Sierra Sims battles D.I.D.

Hi, my name is Kathie Sims. I am the mother of an amazing, talented, brilliant 28 year old woman named Sierra Sims. You may know of our story but most of you do not.
I made the decision to share our story because I’m reaching out in an effort to seek support.

After an almost 10 year journey including presumed kidnapping/alleged fake kidnapping which is still undetermined, alcohol and drug abuse to medicate pain, 19 trips to psychaitric hospitals having misdiagnosed her with Bi-Polar Disorder and Schizophrenia, doctors have determined her diagnosis as Dissociative Identity Disorder (D.I.D.) and the good news is, we believe  we have finally found a world-renown treatment facility that can help.

Here's a bit of background on our journey & the extraordinarily brave young woman I've walked beside for her entire life.

Raising Sierra was a breeze. She was happy & joyful. She excelled in school and graduated top of her class. Additionally Cece recieved the honor from her peers of homecoming queen. She is an overall exceptional person, as those of you who knew her remember. Sierra has always posessed an undying love for others and is incredibly kind and has the most generous heart.

At 18, Sierra received a full ride basketball scholarship to Auburn University.  After being at college for 3 months,  she began calling home to say she was being "pressured" but wouldnt tell us why.  One month later in October of 2008,  we received the phone call no parent wants to receive -she had gone missing. It was a frantic search involving local, state & federal officials and after 18 long hours, Sierra surfaced. The fact that she was found alive would override the physical injuries.  Her perpetrators were never found to this day, she has little-to no memory of what happened.

Roughly 6 months later we began to see a change in Sierra's behavior. Her mind began to disassociate from traumas she had endured not only in college but throughout her life.  D.I.D. is a complex psychological condition characterized by at least 2 distinct and relatively enduring personality states, caused by many factors including severe trauma during early childhood.  The dissociative aspect is thought to be a coping mechanism.  The person literally dissociates himself/herself from a situation or an experience that is too violent, traumatic or painful to assimilate with their conscious self.  There is often trouble remembering certain events beyond what would be explained by ordinary forgetfulness and because each personality holds a memory,  it takes specialized treatment to help process the memories and reintegrate the mind back into one.

From a mother’s standpoint these have been nothing shy of the hardest, most challenging years for both Sierra’s life and my life as well but now Sierra has an opportunity to receive the help that she desparately needs and deserves.

It is not easy for us reach out.  We are desperate. We have exhausted all personal expenses. Our hope is for Cece to be able to heal  so she can live a full, happy life. She has suffered long enough.

Thank you