Herschel's secret

Posted at 2:43 PM on January 18, 2008 by Bob Collins (1 Comments)

Former Minnesota Viking Herschel Walker reveals in a new book that he suffers from multiple personality disorder.

According to the Atlanta Constitution today...

Multiple personality disorder, or dissociative identity disorder (DID), as it is more commonly referred to today, is a rare mental condition in which one person has two or more distinct personalities, according to the Merck Manual of Medical Information.

The personalities may or may not be aware of each other and a particular personality may not have access to all of the individual's memories. The switch from one personality to another can be very disorienting and the active personality may have memory lapses or feel that he or she has lost track of time. Persons suffering from this disorder may refer to themselves in the plural or in the third person.

Victims of DID have usually experienced a severe, traumatic shock of some kind and most report being abused as children. Treatment for this illness involves integrating the various personalities into one and usually requires psychotherapy that may continue for years, according to Merck.

"That's all news to me. All I know is whatever personality he had when he had the football was the one I liked," said former Georgia coach Vince Dooley, showing a remarkable inability to grasp the concept, even by football standards.

Comments (1)

You realize Bob, that nothing will bring a party crashing to a stop faster in Minnesota, than bringing up Hershel Walking. I know my day is ruined now.

Posted by gml4 | January 18, 2008 6:54 PM

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