Hannibal Lecter was born in Lithuania in 1933 to a family of artists. His younger sister, Mischa, lived with Hannibal in their parents' castle. The family appeared to be well-adjusted, loving and nurturing. It becomes apparent very quickly how much he cares for his sister Mischa. When World War II broke out, Lithuania became a battlefield for the warring Soviets and Germans. Hannibal's family fled to a cabin in the woods in an attempt to avoid being caught in the crossfire. Their attempts to remain safe would prove fruitless. Hannibal's mother and father die in a battle between the Soviets and the Germans. Hannibal and little Mischa witnessed the death of their parents, as well as the air and foot battles between the soldiers. At this point, Hannibal takes on the responsibility of taking care of himself and his little sister. Shortly thereafter, a group of Russian soldiers invade the cottage, taking Hannibal and Mischa prisoner. The soldiers searched the house for food, but to no avail. Famine began to take its toll on the group of soldiers, at which point they realized that Mischa had pneumonia and will likely die soon. The men suggest killing and eating the girl. The soldiers drug his little sister outside, where they slaughtered and ate her. Hannibal managed to escape and was placed in an orphanage until his teenage years. In the orphanage, Hannibal experiences horrific nightmares about Mischa's unsolved death. He is haunted by the image of his parents' death, Mischa's death, Mischa's cannibalized body, and the faces of his attackers because of this childhood trauma. In the orphanage he does not speak, except when he screams in his sleep due to nightmares. It is possible that this form of mutism... middle of paper... never recovers from its violent and cannibalistic tendencies. Dr. Lecter is too sophisticated and could outsmart any psychiatrist assigned to work with him. However, if treatment were to be pursued, I would start with a psychotherapeutic approach. Dr. Lecter has few people he trusts/opens up to. He needs a consolidated therapeutic relationship for therapy to continue successfully. He doesn't trust anyone. To help him cope with night terrors, intrusive thoughts, avoidance issues, and many of his antisocial behaviors, I would suggest cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), prolonged exposure, and possibly mood stabilizers. These treatments can help reduce symptoms/memories of trauma, which cause outbursts of anger/violence. While these treatments may help reduce symptoms, it is unlikely that Dr. Hannibal Lecter will ever function safely and non-destructively within society..