#1 DID Is Rare: This is simply not true, recent studies and statistics point to the fact that DID is present in over 1% of the population.
#2 The Cause Is Unknown: This is very incorrect. Any professional who knows what they’re talking about will tell you that DID is caused by trauma. I’ve seen some professionals make very good points regarding this. Although the criteria in the DSM 5 doesn’t say that trauma is required for diagnosis, it does say that amnesia is required. There are different types of amnesia, and the amnesia that is described in the criteria for DID matches up with the symptoms of “dissociative amnesia”. Dissociative amnesia is caused byyy… you guessed it, trauma. The DSM 5 lists “the inability to recall traumatic events” as a criteria for DA. If DID requires DA, and DA requires trauma… obviously, DID requires trauma. (I’m not a professional by the way, this is information that I’ve gathered from multiple sources, including people who *are* professionals, and people who are in college for psychology.)
#3 DID Switches Are Always Obvious: This is a myth. DID is a “covert” disorder, meaning it’s not supposed to be recognizable. Not by people on the outside, and especially not by the person themself. This is why quite a few people who are professionally diagnosed, don’t get diagnosed until they’re in their late 20s or so. Because you’re not supposed to know that you have this disorder, switching will most likely not be obvious for a lot of people.
#4 DID Isn’t Real: This is literally one of the stupidest things I have ever heard of. If it isn’t real, then it wouldn’t be in a 1,000 page book made by a team of over 150 professionals that took around 8 years to make.
#5 DID Is A Personality Disorder: This is a common mistake, understandably so. DID is often referred to as Multiple Personality Disorder, and that used to be the actual medical term for it. But it is not a personality disorder, although those do very much exist (and there’s quite a lot of them). DID is a dissociative disorder.
#6 People With DID Are Dangerous: This is very untrue. Due to stigma and negative representation, some people think that people with DID are evil, m-rderous, heartless, etc. People with DID are actually no more dangerous than any other human. There’s evidence that people with DID are more common to be a victim (again) rather than be the ones to hurt somebody else.
#7 DID Can Develop At Any Age: Incorrect. DID only develops in early childhood, around anywhere from being born, up to possibly 9 years old. Although the exact age can’t be determined, many professionals will say numbers such as toddler-6, or 6-9, 0-6, and etc. But the general consensus is that DID won’t develop over the age of 9.
