Ashley Curtis, a Victorian man diagnosed with dissociative identity disorder (DID), complex post-traumatic stress disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder and agoraphobia, says a decision by the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) has threatened the independence he regained through a funded assistance dog, after years during which he was largely unable to leave his home without dissociating.
Man with dissociative identity disorder says NDIA funding decision threatens independence gained through assistance dog
Ashley Curtis, a Victorian man diagnosed with dissociative identity disorder (DID), complex post-traumatic stress disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder and agoraphobia, says a decision by the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) has threatened the independence he regained through a funded assistance dog, after years during which he was largely unable to leave his home without dissociating.
Curtis, who once worked as a business coach, competed in cycling and triathlons, and travelled internationally, says he has no memory of the first 50 years of his life. His partner Rowena describes the onset of his deterioration as occurring about 13 years ago, when Curtis experienced what is now understood to have been a psychogenic seizure while getting out of a car at a petrol station in Queensland.
Curtis was eventually diagnosed with DID — characterised by the presence of at least two distinct personality states, sometimes called 'alters' — after being assessed by multiple mental health specialists. Melbourne clinical psychologist Kerry Gemmel, who made the DID diagnosis, describes the condition as a protective response to severe childhood trauma in which different personality states manage different life situations.
Curtis refers to his personality states as 'parts' rather than alters, describing them as younger versions of himself. He believes he has at least four or five. Among the effects of his condition, he would lock doors behind him when entering a room, hide cutlery, refuse to eat unless Rowena was present, and dissociate when triggered by events such as a knock at the door. On one occasion he was missing for two days after dissociating and leaving into bushland.
Gemmel suggested Curtis spend time with a trained assistance dog after he recalled having a dog as a child during the period of his trauma. After a few hours with an assistance dog, Curtis was reportedly able to walk in his garden without dissociating for the first time in years. Gemmel subsequently established protocols in which physical contact with the dog would help Curtis return to what she describes as his adult self.
Curtis says obtaining NDIS funding for an assistance dog was not straightforward. After initially approving his funding application, the NDIA withdrew approval. Curtis appealed to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal. The NDIA settled in August 2022, granting access to funding through the assistance dog organisation Dogs For Life. Two earlier assistance dogs developed health problems preventing them from continuing, and Curtis began working with a dog named Ellie in 2025.
Dogs For Life states that psychiatric assistance dogs typically train for about two years — first in a foster home, then with the participant and support teams — and that teaching the participant to use the dog is often the more complex component, usually carried out by an allied health professional.
Curtis says Ellie recognises signs of his anxiety, nudges him to reorientate him in public, positions herself between him and approaching strangers, and steers him away from adult males, which he identifies as a trigger. Rowena says that before the assistance dog, she was effectively a 24-hour carer who remained alert to Curtis's whereabouts overnight.
Queensland clinical psychologist Peter Gillogley, who has worked with DID clients, says research and treatment of dissociative disorders is roughly 10 to 15 years behind that of conditions such as schizophrenia and borderline personality disorder, and that assessments for DID are still being refined. Gemmel describes DID as under-reported, noting that many people with the condition do not realise their experience is atypical because it began so early in life.
- The NDIA has not been quoted or given an opportunity to respond in the source; its stated reasons for the funding decision that Curtis says threatens his independence are not reported.
- The specific nature of the NDIA decision that Curtis says now threatens his independence is not described — it is unclear whether it concerns a funding reduction, a refusal to renew, or another type of determination.
- The current status of any appeal or review of the NDIA decision is not reported.
- The source does not specify what childhood trauma underlies Curtis's DID diagnosis.
- The cost of the assistance dog arrangement and the amount of NDIS funding involved are not stated.
Read the original at ABC News Australia