Plans

So I'm not sure if this is brought up a lot, but how do you all keep plans together. I'm having issues with plans being made, and not remembering, and like triple booking myself and not being aware of it. I've tried keeping a date book but it always goes missing, and it ends up being a mess. Any help would be great at this point LOL.

Hey there Cam here! We find that phone alerts on vibrate (loud noise can upset us) keeps us on track a lot of the time.
We also have a planner that needs to be in eyesight at all times (that way it can be easier to find, if the next person knows they just have to look in their general vicinity), of course however that doesn't always go to plan, especially when severely dissociated and with the little ones.

Thank you so much for replying, I'm really new to everything and I am seeing someone for dissociation, and my mum suffers from it heavily too and has given me tips. Which are basically the same as everyone elses- put planners in the same spot every time at all times in an easy to see spot so all parties are aware of it- but the planner still somehow manages to get lost and it's annoying. I recently lost an ID because I dissociated for half a day without realizing it, and apparently went to a store which thankfully kept it and e-mailed me about it. It just really feels like the different parts, or whatever this is, aren't invested too much -or at least some parts of me- in success, just what feels good. I'm honeslty just frazzled.

Thanks for sharing, it sounds like a difficult spot for you.

I think it's a real challenge for any human, especially with DID, so I wouldn't be too hard on yourself. It's a challenging topic, and one that will take a lifetime to master....whoever you are!

We've found that a huge wall planner helps. We also have a few calendars dotted about, and use phone alarms and app lists...pretty much have stuff all over the place...as well as white boards to write on. It took some years of practice, but with all of this we can live our daily lives and do what we need to do. It's annoying that not everything is in one neat place, but I guess we all like to write and record in different ways.

My top advice would be to not worry about being silly. Once we realised this we made a set up that really helped. By this I mean post-its everywhere, whiteboards in most rooms, daily notes to each other...so on

Good luck with it all!

Our previous host set up a system that we still use. She didn't know about the DID but she knew she had 'memory problems'.

So, we have a notepad that stays on our desk at all times, which is our weekly todo list. It's divided into days, and we sort of write out our week on there. Work stuff, housework, chores, appointments, pretty much anything and everything goes on ther, and then gets crossed off when its done.

We also have a calendar app on our phone. Previous host created it to focus on things the way she needed, and do reminders and alerts the way she needed. We still use it, it works really well for us, and between it and the notepad, they back each other up.

We also used to have a todo / list app that she created, for long-term stuff, i.e. stuff that wasn't gonna happen in a day or a week, but didn't have a fixed time/day tied to it. She used it a lot but we don't. We kinda let the longterm stuff just float in and out of awareness lol.

I think it's best to figure out a system that works for yourselves. Something you're comfortable using and is easy for you all to work with.

V2

VeronicaCatScratch wrote:So I'm not sure if this is brought up a lot, but how do you all keep plans together. I'm having issues with plans being made, and not remembering, and like triple booking myself and not being aware of it. I've tried keeping a date book but it always goes missing, and it ends up being a mess. Any help would be great at this point LOL.

I have started a "bullet journal". It has been an immense help for me to avoid forgetting things, slotting too many things on the same day/time, etc. EVERYTHING I plan or intend to do gets put in there. Appointments, plans with friends, household chores, etc. EVERYTHING. I have a side column for noting when I "lose time" (generally when an alter takes over and does... whatever it is they do- sometimes one of them has been sweet and done a chore for me ).
I make a page for a week, with the opposing page for notes and a calendar of the month. And I've got a monthly overview page for tracking sleep and various habits/activities I want to keep tabs on.

If you want, I can take a few pics and post a link to them online for you.

A wall planner sounds good our memory is Swiss cheese and if it doesn't get written down it's not getting done.

I'll second the phone apps and Google calendar. My wife's planner is often missing, but not her phone. The online calendar ports to her phone and other computers which helps.

Also Meg handles most of the scheduling.