Fragmented Self: Exploring Multiple Personality Disorder’s Complex Inner World.

Inside the Mind: Understanding the Truth About Multiple Personality Disorder

Fragmented Self: The Dissociative Complex Inner World of Dissociative Identity Disorder.
The multiple personality disorder is a concept that has aroused long interest in the imagination of people with some degree of sensationalism. The truth about this mysterious, detailed mental illness, formerly called Multiple Personality Disorder, now Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID), is truly more subdued and emotional, having its core as trauma. It is not related to the existence of various, different persons in one body, but the deep fracturing of the unitary identity.

Inherent, DID is a serious case of dissociation, a psychological process by which an individual separates himself or herself to his or her thoughts, feelings, memories, identity or sense of self. Mild dissociation is normal (as in daydreaming or going into a trance state, also called zoning out), but a loss of contact with the present in DID is involuntary and chronic, severely damaging the everyday existence of an individual.

The main characteristic of DID is two or more personality states, usually called alters. These alters do not represent different personalities but various aspects of the personality of this person that was not united to form one personality. Every alter can possess its own methods of experiencing the world and getting along to it, own memories, behaviors, thought processes, emotional state, and even physical traits such as the voice, mannerisms, or favorite things. Other alters may be babyish, whereas some are protective, aggressive or reserved.

The travel between these states of identity, which can also be referred to as switching, can either be sudden or gradual, and these transitions can be caused by stress, certain emotions, or just a reminder of the trauma. As an alter comes to power, the person involved usually can have severe amnesia after the events that happened during the same time this alter was in control. This is the time that is lost or missing, so much so it is a hall mark symptom of DID that goes further past the normal forgetfulness. It could involve events that happen on a daily basis, critical personal data and more significantly, traumatizing occurrences.

Reason of  fragmentation-

The massive consensus among mental health workers is that DID directly arises out of long-standing, severe, and repetitive childhood trauma, extreme physical, sexual, or emotional abuse usually being the perpetrator. When a child is confronted with unbearable pain or threat, dissociation becomes a coping mechanism: a way for the mind to escape from the unbearable reality. The developing self bogs down aspects of consciousness, memory, and identity to shield the core personality from the unbearable trauma.

Diagnosis and treatment:

DID can be challenging to diagnose, as many symptoms can be hidden, and many people with DID also have other mental health issues. Diagnosing DID often requires a complete psychiatric evaluation with a clinician trained specifically in dissociation and trauma.

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Treatment –

Treatment for DID is a long-term process and there has not been an agreement on a treatment model, however, most individuals with DID will be treated with psychotherapy, especially trauma informed therapy. The goal of treatment is to assist an individual in fully integrating their fragmented identity states into a whole and complete sense of self. The process involves processing traumatic memories as well as learning coping techniques, emotional coping strategies, and individual alters communicating with one another and cooperating with each other. It may not always be possible to “cure” a person in the sense of getting rid of all alters or not even to want to do so. Treatment to improve symptoms, ability to function in day-to-day situations, and or improve life expectancy.

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