Trying to figure out if I have this or some other issue...

Yeah, honestly, I'm the last person who should be giving out advice. Particularly about nice ways to get them here. When I think about it, there's alot of cussing, name-calling, and chaos in general, so maybe I ought to keep it to myself.

I'm afraid I don't have any tips on how to get them to talk...for me, they can just refuse to answer the question and I cant do anything about it, but hopefully some people here will have some advice.

Best of luck to you:)

canishumanus wrote: I've been considering starting a journal again, and seeing how that goes. Anyone had success with this? I've heard people recommend it but I feel like re-reading messages from my alters still kind of freaks me out.

It gets less weird, trust me. And, no offense meant, but what's so weird about it? I mean, I can understand the re-reading part and being like "I didn't write this", but remember, a PART of YOU wrote it, so it's not like some stranger came in and wrote in your diary. It might feel that way, but just remember that the parts of you aren't strangers. (And yes, I've had success- great success actually, with the journal thing). Another thing you can try if writing's not your thing (we type faster than writing), keep documents on a computer or laptop if you feel comfortable with it (or on a USB file or something). Type to your alters in word documents- you might be surprised at someone answering. For me, it's easier than writing, especially since if someone wants to answer, they don't have to change anything if they don't want to. They just enter space between my typing and their's, (or not, if they're rushing), and then continue typing away. I find it's a lot like zoning out, having an alter type "through" me- I'm not always sure what I'm typing, and I don't know what I want to type, but I'm typing and I'm focused solely on typing/hitting the right keys and such.

confused109 wrote:I'm afraid I don't have any tips on how to get them to talk...for me, they can just refuse to answer the question and I cant do anything about it, but hopefully some people here will have some advice.

You can try writing to them, continuing to attempt talking to them (just because they refuse to answer doesn't mean they won't get tired of hearing you if you don't let them ignore you ), heck, you can even try calling them out. There's no reason for cussing and yelling, though. Keep it respectful. Otherwise, they won't care or won't want to come out. Especially if there's little alters. Yelling, anger, and cussing can scare them, and they won't ever come out. Just let them know that you're aware of them, they aren't hiding from you anymore, and you'd like to get to know them more. Let them know that they're safe, that you're safe, and that your environment's safe (as hopefully it is). The whole point of a DID system is to hide, so it can be a fairly new concept for it to be "ok" to be known about and such. Also, alters often need to realize that they're safe, and they need to feel safe, before braving coming "out". So before you try to contact them, make sure YOU are as comfortable, relaxed, and feel as safe as possible. The better you feel, the better your alters might feel. And be patient, both with them and yourself. No matter how ready you feel, it can be hard to accept an alter's existence (I'm the one who usually helps others on here deal with denial, yet I found myself dealing with it recently and having a hard time accepting one alter's existence). And it can be equally or more hard for alters to finally come forward and let themselves be known.

Best of luck to both of you, and hello and welcome! I hope this site proves helpful to you both. It's definitely a safe, supportive place, so feel free to post anything you're comfortable with.