Content

• Steps
• Advice

Dissociated personality disorder (DID), formerly known as a multiple personality disorder, is an identity disorder where a person has at least two distinct personality states. DID is often the result of serious childhood abuse. This illness can be inconvenient and confusing for the sick person and those around them. If you are concerned that you have DID, you can identify it by having a professional diagnose, recognizing your symptoms and warning signs, understanding the basics of DID, and dispelling common misconceptions about dissociative personality disorder.

Steps

Part 1 of 5: Recognize the symptoms

1. 

   
   
   Analyze your sense of self. People with DID have many distinct personality states. These states are aspects of themselves, but are shown separately, during which time the patient may not recall any memories. Different personality states can cause disturbances in a person's sense of self.
   • Notice the "transformation" in your personality. The concept of "transition" refers to a change from one personality / state to another. The personality transformation of the DID person is relatively frequent or sustainable. A DID person can change into a different state from seconds to hours, and the length of time to express personality or alternate status will vary from person to person. Outsiders can sometimes define conversions based on manifestations:
     • Change in tone / voice tone.
     • Blink repeatedly as if adjusting to the light.
     • Fundamental change in attitude or physical state.
     • Change facial expressions or expressions.
     • Change in thinking or speaking without reason or any warning signs.
   • In children alone, imagining the game or playing with you does not indicate a multiple personality disorder.

2. 

   
   
   Recognize extreme changes in emotions and behavior. DID people often have obvious changes in emotions (observable), behavior, consciousness, memories, feelings, thinking (thoughts), and sensory-motor function.
   • DID people can sometimes suddenly completely change the subject or way of thinking. They may also show a lack of concentration over long periods of time, at times paying attention to talking, sometimes not.

3. 

   
   
   Identify memory problems. People with DID often experience serious memory problems, including difficulty recalling everyday events, important personal information or traumatic events.
   • The types of DID-related memory problems are not the same as normal everyday amnesia. Losing your keys or forgetting to remember where you left your car is not a big deal. Whereas DID people often have a gap in their memory, for example, they do not remember the new situation at all.

4. 

   Keep track of the level of depression. You will only be diagnosed with DID if your symptoms are causing significant harm to your social, professional, or other aspects of your daily life.
   • Are the symptoms (different states, problems with memory) causing you a lot of pain?
   • Do you have a lot of trouble at school, work or daily activities because of your symptoms?
   • Are symptoms difficult for your friendships and relationships with others?
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Part 2 of 5: Taking the assessment

1. 

   Consult a therapist. The only sure way to find out if you have DID is with an evaluation by a psychologist. DIDs don't always remember when they go through a certain personality state. Therefore, DID people may fail to recognize their multidimensional states, making self-diagnosis extremely difficult.
   • Don't try to self-diagnose. You must see a psychiatrist to determine if you have DID. Only a therapist or psychiatrist is qualified to diagnose the disease.
   • Find a psychologist or therapist who specializes in DID assessment and treatment.
   • If you are diagnosed with DID, you may consider whether you need medication. Ask a psychiatrist to refer you to a psychiatrist.

2. 

   Eliminate medical problems. DID people sometimes experience memory problems and agitation caused by certain illnesses. It is also important that you be seen by your primary health care provider to rule out other possibilities.
   • You should also rule out the use of stimulants. Dementia caused by drinking or poisoning does not cause DID.
   • Contact a doctor immediately if seizures of any type occur. This is a disease and is not directly related to DID.

3. 

   You need to be patient while receiving specialist support. DID diagnosis takes time. DID people are sometimes misdiagnosed, the main reason is because many DID patients also have other mental health problems such as depression, post-traumatic sstress disorder, eating disorders, and sleep disorders. sleep, panic disorder or substance abuse disorder. The combination of these diseases causes the symptoms of multiple personality disorder to overlap with other disorders. Therefore, the doctor may need more time to follow up with the patient before making an accurate diagnosis.
   • You cannot expect a diagnosis right after your first visit with a mental health professional. The disease assessment process requires many visits.
   • Be sure to tell your doctor that you are worried you have DID. This will make the diagnosis easier, so that your doctor (psychologist or psychiatrist) can ask the right questions and observe your behavior in the right direction.
   • Be honest when describing your experiences. The more information the doctor has, the more accurate the diagnosis will be.
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Part 3 of 5: Recognize the warning signs

1. 

   Watch for other symptoms and warning signs of DID. There are many associated symptoms that a person with DID may exhibit. Although not all are used to diagnose DID, many symptoms are likely to appear and are closely related to the disease.
   • Make a list of all the symptoms you experience. This checklist will help clarify your status. Take this list with you when you visit a therapist for a diagnosis.

2. 

   Pay attention to a history of abuse or abuse. DID is often the result of long years of abuse. Unlike movies like the "Game of Hide and Seek" that depicts disorder that is triggered suddenly by a new traumatic event, DID often comes from chronic abuse. People who experience childhood with long years of emotional, physical, or sexual abuse often develop DID as a coping mechanism for abuse. In general, the abuse is very serious, for example being sexually abused by a caregiver or being abducted and abused for a long time.
   • A single abuse (or some unrelated event) does not cause a multiple personality disorder.
   • Symptoms can start in childhood but go undiagnosed until the person reaches adulthood.

3. 

   Watch for "lost time" and memory loss. The term "lost time" denotes a person suddenly recognizing things around them, and completely forgetting about the new time period (such as the day before or activities that morning). . This phenomenon is closely related to dementia - a condition in which a person loses a certain memory or a series of related memories. Both of these conditions have a strong impact on the patient, causing them to be confused and not aware of their own behavior.
   • Journal about memory problems. If you suddenly wake up and don't know what you did, write it down. Check the date and time and take notes about where you are and the last thing you remember. This can help you identify the types of triggers that lead to dissociation. You can talk to a mental health professional if you feel comfortable.

4. 

   Recognize separation. Separation is a sense of separation from your body, your experiences, your feelings or your memories. Everyone experiences some degree of dissociation (for example, when you have to sit for too long in a boring classroom, and suddenly wake up when you hear the bell ringing and remember nothing. that happened in the past hour or so.). However, people with DID may experience dissociation more often, as if they were "living in a sleepwalk". The person with DID may express that they act as if they are looking at their body from the outside. advertisement

Part 4 of 5: Understanding the basics of DID

1. 

   Learn about specific criteria in the diagnosis of DID. Knowing the standard of diagnosis for DID can help you decide if a psychologist's evaluation is needed to confirm your suspicions. According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Handbook of Mental Disorders, 5th edition (DSM-5), the primary tool used in psychology, there are five criteria that must be met to diagnose a person with DID. All five of these criteria must be verified before making a diagnosis. That is:
   • Have two or more personality states in a person according to cultural and social norms.
   • Have repetitive memory problems, such as having memory gaps about everyday activities, forgetting personal information or traumatic events.
   • Symptoms cause great disturbance in activities (study, work, daily activities, relationships with people).
   • The disturbance is not part of recognized cultural or religious rituals.
   • Symptoms are not caused by substance abuse or illness.

2. 

   Understand that DID is a fairly common disorder. Dissociative personality disorder is often described as a rare mental illness that occurs in the community; a seemingly very rare illness. However, recent studies show that 1-3% of the population actually does, making it a commonplace problem in mental illness. But don't forget that the severity of the disease can vary from person to person.

3. 

   Know that DID is many times higher in women than in men. Be it social conditions or due to the higher risk of childhood abuse, women are three to nine times more likely to get the disease than men. Furthermore, females exhibit more status / personality traits than men, with an average of 15+, compared to 8+ for men. advertisement

Part 5 of 5: Dispel the myths

1. 

   Know that dissociative personality disorder is a real disease. In the past few years, there has been a lot of controversy about the authenticity of DID. However, psychologists and scientists have come to the conclusion that despite misunderstanding, this disease is real.
   • Famous movies such as "The Geek," "The Deathly Hallows," and "Sybil" depict the fictional and extreme versions of DID, making the disease even more confusing and confusing. with many people.
   • DID does not come on as suddenly and clearly as portrayed by movies and television, nor does it have a tendency to be violent or savage.

2. 

   Know that psychologists do not cause false memories in DID patients. Although there are many cases of patients experiencing false memories when inexperienced psychologists ask leading questions or when the patient is in a hypnosis state, DIDs rarely forget everything. abuse they have experienced. Patients often suffer abuse for a long time, so it is almost impossible for them to suppress or contain all memories; they may forget some parts of their memory, but not all of them.
   • An experienced psychologist will know to ask questions that do not cause the patient to create false memories or false statements.
   • A safe way to treat DID is to use therapeutic treatment, which has been shown to improve significantly.

3. 

   Understand that DID is not the same as "ego change". Many people think they have multiple personality problems, but they are actually changing their ego. "Ego changes" is a personality created by a person to act or behave differently from their normal personality. Many DID people are not fully aware of their multiple personality states (due to dementia), while the ego-changing person not only perceives but deliberately tries to create kernels. the second way.
   • Celebrities with changing egos include Eminem / Slim Shady and Beyonce / Sasha.
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Advice

• Having some of the symptoms described above does not mean that you have DID.
• The dissociative personality disorder system can help in childhood when abuse occurs, but becomes problematic when the person is no longer needed, usually as an adult. This is when most people seek treatment to cope with the current disorder in adulthood.