Childhood Trauma, Dissociation and Alcohol/Other Drug Abuse Among Lesbian Women

Abstract

Nineteen lesbian women with a history of alcohol/other drug abuse completed the Self-Report Version of the Dissociative Disorders Interview Schedule and the Dissociative Experiences Scale. Of the 19 women, 100% reported childhood physical and/or sexual abuse, 89% met criteria for major depressive disorder, and 58% for borderline personality disorder. In comparison, in a sample of 39 women in treatment at a hospital-based chemical dependency program, 58% reported childhood physical and/or sexual abuse, 72% met criteria for depression, and 44% met criteria for borderline personality disorder. The two groups did not differ on rates of these disorders or on a number of other symptom clusters. However, the lesbian women reported significantly more childhood abuse. More data from larger samples are required in order to determine whether lesbian women with alcohol/other drug abuse consistently report higher rates of childhood abuse than the base rate for women with alcohol/other drug abuse in general.

Key Words:

• Alcohol/other drag abuse
• lesbian women
• childhood trauma