ATLANTA --- The early reports that Herschel Walker's new book would reveal he has lived with a multiple personality disorder sparked a wave of surprise and even disbelief from many who were close to the former football star.

Family members, including Walker's father and brother, said they had no hint he had the multiple personality disorder. Walker's former University of Georgia coach, Vince Dooley, also was surprised Walker has been found to have what also is called dissociative identity disorder.

Some critics have said Walker just wanted to bring attention to himself. Others said he was just weaving a creative account in the book Breaking Free to make money. The reaction hasn't surprised Walker, who says he also initially was skeptical when told by a doctor that he had DID.

"This is very unknown with people. This is very foreign," Walker said last week. "They don't know about it. Coach Dooley said 'I don't know anything about DID, but if it's a personality that plays football, I like it.' "

Walker said Dooley's assessment was closer to truth than the coach realized. He said Walker the football player was different from Walker the student or Walker the family man.

"That's what you've got, you've got what you look for," Walker said. "I tell people I guarantee you coach Dooley did not want that football player baby-sitting his grandkids. That's a different person."

Walker wrote that his 12 personalities he calls "alters" were created as defense mechanisms, in part because he was bullied as a boy who stuttered and was overweight.

"What helped me to recognize there was such a thing as DID and I may be suffering from this was when the doctor first asked me to go look at my writing from a year ago to a couple of months ago to today, and as I was looking at my writing, I could see the content and style was totally different," he said.

Walker revealed in his book he once played Russian roulette at his kitchen table. He said he pulled the trigger with the gun pointed to his head and in his mouth.

Walker won the 1982 Heisman Trophy and played 15 years in the USFL and NFL. The 46-year-old still lives in Dallas, where he enjoyed his most successful NFL seasons with the Cowboys, and operates a food distribution service with offices in Texas and Savannah.