Dissociative Identity Disorder also known as multiple personality disorder is a mental disorder characterized by at least to distinct and relatively enduring personality states.
A person with dissociative disorders may have problems with :
- Movement
- Sensation
- Seizures
- Periods of memory loss
People who dissociate may feel disconnected from themselves and the world around them. Periods of dissociation can last for a relatively short time (hours or days), or for much longer (weeks/ months)
Many people with a dissociative disorder have had a traumatic event during childhood. They may dissociate and avoid dealing with it as a way of coping with it.
The 3 main types of dissociative disorder:
Dissociative disorders of movement or sensation – include convulsions, paralysis and loss of sensation caused be a communication problem with the brain.
Dissociative amnesia- People will have periods where they cant remeber information about themselves or events in their past life It can be possible for them to forget a learnt talent or skill. Some people with dissociative amnesia find themselves in a strange place without knowing how they got there. They may have travelled there on purpose, or wandered in a confused state. (These blank episodes may last minutes, hours or days. In rare cases they can last months or years.
Dissociative Identity Disorder – Someone diagnosed with dissociative identity disorder may feel uncertain about their identity and who they are. They may also feel the presence of other identities, each with their own names, voices, personal histories and mannerism.
Typical symtoms include:
- Feeling like a stranger to yourself
- Feeling like there are different people within you
- Refferring to yourself as ‘we’
- Behaving out of character
- Writing in different handwriting
Someone with a dissociative disorder may have experienced physical, sexual or emotional abuse during childhood. Some people dissociate after experiencing war, kidnapping, or even an invasice medical procedure.
Treatments:
- Talking therapies, counselling and psychotherapy
- Medication
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