ARE YOU FASCINATED BY TWINS?

Twin births are trending upwards from one in 30 births due to fertility treatment and older mothers giving birth. Not one of us is immune from the twin influence, whether parents, children, friends, or acquaintances. The presence of twins in a world dominated by singles gives rise to ideas of twinship and what this status implies for society. In the tween years many children fantasize about having a twin but what does this really mean for a lifetime? Take the plunge into the Twin World.

An identical twin deconstructs twinship for the first time from the perspective of both a psychotherapist and mature twin; after a lifetime of experience, Margery Runyan, PhD and LCSW, tells the world the true story of twin love, twin joy, twin suffering, and twin loss. Written originally for an audience of psychotherapists treating twins, the scope has expanded to all who are twins, love twins or know twins, so that we can begin to plumb the depths of their secret world.

The horror of twin loss is an integral part of Dr. Runyan’s life, and she covers this topic with the greatest insight and sensitivity. How does a twin find wholeness after the loss of her identical twin? This subject has rarely been treated in the psychological literature. Her initial memoir, The Tao of Twins: A heroine’s journey, covers her life as an engaged twin and then twin alone in more depth than any other memoir in literary memory. It is recommended reading for those persons grieving the loss of a loved one. With this sequel, Healing Twins, Dr. Runyan adds all the missing pieces so that other psychotherapists, parents, and friends can help the remaining twin through the pain and recovery.

Additional layers of expertise are added by Dr. Runyan’s immersion in Jungian practice, her extensive studies of Taoism, Buddhism and Hinduism, her world travels and current residence in France. She has a deep commitment to the intersection of spirituality and quantum theory. She convinces us through her extensive writings that twins have special abilities to transcend the individualism of modern society and show the path to greater love. Her first book, Do Twins Dream Twin Dreams: A quantitative study, is also required reading for persons interested in these deeper dynamics of twinship.

As twin births increase and our lives become populated by these extraordinary beings, it behooves us all to seek understanding of the miracle of twinship as described with intelligence and love by Dr. Runyan, a rare person who sees from within and without the Twin World.

In her next book, Healing Twins, to be published in the fall of 2024, covers all life stages of twins in their uniqueness. It plunges deeply into the resultant processes of psychotherapeutic treatment most useful to heal the deepest desires, situations, and wounds of twin selves. As Dr. Runyan reveals with her unending compassion, twins live in a twin world, different almost entirely from the single world. Each stage of life has its own struggles and triumphs. The parental bond is affected by the twinship. Relationships with lovers and husband are colored by the closeness of the twinship. Identical twins differ from fraternal twins in their growth struggles. Dr. Runyan offers touching examples of this complexity from her own life and the real life experiences of other twins she has known and treated.