Most people with DID don't think of DID as a disorder. In most cases, DID was created in them unconsciously when they were small children as a way of protecting themselves from trauma. Trauma that can vary from an unhealthy environment to physical and sexual abuse.

DID is a kind of escape from overwhelming situations. When things become too much for some people they can become depressed. People with DID can also become depressed but they can also do a kind of involuntary zoning out until situations improve. This can result in us feeling like someone else took over the situation, another part of us, a stronger part, a part that is more able to cope with these types of situations. People with DID zone out for more than a few minutes, it can last days, months, even years. And this can leave us with a feeling of 'not being ourselves'. In the case of years, we can be left with a feeling of awakening from a long sleep. I experienced this and it was quite traumatic in itself and resulted in a breakdown and hospitalisation.

Have you ever experienced a few moments of 'not being yourself' where you have said, "I'm not myself today"? People with DID experience that but in much longer periods of time. Sometimes we realise it's happening and struggle to 'come back' but other times we don't realise it has happened until we are 'back' and left feeling anxious and confused as to what happened while we were 'not ourselves'.

Talking about terms we prefer. I never accepted the term Multiple Personality Disorder (MPD). I think that's why it took so long to be diagnosed. Dissociative Identity Disorder fits my experiences better. As for the resulting depression and anxiety and post traumatic stress that is associated with DID, I prefer the term Dissociative Distress. It doesn’t happen as often as it used to before I had all the information I have now. Knowledge IS power. I cope with DID quite well today but it was a very different story back in my twenties. I didn't know what was going on and it was very frightening.