What is a sodium amytal interview? I was reading about hypnotherapy for dissociative disorders and found that a sodium amytal interview sometimes could help diagnose dissociative disorders.

H.L.

Sodium amytal is a hypnotic sedative drug that, like hypnosis, is occasionally used with trauma survivors to access repressed or unconscious material, such as feelings and memories, or to aid in diagnosis of possible dissociative identity disorder (DID). The drug is administered via an intravenous (IV) drip, usually in an inpatient setting to monitor the slight risk of medical complications.

The International Society for the Study of Dissociation (ISSD) has published treatment guidelines for dissociative disorders that indicate that amytal or hypnosis interviews "may be helpful" when "alternative diagnostic measures have failed to yield a definitive conclusion and diagnosis is necessary or in situations of urgency when the establishment of a diagnosis is a matter of medical necessity." Other assessment procedures, such as the Structured Clinical Interview for Dissociative Disorders developed by Marlene Steinberg, M.D., or the Dissociative Disorders Interview Schedule developed by Colin Ross, M.D., are usually the first choice when a definitive diagnosis is needed and time is of the essence.

People contemplating the use of either sodium amytal or hypnosis to "uncover" memories should be aware that neither amytal nor hypnosis constitute a "truth serum." Both procedures alter the patient's consciousness and "may yield symptoms that mimic dissociative pathology in patients who do not have DID," the ISSD notes. While sodium amytal and hypnosis do not necessarily increase the accuracy of memory, they CAN increase the patient's CONFIDENCE in his or her memory -- even when the memory may be false or distorted.

Both sodium amytal interviews and hypnosis should be used by trained practitioners who avoid leading and suggestive questions. Patients and practitioners may also want to videotape any such interviews to have a permanent record of the process that will allow them to address any later concerns about leading questions or memory contamination. Keep in mind that memories or experiences processed under the influence of sodium amytal or hypnosis may not be admissible court testimony in some states.

You can read the ISSD treatment guidelines for DID, including the section on sodium amytal and other techniques, at the organization's website. The Sidran Foundation also has an excellent glossary of terms related to trauma and dissociative disorders.