When Rabbit Howls is an account of how one woman discovers she has multiple personalities."The Troops", or the group of 92 personalities, develop as a result of her step-fathers cruel and sadistic physical and sexual abuse. The Troops surface to help Truddi cope with the abuse and survive. The story involves Truddi's psychiatrist, whom the Troops call Stanley, and his experience with each Troop member. Stanley hears the unbelievable stories of Truddi's tortured childhood, and begins to understand that each Troop member is an individual with thier own personality. Stanley and Truddi must discover a way to go through everyday life with the Troops and the memories they posess. When Rabit Howls is an excellent book on multiple personalities and the severe abuse that can cause them.

I have read many books about this subject and this one is the most fascinating I have ever seen. As far as I know, this is the only autobiographal book on this terrible illness. All of the others have been written by the doctor of the patient. the hard cover copy is especially interesting because there are handwriting samples of many of the 92 personalities....yes 92! this case is also unique in that it is the only treated patient whose many personalities were not melded into one surviving personality. This account is written in horrific detail of her abuse by her father. The disorder is always caused by unbearable abuse heaped on a very young child. The formation of multiple personalities is a survival technique employed by the mind. I was very impressed by the author's ability and choice to not merge the personalities and still be able to function...hold a job..be a parent ,etc. The 92 personalities are of many ages, both male and female. They function in the many areas of Trudy' life as befits their capabilities. It has been quite a few years since I read this book but I will never forget it. Altho Trudi is not a professional writer,as far as I know, it is beautifully written. The pocketbook edition lacks the handwriting samples on the cover, which impressed me by their being totally different..The personalities had different abilities, such as driving, tastes in food and drink, smoking and allergies. The allergies being different makes you wonder about their source being phychological rather than physiological...a real mind-boggler for me. I have always suspected that that might be true. Sure could put a different spin finding cures through a different approach. The perpetrator of Trudi's abuse was still alive when this book was published and one of the most enlightening passages in this book was her account of her visiting the cause of her illness. This proved to me that her decision not to merge the personalities had not prevented her being able to function in life. It is an amazing account of tremendous courage. The first multiple personality formed was the reason for the title of this book. In other accounts I've read the multiples still existed but Trudi's first one died, as I understood it. No book I have ever read has shown how much a child can be affected by the treatment of people who are their caretakers..their parents, teachers, relatives etc who are supposed to give them love and aid them when needed. Of course I highly reccommend this book It was written by Truddi Chase..

The story is unbelievably threatening. Emotions are so strong whilst reading the book that you can't stop until you finished it. It sounds like sience fiction, like a thriller. But knowing that the story is authentic will [haunt] you even more. You can't believe nor imagine, that this has really happened!

I read the introduction by the psychiatrist who treated Truddi Chase and was completely blown away. First you watch this woman meet the 90+ separate personalities-The Troops- who were born to protect her from the unthinkable experiences that she was forced to endure by her "caretakers". At the same time, you see how "Stanley"-Truddi's therapist- evolved in his own understanding of Multiple Personality Disorder. This particular case matched nothing he had ever read before and yet he knew that he had to remain open and nurturing during this very painful process without the help of a clean-cut rule book to guide him through this journey. This is truly an excellent find! Sometimes this book was a lot to tackle so I had to read it in bits and pieces but oh it was so very worth it.

The Human Spirit is resilient and the mind of the child born as Truddi Chase and who became the Troops are pioneers for those who have until recently no voice ... she exposes poignantly the horror, the pain and the marvelous way a mind can protect itself through the creation of many to help cope with the devastation heaped on her by two very deranged people, who called themselves parents. The movie based on the book is Voices Within and does a good job ... but read this book if you or anyone you know is a multiple and/or a survivor of intense and long term abuse. Troops thank you all!

Dearest Truddi.......You and your "Troops" are in the minds of everyone who has ever heard your story, or has read your book. We all feel your pain through the words written by the "Troops". To anyone who has not read this book yet, When Rabbit Howls is an amazine trip into the world of mulitplicity and how a person deals with pain and suffering during the most imortant times in ones life. After being a victim of abuse from the ages of 2-16, Truddi deals with this torture by going into a sort of coma and the real Truddi goes into a "sleep" mode for the duration of her adult life. This is where the "Troops" take over. Her mind, unknown to her, splits into 92 very different personalities and end up controlling her every move. The book takes you into the mind of the "Troops" and opens the reader up to the pain and suffering endured by Truddi. If you are ever curious about what Truddi is really like, she was on Oprah a few years ago and her story is amazing. This book is Highly recommended.