Dissociative Identity Disorder Multiple Personality Disorder (Dissociative
Identity Disorder) is the existence within a person of two or more distinct
personalities. The different personalities are referred to as “alters”. Alters
may have experienced a distinct personal history, self-image, and identity,
including a separate name, as well as age. At least two of these personalities
recurrently take control of the person’s behavior. There are a few typical types
of alters that they multiple would produce such as a depressed, exhausted host,
a strong, angry protector, a scared, hurt child, a helper, and an internal
persecutor who blames one or more of the alters for the abuse they have endured.
Sometimes patterned or named after the actual abuser. Individuals most likely to
develop MPD share several common factors. They have endured repetitive, and
often life-threatening abuse during a developmental stage of childhood. The type
of abuse can vary or be a combination of physical, extreme emotional, sexual or
Satanic Ritual Abuse. How a multiple creates their own inner families is as
individual as each person. Even though symptoms vary from person to person,
there are some basic consistencies. First one is voices. Multiples do hear
voices, but are merely the personalities within, communicating with one another.
Often times, the MPD is diagnosed as a schizophrenic due to “hear voices,”
but the multiple personality hears the voices inside their head in contrast to
the schizophrenic which hears them from outside of themselves. Often a multiple
before diagnosis will speak of noise or clatter inside making it difficult for
them to concentrate. It is possible for the multiple to hear many distinct and
separate voices, of all ages talking at the same time Another symptom is
physical differences. Each alter within a multiple has their own history,
personalities that are unique to them, body movements, facial expressions, the
way they express verbal communication, voice tone, pitch, and even handwriting
differences. You might encounter a small child who hides her face and speaks in
a childlike voice. Another child within the same system of personalities might
be gregarious and charming. Finally, there is time loss. Time loss is quite
common in the non-conscious multiple. For the non-conscious multiple the time
losses can be devastating. Time loss can occur when something triggers an alter
that the host is unaware of. The non-conscious multiple might find themselves in
a place or talking to someone they don’t even know. The length and duration of
the time loss depends on how the multiple’s system works and if a more dominant
personality can remain in control. There is a bit of time loss on occasion even
for the co-conscious multiple, but usually amounting to only brief periods.
Multiples, as well as those who deal with them, come to recognize different
alters as completely separate people, rather than just different aspects of the
same person. The different personalities usually have different names, ages,
gender, likes and dislikes. Certain alters may have physical or mental abilities
that the others do not possess. Often there is a difference in body language,
speech and mannerisms. Some multiples have an alter that changes the color of
the eyes, while others have been known to have one alter with cancer, diabetes,
etc., while all the other alters remain healthy or have their own ailments.
While most multiples have alters who are very similar to one another, the
difference can be so minute, that at times, even the multiples themselves might
have a difficult time distinguishing the difference.
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