Dissociative identity disorder, commonly referred to as (DID). Is a disorder in
an individuals identity where two or more different identity states control a persons
behavior during different times. This disorder is a controversial topic among
professionals. Many doctors do not except this as a valid disorder, those who do have
produced commodious amounts of literature. Their is no definite cause of (DID) as of yet.
The number of identities can range to as many as one hundred or more, however the
average person has about only ten.
Often when people seek help they are not aware of their own condition. They
can’t remember being under control of a identity state or an alter ego, this makes it hard
to treat the disorder. Even though there is no definite diagnosis for (DID), professionals
link it to stress and traumatic events. When it comes to treating the symptoms of the
disorder doctors aim to focus on relieving the stress factors. Therapists often treat a single
identity at a time, trying to get a consistent response established. Gleaves of the
psychological bulletin said, “those who treat the disorder but don’t believe it’s origins
could be, harmful for the simple fact hey ignore the posttraumatic symptomatology.”
Types of traumatic events and stress that trigger (DID) are things such as,
insufficient childhood nurturing, abuse physically and sexually. One theory is that (DID)
is linked to childhood trauma. However some believe that (DID) is developed by therapist
using suggestible techniques, though this theory is not widely accepted. Another theory is
that the person has put their memories or feelings in their sub conscious and are
experiencing them through alter egos later on in life. Also professionals believe that the
alter egos are a mechanism to help cope with the current stress in their lives.
(DID) is extremely hard not only on the person it affects, but also the...