sister. …

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Permanent link to this article: http://thirdofalifetime.com/2009/11/24/zero-tolerance-extreme/

My Mom Is Different – DID KidLit

Only a few months ago, someone asked about a book that could help explain DID to your child. I knew such a book existed, but it was a dead-end at Amazon. So I was delighted to find My Mom Is Different was preserved in .PDF format, and is available for free download at Sidran Institute. …

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Permanent link to this article: http://thirdofalifetime.com/2009/11/17/my-mom-is-different-did-kidlit/

Time Is A Frustrating Concept

I’m working on a soon to launch project — at least I hope it’s soon — that is eating up a lot of free time, and which I used to justify not adding a new post here for a week. I am frustrated by how slow it’s moving, and by the fact that I fell …

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Permanent link to this article: http://thirdofalifetime.com/2009/11/11/time-is-a-frustrating-concept/

Twitter Lists Pros/Cons and Paranoia

I really like the new Twitter Lists function; I already created about 10 Lists. (Go to my Twitter profile, and you can see them in the right column.) I have a lot on my plate lately, and I need all the organization I can get. It’s going to take some fine-tuning, but worth the time. …

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Permanent link to this article: http://thirdofalifetime.com/2009/10/31/twitter-lists-proscons-and-paranoia/

Lessons of a Camera

It’s strange. I come from a family of avid photographers, but it’s not my hobby. I’ve never paid much attention to the (almost toy) camera my hubby plays with, other than knowing it’s digital and you can see the results instantly on the computer. I never asked him to take pictures of anything, really, till …

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Permanent link to this article: http://thirdofalifetime.com/2009/10/27/lessons-of-a-camera/

Autumn Leaves Are Calling

We drove around South of Boston last weekend, and the leaves were just beginning to get some color. Add one freaky October snowstorm, and it’s beginning to look gorgeous around here. Having spent most of my life in Los Angeles, I did not at all understand what the big deal was about “changing seasons” till …

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Permanent link to this article: http://thirdofalifetime.com/2009/10/22/autumn-leaves-are-calling/