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COPYRIGHT AND CITATION CONSIDERATIONS FOR THIS THESIS/ DISSERTATION o Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use. o NonCommercial — You may not use the material for commercial purposes. o ShareAlike — If you remix, transform, or build upon the material, you must distribute your contributions under the same license as the original. How to cite this thesis Surname, Initial(s). (2012) Title of the thesis or dissertation. PhD. (Chemistry)/ M.Sc. (Physics)/ M.A. (Philosophy)/M.Com. (Finance) etc. [Unpublished]: University of Johannesburg. Retrieved from: https://ujcontent.uj.ac.za/vital/access/manager/Index?site_name=Research%20Output (Accessed: Date). Help-Seeking Experiences of Satanic Ritual Abuse Survivors with Dissociative Identity Disorder who received Therapy by Yvette Jordaan (née Badenhorst) Student Number: 201023131 Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree Magister Artium Socialis Scientiae (Clinical Social Work) in the Department of Social Work of the Faculty of Humanities at the University of Johannesburg supervised by Prof. Shahana Rasool Date of Submission 30 June 2016 Acknowledgements Thank you, Dr Shahana Rasool, for encouraging me to complete it, even though I had given up on my dissertation and my ability to complete it. You truly went above and beyond any call of duty to ensure it was completed. Thank you for your support, guidance, EXTREME PATIENCE and your sternness. It meant more to me than you can ever imagine. To my husband, Dian Jordaan, what a wonderful man! We started dating during the first year of my Masters, were then married and now have the most amazing daughter. Your unconditional love, support and sacrifice did not go unnoticed. Thank you for loving me through my emotional and psychological fluctuations, mood swings and frustration. You spent hours helping me with my research, assisting with recording and transcribing interviews, reading through countless drafts, and encouraging me. Thank you for your unending support and complete selflessness in helping me complete this dissertation. Thank you for making food, washing dishes, cleaning the house and babysitting so that I could survive. You mean the world to me and you were definitely worth the wait. You are truly my beloved. Melody, my beautiful, amazing daughter. You are my joy and my song. My heart overflows with love for you. You make every day a wonderful adventure. Thank you for your beautiful spirit, laughter and compassion. I love being your mother. To my precious parents, dearest Mommy and Daddy. I am extremely lucky to have you as parents. Everything good in me comes from you. Thank you for your unconditional support and assistance on so many levels. You are great examples of the type of person I strive to be. I love you both tremendously and thank you for always being there for us. Adele, my sister whom I absolutely adore. You did not have much to do with my research, but you have always believed in me and are a great sister. I miss you sooooo much. To my in-laws, thank you for accepting me as your own. Thank you for your love, kindness and open hearts. Thank you, Skoonpa, for the time, which you have so little of, you put into reading through countless drafts, assisting with the grammar and the technical aspects of i which I had no clue. Moeks thank you for always being there and the countless coffees and snacks. Love you both. To F.H. Havinga, thank you for all your assistance and support. Thank you for being a great mentor and teacher. To all my friends who listened to countless complaints, thank you for your concern, your patience, your willingness to help and, finally, all your prayers. Thank you to God, my Father, Jesus Christ and Holy Spirit. Life has been a tumultuous journey with many questions, but one thing holds true: Your love never changes. Thank you for your guidance and strengthening me when I was at my lowest. Thank you for accepting me with all my imperfections. I love You, Lord. Finally, thank you to the survivors who were willing to participate in this study. It was a privilege meeting you. You are the true heroes. Thank you for sharing your intense stories, but, most of all, thank you for the strength, courage and grace you have shown. May your stories provide hope to the hopeless, strength to the weak and courage to those who need encouragement. I know you will continue touching lives, just as you have touched mine. I pray your healing and joy will be complete. ii Hardest thing I’ve ever done is show what I feel Break silent chains and shatter the seal All my life this door’s been closed Memories and emotion trapped safely inside NEVER FEEL! Don’t be weak! Always composed People only saw my smile, while I silently cried My mask, my mind could always bear What my heart exclaimed in pain “I hate you, but I care” Deeds and words like drought and rain My being screams out, crying invisible tears Please can someone see and calm my fears I often wish for somewhere to belong Spread my wings — like a falcon fly free Revive my dream; forget all that’s wrong Be accepted for who I am, free to be me Look past the mask, look and really see Take my hand, help me to stand Instead — people lie, on their faces a smile Be patient with me…. To trust takes a while Wonder if there really is hope Will I ever live and not just cope Wonder if anyone will ever dare To reach out, persist and genuinely care At times HOPE is difficult to see Specially if my eyes are on me And have to decide: look up and around To wage this war with all my might Remember: Darkness is defeated by even a sliver of LIGHT And I know … the only key is the one I at last, have found A victim of Satanic Ritual Abuse (1999) iii Abstract This study aims to explore the help-seeking experiences of survivors of satanic ritual abuse (SRA), who have been diagnosed with Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID). This descriptive, exploratory study endeavours to understand the factors that motivate survivors of SRA to seek help, as well as to explore the factors that hinder help-seeking. The researcher makes use of the ecosystems theory as the theoretical framework. A qualitative approach was used to provide participants with the opportunity to define their experiences from their own perspective. The main themes of this study are aimed to: 1. Understanding trauma caused by satanic ritual abuse (SRA). 2. The effect of SRA on survivors’ macro-systems (belief systems) by means of normalizing the abuse, indoctrination of Satanic belief systems and creating a sense of belonging amongst members. 3. Factors influencing help-seeking from formal (professional services including churches, schools, criminal justice system, medical, therapy and safe houses) and informal (friends and family) supra-systems. Neither the research study, nor the researcher attempts to prove or disprove the actual existence of Satanism or SRA. The researcher is interested in helping the alleged victims of these types of abuse/trauma to self-disclose more readily and, in so doing, guiding helpers to provide an efficient service to these individuals. iv Table of Contents Page number ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .................................................................................................................... I ABSTRACT ...................................................................................................................................... IV CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................... 1 1.1. Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 1 1.2. Goals and objectives ......................................................................................................... 1 1.2.1. Goal ..................................................................................................................... 1 1.2.2. Objectives ............................................................................................................ 1 1.3. Literature review .............................................................................................................. 2 1.4. Description and justification of research methods ........................................................... 5 1.5. Ethical considerations ....................................................................................................... 7 1.6. Structure of study ............................................................................................................. 7 CHAPTER 2. LITERATURE REVIEW ................................................................................................. 10 2.1. Introduction .................................................................................................................... 10 2.2. Systems theory ............................................................................................................... 10 2.3. Definitions ...................................................................................................................... 12 2.3.1. Ritual abuse ....................................................................................................... 12 2.3.2. Satanic ritual abuse (SRA) .................................................................................. 13 2.3.3. Survivors