Summary: Part A: The story of "Sybil," a young woman claiming 16 different personalities, spawned a book, a movie and a national outbreak of wild tales told to psychiatrists. But journalist Debbie Nathan believes the real Sybil, Shirley Ardell Mason, actually fell prey to an overzealous therapist, Connie Wilbur, and a corrupt journalist, Flora Schreiber, steering a story. Though Mason did suffer legitimate mental illness, Wilbur's intense fascination with multiple personalities and unorthodox use of sodium pentathol, paired with Mason's extreme dependence on the doctor for therapy and even rent, led Mason into a far worse situation than where she began. Prime Time Radio's Mike Cuthbert discusses Nathan's new book, Sybil Exposed, and the dangers of doctor-patient relationships gone wrong. Part B: At age 12, Carissa Phelps escaped a chaotic and troubled home life and ended up working as a prostitute on the streets of Southern California. Except for other runaways, group homes and pimps, Phelps was completely alone. Yet occasionally, Phelps found solace in school. With encouragement from teachers, she excelled in math and writing and slowly began to realize she was meant for more than jail or death. Now Phelps holds UCLA degrees in law and business and works with at-risk youth herself. Her new book, Runaway Girl, explains her dark youth, the choices and the kind hearts who led her to a new life.
