How can we explain the experience of dissociation? Using an analogy from the superhero movie 'Avengers Assemble', one survivor explains what life is like for her to live with multiple parts of the personality.
When we have dissociative identity disorder, the problem is not always simply that we have dissociated parts of the personality. The problem more often is in the hatred we can feel for these disavowed parts: 'She is the hated child'. How do we heal the trauma of self-rejection and develop compassion for even the most traumatised and alienated parts of ourselves?
Once we understand dissociation as a logical response to overwhelming trauma, it stops being so dramatic and different, and the person suffering dissociation stops being ‘complex’ and ‘bizarre’ too. There is nothing bizarre about dissociative disorders—what is bizarre is how some people can be so badly mistreated that they end up with a dissociative disorder.
Someone who has dissociative identity disorder may have distinct, coherent identities that are able to assume control of their behaviour and thought. Read on to find out more about this poorly-understood phenomenon.
What medications should be used in the treatment of dissociative identity disorder? This fact sheet takes guidance from the ISSTD’s Treatment Guidelines for DID.
How should dissociative identity disorder be treated? What do the guidelines say, and who produces them?
There are many ways to describe dissociation. This article takes a closer look at dissociation as it pertains to dissociative identity disorder and trauma.
Dissociative identity disorder is a creative survival mechanism for coping with overwhelming and chronic childhood trauma.
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