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Originally Posted by agrl58
Hi, I'm new here and was diagnosed with DID back in 2001 by Psychiatrist. I denied everything he said and stuffed everything inside and tried to take care of things on my own for a very long time, not so successfully however and recent medial trauma has resurfaced the DID. I am seeing a T but she is not experienced in DID. Have never worked on my DID so this is pretty new to me even though I have had it most of my life, is what the Psychiatrist informed me back in 2001. Lately I have been having many anxiety attacks, losing time, not remembering things, having flashbacks and being on edge quite a bit as well as moody along with insomnia and hearing voices in my head. I know this all has to do with the DID but I am just so confused. I have done some reading on this subject and just do not understand what alters are, except that they are parts of ones personality. What are their roles? Do they communicate with one another or are they separate and not aware of the others? I am only aware of a few alters that have come out to me already in my head. How do you communicate with them? I am going to have to educate my T on all this because she does not know much about this disorder. Do the alters have to have separate personalities or can they be the same, such as likes, dislikes, tastes, etc? How do you know when an alter is out? Are you aware that your alter is out or are you not present? I know each system is different but I just want some clarity on all this. Thank you.
agirl58
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Im surprised your treatment providers did not already explain everything you are asking about, to you....
short answers yes alternate personalities are parts of the diagnosed persons personality (in other words their memories, emotions, traumatic events that have been dissociated)
dissociative type alters do have their own way of being, their own jobs, purposes and reasons for being created.
some people can communicate with their alters others can not sometimes alters do share information with the one they reside with in and the other alters some do not. it all depends upon how much co consciousness there is.
here in the USA there are new diagnostics and labeling that fit everything you are talking about in your post. you will find this information in the link at the bottom of my post. but in general those that have less than marked (meaning less symptoms of memory loss, more ability to communicate\co consciousness,....) disruption is called OSDD and UDD if diagnosed after may 2013.
how do you communicate with your alters, the same way you always have if you have that ability...in short getting the diagnosis does not change anything other than puts a name on what has already been happening since very early childhood.
that said some people who have spent years and years in therapy learn how to listen and distinguish between their alters and learn how to communicate better with their alters. usually using what ever ways they have already been using for all their lives....example some people who have over the years been able to communicate to a limited extent by thinking/talking inside continue to do so and expand on that.
yes each person with DID has their own ways that work for them. my suggestion is continue to work with your treatment providers and understand that if you are here in the USA treatment providers do not just jump in to hey you have DID lets talk with your alters, lets do this with your alters lets do that with your alters....
the first step in therapy for any mental disorders is working on stabilizing and making sure your present daily life is on track and that you have all the tools needed to keep yourself grounded and not suicidal, not self injuring and all the other stuff.
it is only after someone present day life is stable and on the right track that treatment providers will delve into the deeper stuff like what the alters are, who they are, what trauma's and other hard to handle issues have been dissociated into alters.
given that the diagnosis DID has been around for decades your treatment provider most likely knows what that is and how to best begin working with you. there is no real right or wrong way to work with a person with DID, each person is different and each persons internal system of alters are comprised in a way in which they will just like they have been doing for your whole life let your therapist know what works and what doesnt for you all.
example for some people journaling works for others artwork is the key for others its just talking. your internal system of alters already knows how to deal with all kinds of things.
my suggestion if you want to know more about this directly related to you, you will need to talk with your treatment providers, they will be able to explain to you how and why you were diagnosed and will help you to learn how to communicate with your alters,and what your alters jobs, purposes and reasons for being created are.