Intro to start the ball rolling...

Howdy.

We just signed up. We've been looking for an online group where we can connect with others living with DID themselves, or a partner/family member with DID.

So, I'll give a little intro first:

There's me, and I'll mostly only refer to myself as C. My twin, who is an alter, is Alex. He and I tend to co-exist on an almost permanent basis. When I was much younger, I didn't realise who Alex was. He was just always around. It wasn't until I was a teen that we first learnt how to transition, and Alex stepped into "the driving seat". From then, we made the joint decision to research what was happening to us, and became aware of our situation for what it really was. Although there are more alters than just Alex, the two of us are the most dominant. Our body is 20 years old.

And now, a question:

How does everyone here deal with their DID? Specifically, what we mean is, do you consider it to be a disorder which needs to be treated so you can go back to a "normal life", or do you accept that this is your life and you have learnt to live with your unique version of life?

From our point of view, we are very much in the second category. Although I might be the Original, I couldn't imagine life without Alex, let alone the loss of everyone else.

How does everyone else feel about it?

Thanks for reading,

C.

I couldn't stand not having my alters. I'd feel so naked and alone. "Normal" is for boring people who don't realize there's more to life than their mundane routine. Even if I was a singleton, I could never be the 9-5 guy. If that's what they call normal, then I'd rather be insane!

whisperthis wrote:How does everyone here deal with their DID? Specifically, what we mean is, do you consider it to be a disorder which needs to be treated so you can go back to a "normal life", or do you accept that this is your life and you have learnt to live with your unique version of life?

Well, our therapist (who is a specialist in the field) has told me specifically that I could not survive without my system. This is fine by me and everyone else here. We could not imagine life without one another. Just the idea of that gives me chills.

-Leigh

I was a bit nervous with my new therapist who right off the bat started talking about integration... I told him that I made a pact with my system that integration was not going to happen unless that personality was ready, willing and understanding. He said that were not going to integrate the personalities forcefully, but do it naturally, by letting them tell their story and byt showing that their function their purpose for protection is no longer a necessity. He said that it will help integrate esp. the fragmented ones, which would be quite helpful.But some of them might be around forever which I think is great because I dont think i could stand being a singleton, and living without my alters, I like them, they're cool people...

Question for C...

C, have you been formally diagnosed by a therapist? I take it that you find your alter to be complimentary to yourself vs. disruptive in anyway... that said, how do your friends and family deal with the duplicity of your personality? Meaning, are your personalities distinct enough that the people in your life can detect them unannounced or do you have to let whomever you might be with know by announcing the alter identity? Curious.

Thanks!

Erik

I don't even see a therapist anymore. I've been with 3 and all of them tried to tell me that I was "mentally ill" and that my alters are not "real". I know they are not, but I like to think of them as real. It comforts me. One of my therapists actually wanted me to eventually get rid of the alters. The others told me I should keep them, but they focused too much on how I am living in an "unreal" world and that I am "ill" and need help. I don't want to be "ill" and I don't want to focus on needing "help" when I feel that there is nothing actually "wrong" with me. Whether my alters bother me or my peers bother me, I have the same problems, don't I? It doesn't matter who or what is affecting me. My alters bother me less than the real people in my life and I need them here to survive! They are my friends and we are like family. My therapists all wanted me to try to seperate them from reality. For example, I was supposed to do a "reality check" every time I came back to my host personality. That was so I could act like I didn't have alters when they weren't around. I was supposed to try and focus on them being figures of my imagination and not real people that I talk to. I like to know that my DID is just in my head, but I don't like to act like it is. I like to act like my buddies are real people. I actually feel much better after I quit therapy. In fact, we all do