Traumagenic or Endogenic?
This is always a divisive discussion within the online plural community. For those who may not be aware, plurality is when there are two or more personalities or alters or headmates within one body. People who experience this tend to call themselves plural or systems. Traumagenic plurality is the concept that the plurality was formed or caused by trauma experiences, generally at a young age (again, there is debate about within what ages plurality can form). Endogenic systems, sometimes referring to themselves as natural systems, are not specifically formed through trauma.
One of the biggest issues that arises is this idea that those claiming to be endogenic are incorrect, may be purposely faking, and are purposely spreading misinformation. On the flip side, endogenic systems often can feel like their existence is being unrightfully attacked by that stance. It can get quite heated and hurtful when people engage in this discourse (or syscourse, as it is colloquially know). But who is in the right?
Here is my personal stance, as someone with DID, a trauma-based disorder causing plurality. While I do personally think many endogenic systems are misguided, I don't think it is helpful to aggressively oppose those who believe they are endogenic. It does not promote growth or learning, it just promotes division and stubbornness, and may hinder people in any potential journey towards healing.
DID and OSDD are trauma based disorders where the general goal of the brain is to compartmentalise the trauma and distance from it to be able to survive and continue living day to day (this is very over simplified but that is the general gist). Because of this compartmentalisation, it is not uncommon for systems to not remember their trauma, which may lead them to conclude that they did not experience trauma. Telling people and stubbornly hunkering down on the stance that all instances of plurality must be traumagenic does not really help those who are not aware of their trauma but are aware of their plurality. Along with that, it can cause systems to become very anxious about the level of trauma they experienced, whether it was enough and whether it actually impacted them enough to cause their plurality. We do not need a trauma Olympics, and we shouldn't be trying to force people to disclose or confront their trauma before they are ready.
Another issue within almost any community these days is the idea that being wrong or being mistaken about your identity is a terrible, unforgivable thing. It absolutely is not. Everybody changes and grows and learns throughout their life. It is okay to think your experiences align with one thing and then find out later that you were mistaken. Do not be afraid to be wrong, do not be afraid to change! We can only do the best we have with the information we have. If your experiences feel like they line up with plurality, great! If it turns out they don't, or you thought they did but as you learnt more or did further self reflection, you found that wasn't true for you, this is also great! It is not a bad thing to get it wrong, because it's all part of the journey towards what's right for you.
There is certainly something to be said for the spread of misinformation within endogenic circles, although misinformation is not exclusive to endogenous circles. It does tend to be prevalent when a group feels ostracised from more traditional opinions and are more opposed to evidenced based sources (I may make another post regarding my thoughts on DID articles and research in the future, because I have more thoughts here). It does become a lot easier to manipulate and spread misinformation in circles who have a less critical mindset. This sort of thing can lead to higher incidences of inappropriate and abusive behaviours. One of the most prominent examples that comes to mind is System Hopping. This is the belief that a member or alter from one system can move or "hop" temporarily to another system, from one physical body to another and back again. This is something we are very strongly against, as it is absolutely not a real phenomenon which can and has been used to inflict abuse on vulnerable people. I don't necessarily have a hard and fast solution for this, because misinformation and mistreatment of vulnerable people is generally a huge problem with no simple solution. I truly do not believe that ostracising these vulnerable individuals further is the solution.
My final note is that I am not a professional therapist or counsellor. I cannot diagnose, and while I have read a fair chunk of the academic papers about DID, I am not involved in that research nor am I an expert. This is just my opinion, as a mildly educated person who experiences DID and has some experience with the online culture of plurality. You are welcome to disagree, or even have a more private discussion with us about anything relating to these things. We will not tolerate anything hateful or disrespectful. This is not a page for active discourse, this is a page for encouraging and supporting systems, and I hope you will respect that.
MWS (Magic Wishes System)
