i sometimes see people say things like, ânobody has a role in my system. we dont fit into any because weâre more like, âguy who is sadâ and âgirl who is productiveâ.â or even, âi canât be [role] because sometimes im weak/sad/self destructive/etc etcâ
firstly i want to say, this is okay!! donât use roles if you donât want to! make up your own, even!
but i also want to remind everyone that fully formed alters (as in, not fragments) are full, multidimensional people, and people arenât always consistent. weâre also all traumatized, and that shows sometimes no matter who is fronting. protectors can be scared. trauma holders can be happy. persecutors can be kind to their system. the definition of the role doesnât have to be the definition of you as an alter. protectors are just alters who feel protective over, and sometimes physically protect their system. that doesnât mean they canât be scared sometimes, that doesnât mean they automatically can handle a traumatic situation well, that doesnât mean they never feel depressed. same goes for any other role.
also, there absolutely are roles for things that are more complicated too, if you want to use them. some people like being âguy who is sadâ while others like being âtrauma holderâ or âdepression holderâ, even if it might mean the same thing to them. roles donât have rules, theyâre created by us, and what is making you [role] can be anything, depending on how you interpret it. and you can still have one even if you donât feel like you are any of the âcommonâ roles. even if what you do in the system is hyperspecific and uncommon, you can still find/make a role for it. but you donât have to. itâs also just a descriptor.
this is getting long and im not entirely sure this gets my point across, but i have been seeing more and more stuff like this, and i think people shouldnât be scared away by roles just because theyâre so broad and there can be so many. just like nobody should have to identify with roles, nobody should be intimidated or scared away if it might be beneficial or fun for their system.
also if you are looking for roles, thereâs pluralpedia (keep in mind this is an endo friendly website, whether that keeps you away or pulls you in to the website isnât what this is about i just know itâs commonly mentioned). there are also lots of instagram accounts and tumblr blogs who coin (create) roles! youâre bound to find some if you look under the tags or even scroll through a system blog long enough. if anyone coins roles on their blog or knows any other role lists/carrds/docs/etc plss reblog with them!