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

Insomnia Always

I never learned how to sleep well. When I was very young, I learned how to convincingly pretend I was asleep, which obviously means I couldn’t really be sleeping then, or much of anytime else. Sleeping, to me, was synonymous with not good surprises. Pretending to sleep either got me ignored or got me some …

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Permanent link to this article: http://thirdofalifetime.com/2009/09/17/insomnia-always/

Peter and Paul on Mary Travers' Passing

What a sad day. Mary Travers, part of the ’60s folk rock trio Peter, Paul & Mary, has died. In a statement on Mary’s website, Peter Yarrow reflected on his lifelong admiration of Mary, and how she lived her life. I believe that, in the most profound of ways, Mary was incapable of lying, as …

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Permanent link to this article: http://thirdofalifetime.com/2009/09/17/peter-and-paul-on-mary-travers-passing/

Equal Time For the Guys (US Open)

Roger Federer had a really bad day. You see someone who is so consistently flawless, for years, then it’s shocking to see him struggle and actually lose a five set match. The odds were really good that del Potro would lose, having a 0-6 past record with Federer. Roger helped him out with 11 double …

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Permanent link to this article: http://thirdofalifetime.com/2009/09/14/equal-time-for-the-guys-us-open/

Congrats to Kim Clijsters

The US Open Tennis Women’s Championship last night was definitely a Storybook Ending. It was a hard-fought match, without any histrionics or anybody cursing or breaking anything. Both Kim and Danish No. 9 seed Caroline Wozniacki played their hearts out. I believe it’s good for the sport to occasionally not have the Williams sisters play …

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Permanent link to this article: http://thirdofalifetime.com/2009/09/14/congrats-to-kim-clijsters/

It's Like School Is Starting

I mean, for me, personally. When I was a kid, I always welcomed the start of school as a marker for new adventures, new (non-life threatening) challenges, and new hope. I created ways to become increasingly lost in my studies, as a means of not dealing with my particular hell-for-a-childhood reality. Starting school was a …

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Permanent link to this article: http://thirdofalifetime.com/2009/09/13/its-like-school-is-starting/

I Have To Eat

You know, I spent most of my life trying to not eat, and feeling guilty and self-loathing when I did anyway, or using food as a control device — when it’s not controlling me — or actively not caring if I was committing slow suicide and eating whatever I damned well felt like eating. Me …

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Permanent link to this article: http://thirdofalifetime.com/2009/09/08/i-have-to-eat/