First Person Plural: My Life as a Multiple

Summary

A New York Times, USA Today, and Publishers Weekly bestseller, First Person Plural chronicles Cameron West’s desperate journey to understand his fragmented mind and ultimately achieve the triumph of a regular life.

“What the hell is happening to me? I feel possessed. I’m talking gibberish in the mirror and somebody else’s voice is coming out of my mouth.”

Cameron West was in his thirties, a successful businessman, happily married and the father of a young son when he spoke these words. The “voice” he heard belonged to Davy, the first of twenty-four distinct alter personalities to emerge over a period of several months as West began to recall memories of horrific abuse he’d repressed since childhood. Along with Davy, there was eight-year-old Clay, tense and stuttering; twelve-year-old Dusty, gentle and kind, but disappointed to find herself in a man’s body; Bart, lighthearted with a sense of humor; Lief, focused and driven, who got things done, but often overwhelmed West with his intensity; and nineteen other personalities, all with distinct characteristics, mannerisms, and memories, created by West to protect his psyche from the trauma of repeated sexual abuse at the hands of family members.

In addition to a spellbinding story, West provides rare and unprecedented insight into the fascinating condition known as dissociative identity disorder, the working of the mind of a multiple, and his alters’ coexistence with one another and with the world “outside.” Heart-wrenching, humorous, and ultimately hopeful, First Person Plural is a story that will make you stand in awe of the power of the mind to protect itself and cheer for West as he struggles to gain control of his life.