(Disclaimer: This is entirely based on how our system works and should be taken as 'these are notes on how I do what I do and is not meant to represent how 'most' DID appears in any way'. This is shared mainly as a 'here is how we operate and you can read and take it as food for thought')
Parts keep talking about me and I needed time in the front and had been meaning to ramble on this a bit but just some gatekeeper talk about how I do some of my shit and all for the system.
To start I am the Primary Gatekeeper which is our system just means that I stand at the top of a large structure of gatekeepers hierarchy and that is mostly based on respect from the rest of the system. I am technically only slightly above tied in hierarchy to the gatekeeper of "the other side" but she doesn't work with me and is a child and also tends to work "in mysterious ways" because the other half of the system is structured in "mysterious ways" and thus she keeps an eye on those parts and area for me. It also means that I am basically always at least somewhat co-conscious in the sense I am basically always listening (and because I'm always listening, I am also typically good at choosing not to front even with positive triggers or people calling me out) I largely handle system dynamics and structure since the "lesser" gatekeepers tend to have a handle on memory shit but I also do that if something slips by, but usually it's not my "specialty" beyond "looking information up" and comparing and contrasting questions then deciding what to tell the rest of the system based on what they need to know.
Thanks to the fucking shit ton of gatekeepers around to handle keeping trauma shit where they need to be, I really just get to largely focus on system stability, structure, and coordinating parts with one another and honestly, thats stuff I find a lot of fun thinking and talking about.
Usually that means I sit back and observe and keep a good idea on the "profiles of each part" and where they stand on certain topics, what traumas they are generally attached to, what they state they want, and key personality traits and what not and I use that information to create dynamics and plans for parts to be paired or set up for a dynamic change and what not.
If there is a new part, I keep a note on them and figure out what we are going to do with them - whether they are prone to going dormant again or if they are liekly going to stick, whether we are going to try to incorporate them into the "functional unit" and main fronting set of the system or if we are going to mark them as more of a part that needs to be taken care of and thus - rather than focusing on "finding their place in the system" and finding what responsibilities to give them, we focus on who we can pair to be responsible for them, support them, and help them get to a place where they can function independently.
If there is a part that fused, need to fuse, or has split, I tend to take those parts in and see what that does to the overall system web and how things might adjust.
If there is a part that has grievances with the structure and/or wants a change to be made as they are unhappy with their place or what they are seeing with the system, I will go ahead and handle that grievance and see the best way I could try to remedy and make that fit.
If there is a part that needs a break, I'll provide a temporary dynamics shift and protocol for what parts move where to handle what.
If there is a part that needs more time near the front to processing something or communicate with the fronting crew more, I'll provide a temporary dynamic shift and protocol to make sure they get that.
If a part has a large scale or existential system need to be met, if they have an idea of what might help them, Ill work with them on that; but if not, I'm honestly not that great at helping parts figure what they need out so usually they'd have to go to Lucille, Riku, or XIV for 'therapy' and figure it out then come to me. I'm not very good at being emotionally available.
Overall my job is knowing how to adjust the system in accordance to whatever struggle one part may be going through, whatever changes happen, and whatever life throws at us and to do so, I have to be well in touch with the functions and jobs of each part as well as why they originally split.
There is a lot to managing the system dynamics and connecting parts to work with one another that I really couldn't list here off the top of my head as its very case-by-case, but here's a small list of things I like to keep in mind when figuring out dynamics within the system.
Mainly sharing this in case it helps others in trying to figure out stability in their system.
Innate Synergy / Compatibility / Resonance between Parts - It's not inherently obvious and doesn't always make sense, but as gatekeeper I can generally tell - like a sixth sense - what parts are most compatible for one another and "compatible" is different depending on what we are asking. For fusion, usually it is due to the alters having similar emotional wavelengths, views, experiences, and/or dynamics with the rest of the system that make them compatible. In term of system dynamics, it is often just an innate closeness of the parts; generally this innate connection is like a judgement for how easy it would be to actually get those parts to click (For example, XIV and Riku had negative synergy and compatibility so shit was hard for a while, where as Riku and Lin have a pretty high compatibility so working those two together was easy)
Counterparts and Balance - DID tends to form alters that are extremes and - in our old therapist terms - parts tend to split in ways that balance one another. Instability, system conflict, and unsustainable dynamics tends to happen when too many alters of a similar type tend to have too much say over life or tend to conglomerate together. When setting parts and the system to work with one another, it's good to spread out opposing views and functions with one another as to keep any part from falling into too far extremes and so that each part can keep the other in check. Unfortunately this tends to be inverse with the innate compatibility. Additionally, when considering fusion paths, you need to focus on making sure the parts have good synergy and compatibility, but you also don't want to exacerbate one part's extreme more extreme than is healthy - thus why I don't support the suggestion of XIV fusing with Chunn (XIV had suggested it and I laughed cause Chunn is extremely misanthropic and easily annoyed but functions by his preference to flight over fight; XIV is society-hating and easily annoyed and very aggressive, but actually enjoys people; god forbid we get an uber misanthropic, uber easily annoyed, HYPER aggressive alter)
Consent and Interest - Any part that is not at least interested and onboard is not on the table to play and organize with. If they are too far into trauma space, do not want to work with the system, refuse to work with a specific part, do not want to fuse or whatever, they are off the table. While you theoretically could try to force a plan to happen, most of the time not having enthusiastic consent with system dynamic changes with the parts involved ends up in more instability than it is worth and an increase in persecutor-y behavior within the system. Stability is built upon satisfied and cared for participants - disregard and breed resentment within the system and you'll end up with issues.
Strengths and Weaknesses - This just generally informs what parts are capable of doing and what they struggle with. Beyond just skills and personal outlooks on life, there is important notes on what parts are aware and in contact to other parts and any other unique quirks and traits that come with them. Trying to match alters that have strengths that counteract the other's weaknesses is the goal. (Riku is a hedonophobic, workaholic, perfectionist who is avoidant of trying new things in favor of sticking to what they know and things they know they do well. XIV is a hedonistic, sensory adrenaline seeking revolutionary personality that loves shaking everything up and causing chaos to rebuild shit in his vision. Both are prone to self exploding independently and while they innately didn't work well together, once they got a better synergy going, they perfectly cover one another's major flaws and enables both of their major strengths)
