Hide and seek

The woman in front of me was looking frail and tired. She was about 28 years old, but her features made her look much older. She looked really scared. Kept looking left and right, as if trying to look for something. Or maybe someone.

"So, let's begin. What is your name Ma'am? And what can I help you with?", I asked.

"My name is Diana Mueller. I am having trouble sleeping doctor," she said.

"Trouble sleeping? Is something stressing you out? Do you have any personal problems? Professional? Something bothering you?"

"She doesn't let me sleep, doctor. She tells me I have to live the way she wants me to. I have to take permission before doing anything. I can't sleep, doctor. I am not.... allowed to. I am scared," she started sobbing.

"Who she? Whom are you talking about? Why are you so scared?" I asked.

"It's Ha... I need to go to the doctor. See you later", she said.

I tried stopping her but she ran away. There was something definitely wrong with her. As she was about to tell me the name of the person who scared her, something seemed to have happened and she couldn't. I need to look into this. 

                                            ~

   "Yes Sir, kindly introduce yourself." I opened my diary to take down notes.

"Hello, d..d.. doctor. I am Sam M..m... Mueller. I am a p..pp.. painter. I have no family," he said while stuttering.

"Okay Sam, so why are you here to see me? Also, this stutter. Is it there since you were born?"

"N... n..no sir. I started stuttering around 10 years back. Sir, I want to paint. Become f...f.. famous. But she won't let me. I make the most b..b..beautiful paintings. But she spoils them. Why does she do it?", he narrated his problem.

Suddenly I started noticing that I have seen such symptoms before. The looking here and there, the fright in his eyes. All these were eerily familiar to Diana's.

"Who doesn't let you paint Sam? Tell me?"

" Uhhh. She will punish me if I tell you. It is H..h.. ha... She is coming. I need to go. Sorry doctor."

And he left.

I wasn't understanding this. There was a lot of similarity between Sam and Diana. There had to be some connection somewhere. I need to figure this out.

They both seemed afraid.

                                            ~

It had been a week. I was not being able to connect the dots. I was so engrossed in these cases that I had overlooked my other patients, canceling their appointments.

Suddenly a 10-year-old kid came running inside the room. The guard came behind him. The kid was crying hysterically and came and clutched me tightly.

"Doctor, he just came in. He refused to wait. There is no guardian or parent also. He is alone", the guard said.

"Okay, you go. I will take care of it," I told him.

With a lot of difficulties, I made the kid stop crying. I offered him a glass of water and chocolates. When I was satisfied that the kid is fine, I started asking.

"Baby, what's your name? Why are you alone? Where are your parents?"

"My name is Will. My parents, I don't know. I don't know where are they. I don't think that I have parents doctor", the kid said.

I was shocked. This was so bizarre.

"Whom do you live with Will? Do you know anyone? How are you here? Are you lost?"

"I live with Sam and Diana. And her. Sam and Diana are very nice, they take good care of me. But she, she is evil. And scary. She hits me," saying that Will started crying again.

This case was getting more and more complicated. Sam, Diana, and Will. All Muellers. Same nervousness. They must be living together. Are they a family? But then, if the whole family is facing troubles, why didn't they come together? Is something stopping them? I had so many questions in my mind, my head was spinning.

"Will, my child, tell me. Why aren't Sam and Diana with you? They are nice to you, right? Why aren't they with you?"

"They couldn't come with me. They really wanted to but they are not allowed. They sent me to you. They told me you can help us. Please help us, doctor. She is not nice. Save us from her," the little boy said.

" Save you from whom? Who is troubling all of you?" I was so concerned and confused.

"Hannah. Hannah tortures us all. Ahhhh...." he screamed as if he was in pain. And ran away. I told the security guard to catch him but it was too late. He had gone by then.

I have never come across such a case before. What is happening here? How much ever I try to think, I come up with nothing. Should I involve the police? But I am sure they also won't be able to do anything. I will have to figure this out myself.

I was having trouble sleeping myself. I couldn't make heads or tails of this case. But I decided that I shouldn't ignore my other patients. They also need help. If I can't help the Muellers, I can at least try to help others.

                                           ~

 

Suddenly a woman walked inside my cabin. She had red curly hair, which looked like liquid fire. She was fair, tall, and thin. She sat in the chair in front of me.

"Ma'am, can you help me with your name?" I picked up my diary and pen.

"My name is Hannah. Hannah Mueller", she said.

Finally. Here she was. The cause of the Muellers' pain and troubles, and also my loss of sleep. But she didn't look like someone who would be scary. In fact, she looked sad. Melancholic. But I wouldn't let her physical appearance cloud my judgment.

" Hannah, I hope you know I have had people coming here who have complained about you. Not letting Diana sleep, not letting Sam paint, hitting Will. What behavior is this?" I asked.

"Sam, Diana, Will. Who are these people doctor? I don't even know them. What are you talking about?", she asked. She genuinely looked surprised. I didn't know what to believe and what not to. Was she the wrong Hannah? But she is Mueller too. Things were just going above my head.

"Okay Hannah, forget what I said earlier. Can you tell me why are you here to see me?"

"Doctor, I have been forgetting things. Sometimes I find myself in different places and do not understand how I got there. There are hours or almost days whose memory I don't have. Sometimes I don't remember who I am. What is happening to me doctor?", she asked.

Finally, all the pieces seemed to fall in place. I think I finally understood what is happening here. But how? Something must have happened to cause this.

"Listen to me very carefully Hannah and answer me truthfully. No hiding anything. Did something happen to you? Something traumatic? Some abuse, someone's death? Any accident? Any incident that was emotionally disturbing and damaging?"

"Um yes, doctor. It happened around 10 years ago. I was physically and sexually abused by someone who was close to me. He threatened me not to tell anyone. I have been shut about it for all these years. But what does that have anything to do with my condition doctor?"

Now I understood the whole picture. The figures are also falling in place. The trauma that occurred 10 years ago, Sam's stuttering beginning 10 years ago, Will's age being 10 years.

"Listen, Hannah. What I am about to tell you in the next 10 minutes may seem very daunting and frightening to you. You might not even believe it. But it is true. It has been true for the last 10 years.

Dissociative Identity Disorder. Or more commonly known as Multiple Personality Disorder. That was the phenomena where due to any emotionally disturbing incident, the victim dissociates from himself into other personalities, trying to avoid the distress caused by the trauma. In extreme cases, this leads to the formation of different personalities within the victim. And that is exactly what happened to Hannah 10 years ago.

Initially, Hannah didn't believe me. But the more I tried to explain her and bring out facts in front of her, she started understanding the situation. And finally, she accepted her truth. That was the first important step of curing her. To make her believe about her condition.

Next was to conduct pyschotherapy. We began talking about the details of the incident that caused her trauma. I tried to contact the other personalities inside her and made them realize the gravity of the situation. I told them that they had to leave her. They had to let her live. Initially, they refused, citing reasons that they want to continue torturing her the way she had tortured them. But they started realizing that it was not her fault. So they agreed.

The pyschotherapy sessions went on for almost a year. Hannah had to come to peace with her trauma that occured years ago and let go of the personalities she created to protect herself. The process was slow, but definitely we were making progress.

A year later, everything was complete. Hannah seemed happy and at peace now. She came to me and thanked me profusely for saving her. She told me she even gathered the courage to start talking about it with her friends and family. I was really happy that finally Hannah had been saved from her own demons.

1 more year later-

I was going through some of my case files when a kid entered my cabin. Although 2 years had passed, I didn't fail to recognize Him. His face was etched in my memory forever. It was Will Mueller. But now, instead of looking sad and frightened, he looked really happy. Almost evilly happy.

He looked at me smugly and said-

"Hello doctor, I am back."