Understanding Dissociation

Disclaimer; Not the same person as the previous dissociative-misinfo. Read pinned! pfp by crevicedwelling, header by demiiwhiffin

[dissociative-misinfo]

Note: There was a blog before this one under the same name, but they deactivated and I snatched this URL for myself. Sorry if that causes any confusion!

Welcome to dissociative-misinfo!

What is this blog? The purpose of this blog is to help destigmatize and spread awareness on dissociation, dissociative disorders, and complex trauma. I aim to investigate potential misinfo and help give you the tools you need to be able to do your own research on these topics!

Who am I? I'm a diagnosed adult with DID who has recovered to a point of final fusion and remission. Aside from my lived experience, I have an academic background in psychology with a focus on developmental psych. I am not a licensed professional, though, so please do not ask me for medical advice or a diagnosis!

Who can interact? Anyone! You are allowed to be here and engage so long as you do so in good faith and are respectful to me and others. I will block if it's necessary.

Doing your own research? Here's some resources -

How to evaluate sources - please read this

Google Scholar - search scholarly articles

PubMed - search open access scholarly articles

Open Library - archives of books

Internet Archive - archives of the internet

Open Access Button - for getting around paywalls

Unpaywall - for getting around paywalls

A note on terminology... The terms used to talk about dissociation and having multiple identities/selves is vast and varied. In my posts, I mostly refer to the identities/selves inside of one body as 'parts' or 'alters'. The entire collective of parts together is what I call the 'system'. These are my preferred terms for myself -- not everyone uses them! So, if these are not your preferred terms, that is perfectly okay. I hope that my posts can still be useful to you, regardless!

Post Directory

Can minors be diagnosed with dissociative disorders?

Can people actually KNOW that they're dissociative/systems?

Are subsystems real; can alters have their own alters?

Do you have to call your alters 'parts'?

[dissociative-misinfo]

You don't have to call your alters 'parts'.

'Parts' is an incredibly divisive term among people with dissociative identity disorder (DID) and similar experiences. Some people love it, some people hate it, and some people have more complicated feelings on it.

Let me make this simple: the terms you use are up to you. Ideally, they should be ones that make your system feel safe. So, if someone calls you a 'part' and that makes you feel uncomfortable or unsafe, please tell them. A good friend or therapist will respect that.

Calling alters 'parts' is NOT necessary for everyone's recovery. For some people, it can be extremely grounding and helpful! For others, being called 'parts' can actually make them more dissociated and fragmented. It's an entirely subjective matter. Here's what one of the leading experts on DID, Dr. Loewenstein, says (source):

"Clinically, the term 'parts' can be a useful, colloquial, descriptive term for clinicians and patients, although some DID patients respond to this term negatively (e.g., 'Hey, we're important! She says we're just parts!'). The most recent ISSTD Guidelines for DID Treatment (Chu et al., 2011) counsels that, if possible, it is preferable for clinicians to use the DID patient's own term for self-states."

Please continue using the terms that make you feel the safest, whether that be parts, people, alters, headmates, selves, or anything else. If the terms you use are somehow harming you, that's not something that strangers on the Internet can know for sure. It's something that should be worked through with a therapist and your system, at your own pace and free of shame.

[dissociative-misinfo]

What the community calls "Subsystems"

AKA having multiple systems or parts within parts

In this post, we're going to be talking about subsystems! There is a lot of misinfo online over this. Some people doubt the existence of subsystems or they think it's something incredibly rare.

Unfortunately, this misinfo can lead to the harassment of people with this very real experience. Here are a few examples of false claims about subsystems I've seen by doing a quick search: source.

First off, what IS a subsystem?

In complex dissociative disorders like DID, a "subsystem" often refers to alters within a system that are grouped together in a specific way. Commonly (but not always), they are grouped together because they hold onto similar trauma memories. Subsystems can look many different ways, such as appearing like having layers or multiple systems inside of oneself, alters that contain their own alters, or a cluster of parts that act together as one alter.

Subsystems are a real and common experience.

To quote clinical psychologist Howell (2011) from her book, page 57, source:

"The organization of self-states is often imagined in three-dimensional space. The parts are often layered behind one another, with those representing deeper trauma behind deeper layers of identity states (Kluft, 1993, 2000, 2009). Frequently, they are grouped or clustered together (Fine, 1993), for example, with child parts of approximately the same age together. Or, parts may be contained within another part."

Subsystems have been described in various clinical literature. Here are a few examples: source. Trigger warning ⚠ for these examples because most include descriptions of childhood sexual abuse.

It's important to note that the concept of having a system (or subsystems) of parts is not exclusive to complex dissociative disorders. You may also hear about similar experiences with subsystems in other parts-based frameworks, like in other trauma-based conditions, certain treatment practices like IFS, and non-disordered plurality. If you're curious, I encourage you to do your own research into that!

Thanks for reading! If anyone reading this has an experience with subsystems, regardless if you have DID or not, I invite you to share it! You can reply to this post or send an ask. 💚

[dissociative-misinfo]

[🇨🇿] You are doing really important work here, and you're helping me learn more about this disorder. Thank you so much!

Thank YOU for being open to learning more about it! 💚

[dissociative-misinfo]

"If you really had DID, you wouldn't know!"

Says who?!

The idea that people with dissociative identity disorder (DID) can't be aware of their symptoms until they're diagnosed... This is a huge myth about DID and similar experiences; one that has been debunked again and again by experts. Yet it remains! Here are a few examples of this misconception being spread around online: source.

People with DID can be, and often are, aware of their DID symptoms before ever speaking to a clinician.

Where is the proof? Khan (2024) states that, while it's normal for dissociative people to not realize the full extent of their symptoms, trauma, or alters, they can still become aware of any of these things at any point. Source. Dell (2006) actually considers the awareness of alters before diagnosis to be a "common occurrence in DID" which has been widely documented in studies. Multiple diagnostic screening tools inquire about awareness of alters for this reason. Source.

Additionally, alters can have varying degrees of awareness of each other and their symptoms. To quote Howell (2011) from her book, on pages 3-4: Source.

"Different dissociative parts may or may not have knowledge of the affects, behaviors, histories, motives, and thoughts of other parts. How coconscious patients are also varies—that is, the extent to which they have knowledge of and are privy to the thoughts, history, and affairs of the other parts varies. Often, the part of the self that is in executive control is unaware of the thoughts and activities of other parts (often called one-way amnesia). However, this is a tricky topic to try to make clear. For example, coconsciousness may be minimal before beginning psychotherapy for DID but tends to increase considerably in the course of appropriate psychotherapeutic work. Although parts other than the part who is most often in executive control (often called the “host”) are more likely to know of each other and of the host, this is not always the case and is not always the same for different parts of the same patient. Some parts may be unknown by many of the others. The dissociative structure of each patient is different."

Even in the case someone has no memory of their symptoms, they can be made aware through external evidence such as finding purchases or notes that other alters made, police reports confirming traumatic events, someone pointing out their dissociation, etc.

Now let’s talk about something that I feel goes frequently unrecognized: becoming aware of symptoms is often a positive thing! For many people, recognizing their own symptoms is the first step to seeking help for them. As mental health awareness and access to useful information increases, we will likely see an uptick in people with DID developing more awareness of their symptoms and getting help sooner. That’s incredibly positive!

For people with a dissociative disorder: Were you aware of at least some of your symptoms before you learned you had a dissociative disorder?

Yes

No

It's complicated

Not dissociative / See results

Voting ended onNov 11, 2024

Finally, a small note about diagnosis... Diagnosis is its own loaded topic for a different day. However, I want to point out that people diagnosed with DID still had the DID before their diagnosis. The symptoms were still there, whether they were aware of it or not.

Furthermore, not everyone with DID can obtain a diagnosis or even wants one. There are a myriad of potential reasons for that and I encourage you to do your own research on it. These articles can be a good starting point: source, source, source.

Thanks for reading!

[dissociative-misinfo]

Love an anti-misinfo blog based in wanting to build the community up instead of tearing people down because they're having a CDD "wrong". It feels so rare in the current climate and it's just really nice to see.

Thank you for the nice ask, lovely anon! I don't know how active I'll be able to keep this blog since I'm a very busy person IRL...but I hope that it at least helps everyone learn a new thing or two!

[dissociative-misinfo]

are pro-endo plurals/systems able to interact ? Just checking in cuz since we are pro-endo and mixed origins we didn’t want to potentially break a boundary of yours ^.^!

Yes, of course. This is an inclusive space. Welcome! 💚

[dissociative-misinfo]

Can minors be diagnosed with DID?

Yes, they can!

There is a lot of confusion and misinfo on the Internet about how old you have to be in order to be diagnosed with dissociative identity disorder (DID). For years, it has been a common myth that minors can't be diagnosed with DID. I’ve also seen some people claim that you have to be at least 20, or even 40! You can see some examples of this misinfo here: source.

In actuality, DID can be diagnosed at any age. While it's more common for someone with DID to be diagnosed as an adult, it's also possible to be diagnosed as a minor.

What is the proof? The DSM-5-TR (one of the most widely used diagnostic manuals) specifies how to identify DID in children/teens versus in adults: source. Furthermore, there are treatment guidelines specifically for treating minors who are diagnosed with DID. You can find those here: source. Here are also a few books on this topic, too: source, source, source. Be warned that these sources are aimed at clinicians and contain sensitive material that can be triggering to read.

For anyone, I recommend reading this article written by Dr. Muller, a trauma psychologist: source. He briefly describes a 4-year old girl diagnosed with DID. There are very short mentions of abuse, nothing graphic. The article focuses more on the differences in diagnosis & treatment between children with DID and adults with DID. It's a good introduction to this topic!

There are several case studies on minors diagnosed with DID. Due to the graphic nature of these studies, I do not recommend them to everyone. Consider all of these to have a Trigger Warning ⚠ for descriptions of trauma, violence/abuse, and neglect as well as its impacts on young children: source, source, source, source, source, source.

Thanks for reading! If you meet anyone who seems confused about what age DID can be diagnosed at, please feel free to link them to this post!

[conarcoin]

[impunkster-syndrome]

If you create a "anti misinformation" blog I believe you should have to self reflect as to why. Not just "Why do I want to do this" but also these questions:

What counts as misinformation to me? Am I including subjective experiences as misinformation because I do not understand them?

What authority do I have in a community to take this position on myself, or am I speaking over the community I claim to protect? Why do I think I have this authority more than anyone else?

Is the impact of my rhetoric regardless of intention making things unsafe for the community I want to protect? Why?

Do I see any collateral damage (such as cringeposting, indirect mocking of others, harmful vagueposting, people being harassed due to your rhetoric, doxxing, etc) of my rhetoric justified? Why?

Do I think all of a community has to identify and experience things the exact same way regardless of intersection? Why?

Do I engage with logical fallacies? Can I spot them in myself to keep myself from spreading misinformation and arguments with a bad foundation?

How much trust do I put in institutions that have historically harmed the community I want to protect? Do I use the information from those to determine what is true about the community?

Do I have a very rigid understanding of how bigotry is experienced for every intersection and member of the community? What is my approach? Is it intersectional?

Am I able to admit to being wrong and flawed at times publicly due to being raised in a climate that normalizes bigotry and abuse towards others? Am I able to apologize to those my rhetoric hurts, individually and generally? Am I going to take tangible action to stop the harm in the future and limit the impact of past harm? Can I do this without framing myself as a victim or guilting others?

Can I acknowledge my own biases in how I interpret my sources and see how others may interpret it differently? Can I understand how limited studies are for understanding a community?

Can I acknowledge the difference in lateral bigotry and systemic bigotry? Am I able to talk about the group I see as pushing misinformation without powerjackting them, treating them as a hivemind, being a bigot towards them/claiming any bigotry towards them is impossible, or engaging in personal attacks? Does my understanding of bigotry and oppression work as a binary of oppressed victims and privileged oppressors? Do I see lateral bigotry as "punching up?"

How do I engage with criticism of my behavior and rhetoric?

Am I able to acknowledge that my rhetoric is not solely online, even if for me it is? That others will take my rhetoric offline, where it may cause harm and result in abuse of a family member or friend?

Do I use the experience of one oppressed group to silence or police another? Why do I view it as impossible for both to be oppressed?

Is what I see as the correct way to exist prioritizing the opinions of people outside the community I want to protect? Why?

Am I ready to acknowledge that engaging in discourse on how people are allowed to identify in any capacity is inherently a political act and comes from my political views of the world? And those views are highly informed by my own experiences which are not universal?

[akindplace]

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[crevicedwelling]

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