ABSTRACT
Sonya moved like a puppet on strings when I fi rst met her in a group home for traumatized girls. “Why do you move in that slow, robotic way; does it feel like something or someone else is controlling you?” I asked, fi shing for something to help me establish rapport with this mostly mute 12-year-old who had a history of violent and assaultive behavior. She suddenly turned to me and answered, “Yes, we don’t let her move on her own. It is too dangerous.” I clarifi ed slowly: “Did you just use the fi rst person plural, we?” I asked. “Who would that be?” “The three men who turn my feelings on and off,” Sonya answered. With this statement, Sonya fi nally began to reveal her hidden imaginary world, peopled by “helpers” who controlled her moods and actions and were now holding back her dangerously escalating behavior.
