Does anyone know a person with multiple personality disorder?

Hi, just curious about what it is, what it may be like or what you may go through. I'm trying to be gentle but i'm finding this difficult for some reason, i don't know why. Is it apropriate to ask questions like this?

Jay,

I'm gonna be as gentle here as I can be.....erm...have you looked in the Dissociative Disorders Forum here on the boards?? There are many ppl posting who have the dx of Dissociative Identity Disorder (previously called Multiple Personality Disorder in older versions of DSM) and who talk about all aspects of living with the dx from family issues to health issues and so on.

We're unique for sure and I hope if you do choose to read the forum to read carefully so that some of your questions (what it is, what it may be like, what one may go through) may be answered in the painfully honest soul bearing posts. If you have very specific questions you could politely ask if anyone would be interested in helping you out by answering.

If you do read there you'll see in a thread I started how I feel about being questioned merely to satisfy another's curiosity.......tread gently sweetie.

jay, yes, it's appropriate. ty for being gentle. please remain that way. multiple personality disorder is now known as dissociative identity disorder. there are very good sites online that could help you with your understanding. also, as zh said, you can check out the dissociative forum. it will be quite revealing to you i'm sure.

what specifically do you feel you need to know? first, may i ask why? do you suspect someone close to you of having DID?

thanks for asking gently and with tact. i'll answer what i can, but would like to you check out some online sites for complete dx information...that's the place to start i think.

kd

I agree with zh and kimmydawn, go gently, as some of us have alters for protection
Reah & Angie

ZH, KD, NTM -- hello friends.

I most certainly read and respected ZH's thread about being a DID experiment. I don't know what Jay's motivation for learning more about DID is, but I will say for myself that me being involved in that forum is less about "curiosity" than about wanting to support those who are misunderstood. I felt very misunderstood while growing up, and I remember the kind people who didn't judge me, tried to understand and hear me out, and who showed compassion. As an adult, I am committed to doing the same thing, but with regard to my friends here with DID, I feel I should get educated so that I don't say something triggering.

Anyway, I hope that is a valid reason for asking questions about DID. Not so much out of 'curiosity' but so that I can be a better friend to a sector here who might not get as much help as in the other forums.

Love,
LMo

Hey sorry it's been so long; i had been sure i posted a response a few days ago but it doesn't seem to be their anymore. I must say though that my motives are stictly curiousity and that's about as far as it goes. I heard about the condition in intro psychology in high school and saw movies about it that were holliwood all the way. They weren't documentries or scientific studies just fiction movies. But it sounds like a very important and interesting thing to study about as far as psychology goes. This is the only reason i ask, but i won't ask any more questions like this on the public forum. However if anyone is interested in talking through messaging feel free, i'm always free to listen. thanks J>L

JayL, most of the time we like to encourage knowledge, don't pay much attention to the movies they tend to over glamourize DID, we are nothing like Sybil
Angie

i so appreciate this thread and its responses. i never hesitate to answer questions about my experience with DID...what i understand of it myself.

LMo and jay, if you ever want to pm with questions as to help with understanding of friends, speaking with insiders, understanding more how it works, i can answer from my end. i'm DID, but nothing like the movie sybil. i was a legal asst for five years, and have held many difficult positions, and no one has ever known. my life seems pretty normal on the outside

i never hesitate to answer questions, because i think the general information and movies, and books out there are HIGHLY glamorized or embellished even, to be made more interesting...giving the general public the wrong idea of what the "average" experience is with this DID'er and many that i've associated with.

i mean it, please feel free to pm me. i appreciate the desire to learn and show care for those of us who live with DID.

Thanks for the offer, KD. Maybe it would be helpful to post a FAQ or what people with DID would like us 'singletons' to know about it. I feel pretty comfortable with what to expect now that I've gotten to know all of you, but for others like Jay, it might be useful to dispel the Hollywood-type rumors with the reality that people with DID function as most other people do... but have some additional functionality that has helped them through difficult times (can you tell I'm in the software business? ).

Okay professor catnip breathe, we like to help all our friends so if one of us gets stuck out an can't get back you could help us get grounded, would you do that some time if we needed it? Angie said it ok to call you this
Laura

Hi Laura -- this is Professor Catnip Breath speaking!

I don't know if I can really help ANYBODY but it doesn't mean I won't try! Especially for my friends Angie and the girls! PM me anytime -- we can meet in Chat if you want!

Love,