Day Eleven
#11 - Do you have a favourite model of dissociation (eg. BASK, ToSD, 4D model)? Why? (2026):
I view the trauma and dissociative disorders as one braided highway, where the strands become looser and more frayed the further down the end you go. The edges of each disorder are varied and can be subjective, but each still deserve their own name.
We’re experiencing the same things on different levels. The diagnoses are distinct, but not separate, and theory of treatment is essentially the same. Tailored to the individual system’s needs, but all rooted in a humanistic, integrative process.
The Theory of Structural Dissociation [ToSD] and BASK [Behavior > Affect > Sensory > Knowledge] make a lot of sense to me. I’m not as familiar with the 4D model, but none of these feel at odds with each other.
To me, it feels like separate factions trying to find different explanations for the same thing, and all are on a similar track. Differently-arranged pieces of one larger picture, and they all leave out components the world isn’t ready to talk about yet – the spiritual and metaphysical. The superworldly, if you will.
Not all dissociation is created equal. Primary, secondary, and tertiary dissociation all provide an experience unlike the other, but I can tell you, as an integrated multiple who’s lived with all three, it’s all the same. Just different.
#11.5 - How much control do you have over switches? Do you know of any specific things which cause specific alters to front? (2015):
Controlled switching is not about control, it’s about cooperation.
Each alter, each fragment has their own trigger or set of triggers, and anything can be a trigger. Colors. Songs. Foods. Pictures. Smells. Clothing. Objects. Appliances. Vehicles. Words, numbers, or phrases. A time of day. A location. An activity. A hobby.
Before, switches were at the mercy of internal whims and external triggers. I can now attribute the chronic “running out of time” urgency I’d feel to sensing an oncoming switch, like I was being pushed or hustled out the way.
Some alters do seem to control other alters coming and going, or their actions and behaviors — because they think they are still at the mercy of our abusers — and we work to show them they are allowed to act and think of their own accord.
It took us years to get here, but we can now call on parts in the moment, and can help others step back inside. We can easily switch to have a productive therapy session, and ground ourselves quickly once the hour is over. We can coordinate within to excel without.
Ultimately, a controlled switching environment comes down to co-consciousness, communication, and cooperation. And practice.
