Why Do People Lead Secret Lives?
Police Say Missing Colorado Mom Also Ran An Escort Service
July 9, 2007— -- Those close to Paige Birgfeld knew her as a loving mother of three young children and an energetic small business woman. But police revealed this weekend that Birgfeld, who disappeared June 28, led another life, one kept secret from her friends and family: she ran a local escort service.
In doing so, the 34-year old Colorado resident appears to have joined the ranks of many seemingly ordinary Americans who lead hidden lives. News reports abound with stories of men with multiple families, married teachers who have illicit affairs with their students or otherwise upstanding businessmen who struggle with hidden drug problems or visit escort services.
The details of the Birgfeld case are still emerging and it's too soon to know what drove her to work in the escort business. Some forensic psychologists point to significant differences between runing an escort service and some other types of secret illicit activity, like having an affair with a student.
But forensic psychologists say that people who lead dual lives are often driven by many of the same factors, including easy money, personality disorders and the thrill of illicit and sometimes dangerous activities.
"There's no one profile," said Gregg McCrary, a retired criminal profiler with the FBI. "It's usually a combination of things -- money, emotional needs, the need to have a secret life, the need to be risk taking."
That duality can lead to dangerous consequences. "If the secret life is more rewarding than the normal life, then you may get addicted to the secret life," said forensic psychologist Katherine Ramsland. "The two lives are going to clash one way or the other."
Police Suspect Foul Play
Authorities now say that Birgfeld went by the name "Carrie" when dealing with customers of "Models, Inc.," an escort service that police say she ran.
Until Saturday, authorities in Colorado were treating Birgfeld as a missing person, even suggesting that she may have staged her own disappearance.
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