[Crew]

I have D.I.D. Dissociative Idenity Disorder

which means 2 or more personalities in the same body.

I have a lot of alters so when I was in art class the teacher asks us to draw the body's face. I am unable to draw what the "body's face" looks like. For I do not look at all like my body.

For those thinkers out there in PC Land, I would be interested in knowing what YOU think. Would it be next to impossible to draw the body's face when I am drawing what my face looks like which looks nothing like the body.

Would that make it hard for me. *I do a lot of figurative drawing, so I know how to draw people. I just seem to find it close to impossible to draw the body's face. Does that make sense????
Thanks for your thoughts,
Crew

[unaluna]

This is interesting. I know that's not me in the mirror. I don't know who the hell that is, but I know that's not me. I'm not really sure what *I* look like either, but I know it's not THAT. I think PROBABLY T looks pretty much like he thinks he does, his body and face and all, and other people too, like my friends and all, but I am not mine or me. I am definitely somebody else. Only my mind is me and mine, really. I could probably draw that.

Me and mine - that's new! thanks, crew.

[lil-angel-wings]

wow...im the same with looking in the mirror... who is that ?? i stick my tounge out and it sticks it back... but to draw the bodys face... im an artist, but i dont know how i would do that one...

it makes total sence to me

[amandalouise]

Originally Posted by Crew

I have D.I.D. Dissociative Idenity Disorder

which means 2 or more personalities in the same body.

I have a lot of alters so when I was in art class the teacher asks us to draw the body's face. I am unable to draw what the "body's face" looks like. For I do not look at all like my body.

For those thinkers out there in PC Land, I would be interested in knowing what YOU think. Would it be next to impossible to draw the body's face when I am drawing what my face looks like which looks nothing like the body.

Would that make it hard for me. *I do a lot of figurative drawing, so I know how to draw people. I just seem to find it close to impossible to draw the body's face. Does that make sense????
Thanks for your thoughts,
Crew

if you are the host (core) my suggestion maybe you can try looking in a mirror during a time when you are grounded / fully aware.

if you are an alter there may not be anything you can do about this until you have established co consciousness with the host (core).

that is what I had to do. my alters were so disconnected (little to no co consciousness) that when I was in a dissociated mind what the alters saw was their own images not the body image. my treatment providers said this was pretty much normal and fits with the fact that alters have their own way to be all the way down to what they look like and what they see in a mirror. alters usually see only their own image when looking in a mirror. So when doing something that required knowing what my body image looked like I needed to be fully grounded and aware.

[di meliora]

http://discussingdissociation.wordpr...self-portrait/

[crimsonhaze]

I have to agree with amandalouise. Look at yourself in the mirror so you can decide who it is that's staring back at you. From there maybe you'll be able to identify one of your many faces

[Perna]

Or, the opposite? Since you are not looking into a mirror in class, what you draw is your "interpretation" of your body's face? Artist's right

[purple_fins]

How about...... show some other people- what you know to be photos of "you" and ask them to pick out the one that they think looks most like you-- then paint from THAT photo.
would that help?

fins

[Crew]

I am 22 years post DID and even all together we are unable to do that.
Amada Louise has great ideas

yet I don't have a HOST and yes that was professionally diagnosed as well//

I felt it was interesting
Peace Crew

PS I believe AmadaLouise has "Some" of her/his thoughts however not everyone that i is dx'd DID/MPD would have this problem or do they?

Just a deep thought that we've been struggling with.
Thanks for responding,Crew

[Switch]

Okay, this is weird for me to post but w/e I'll do it anyway.

I'm similar. And yeah, there are others in me that come out, and I know what THEY look like (except one, who despite being really little, seems to agree with what I look like... though still hates my boobs and size because she can't fit the shirts she wants!), but when I look in the mirror I usually get the sense that somethings off.

I can draw myself in one way, but I feel there are two ways I look simultaneously. One is similar to how I am now (slightly punk), but the other is a lot more artsy, with undyed long hair.

Perhaps you could draw everyone, in different spots. One alters eyes, one alters mouth, nose, hair, ext. See how it turns out!

[CluelessBlonde1]

I don't have any experience with DID so please forgive me if my response is ignorant, but one doesn't need to have DID in order to not recognize that face in the mirror. When I look in the mirror these days, I have no idea who that woman is that's staring back at me.

Hugs to you, Crew.

[Switch]

Random story I just remembered: I was at a church service years ago, and the Pastor was talking about how you don't forget things. I don't remember what his point was, likely something about relationships, but he mentioned that "you don't look in a mirror and then forget what you look like 10 seconds later". Even then I was like... You don't? I forget what I look like all the time, even 10 seconds after I looked in a mirror!

[Crew]

Everyone is AWESOME and thanks so much for your thoughts and yes I would love to hear more from any one.

There is NO Wrong here cause I asked your opinion to all. Know what though I find that is interesting even those without DID have that problem like CluelessBlonde1 said and by the way I don't think you are clueless, cluelessBlonde, just my own opinion.

I so thank ya'll for responding to my question and anyone else that wants to add to this , please do share.

It always surprises me how I feel about how dumb I think something is but asked it anyway and then ppl "get" what I am saying...... all ya'll have been so helpful.
times a million = YOU, yes, YOU that are reading this.

Be well and safe, Crew

[Open Eyes]

Well, I had to think about this one and I have drawn cartoon pictures of myself because I always made my greeting cards for family members. But I have never tried to draw a self portrait. And I do like to draw people, especially the faces of people.

One time I was standing next to my sister and she was putting makeup on while she was staring at her image in the mirror. I noticed that in the mirror her eyes looked as though one was a bit higher than the other. When I looked at her normally, she didn't look like that at all.

The reality is that we actually cannot get the acurate picture of ourselves when we look in the mirror. The mirror is always going to show a reverse, for example if you write something down on a piece of paper and hold it up to the mirror the words will reflect backwards instead of the way they are actually written.

So the fact is that we are never going to be able to truely see ourselves the same as others see us. In that alone any picture we do present of ourselves will not be an accurate portrayl.

Open Eyes