Does this ever happen to you? If so, how do you understand it? I have sometimes found myself suddenly talking in a whisper, I don't know what to make of it.

[clueda]

I think I know what you're talking about. I'm usually not a shy person at all and I'm used to talking in front of many people, etc. In therapy I've noticed how sometimes my voice becomes very, very quiet. So quiet in fact that my T will have to ask me to repeat myself.
I'm not sure I completely understand it (and will think more about it) but I do think it might have something to do with shame...

(Also, I sometimes have trouble speaking at all. Perhaps this is linked to my voice being quiet?)

[nottrustin]

T has said one of the ways she knows I am really struggling is I talk very quietly to the point she has a hard time hearing me. It is pretty common.

[Myrto]

I tend to speak in a much deeper voice in therapy. Like a low and deep voice. My normal voice is not as deep. I noticed because I record my sessions. It's weird. I think it's because I'm being vulnerable.

[junkDNA]

Sometimes I talk childlike in therapy. Sometimes I feel like a child around him. I find it odd but not uncommon

[satsuma]

I think I sometimes feel and sound younger - childlike. When I get upset over something. My T pointed out that when I was young, I wasn't allowed to get upset about things.

My T says that when I'm talking about something painful/something which hurt me I talk like a little girl .. and sometimes I feel like I am a little girl

I'm very soft spoken when I am depressed and struggling which is very unlike me (I can silence a crowd of 500 teenagers with my unmicrophoned voice if need be). My T can always a great deal about my mood level by my voice volume.

[iheartjacques]

I've noticed my voice changes with my emotions. Wouldn't that be a given?

Thanks for your replies. The thing is, I wasn't particularly emotional at the time. I almost felt it was like DID. I don't know where that voice suddenly came from.

Originally Posted by Brown Owl

Thanks for your replies. The thing is, I wasn't particularly emotional at the time. I almost felt it was like DID. I don't know where that voice suddenly came from.

Thats how I feel when it happens to me. It's almost like an alter is telling her story.

Originally Posted by _Mouse

Thats how I feel when it happens to me. It's almost like an alter is telling her story.

Have you discussed it with your T? What does she say about it?

Originally Posted by Brown Owl

Have you discussed it with your T? What does she say about it?

No, sorry I haven't. I think I'm a little shy too.

[kecanoe]

When I first started treatment, I was unaware of having DID. When I would switch to a different part, I would not "hear" that I was talking in a different voice. Whichever part was speaking would think her voice sounded normal-because that was what she always sounded like. After years of treatment, I can sometimes hear a difference in voice but that only came after lots of work.

Many think DID is just the extreme end of a spectrum we are all on and that everyone has part of them that is still a child. Not to say that you are not dissociative, just sharing my experience.

Originally Posted by Brown Owl

Does this ever happen to you? If so, how do you understand it? I have sometimes found myself suddenly talking in a whisper, I don't know what to make of it.

Yes-lots; definitely!

Sometimes I feel like a child personality takes over, not realizing until I'm a bit into it. I agree with kecanoe that it is DID, and that it is common than generally recognized. I think a big element of trauma, PTSD, DID etc is memory storage/processing/retrieval.

Other times it happens when I am letting myself be really vulnerable, like talking to my therapist about strong needs I am experiencing. I think that's common too. Still other times it just happens when I am freezing, feeling dizzy, another type of dissociation.

Sometimes my voice goes down to such a soft whisper, just like you described.

There seems to be various facets of this involving energy/arousal, personality, and defense. Not that they are discreet concepts, but I just wanted to point out there can be different things causing this.

[iheartjacques]

Wouldn't the T comment on this? Or perhaps only a psychiatrist can diagnose this after a few sessions.

I will say. I felt more like I was being real in those moments.
Is like when we first wake up free of ego.
I knew whilst talking quietly that it s coming from a place of truth.

Originally Posted by kecanoe

When I first started treatment, I was unaware of having DID. When I would switch to a different part, I would not "hear" that I was talking in a different voice. Whichever part was speaking would think her voice sounded normal-because that was what she always sounded like. After years of treatment, I can sometimes hear a difference in voice but that only came after lots of work.

Many think DID is just the extreme end of a spectrum we are all on and that everyone has part of them that is still a child. Not to say that you are not dissociative, just sharing my experience.

That makes sense to me - that my experience is somewhere along the spectrum.
Thanks for sharing.

Originally Posted by iheartjacques

Wouldn't the T comment on this? Or perhaps only a psychiatrist can diagnose this after a few sessions.

I have a new T, I don't think she would comment on it as it is so early in our relationship, though it also happened with my last T. My new T is a trauma specialist and it feels more like something she would reflect on than the last one.

[kecanoe]

Originally Posted by Brown Owl

I have a new T, I don't think she would comment on it as it is so early in our relationship, though it also happened with my last T. My new T is a trauma specialist and it feels more like something she would reflect on than the last one.

I would agree. One thing you could try if you are curious, is to ask that "voice" what it would say if it could. Makes for some interesting journaling.

Originally Posted by kecanoe

I would agree. One thing you could try if you are curious, is to ask that "voice" what it would say if it could. Makes for some interesting journaling.

That's a great suggestion. With my new T I'm enjoying being a 'strong confident woman', so far, that little voice would say something a bit different.