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Dissociative Identity Disorder

What is Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID)?

Previously known as Multiple Personality Disorder (MPD), DID is a disorder that involves [1]: 

  • The existence of two or more distinct identities (or “personality states).
    • Accompanied by changes in behaviour, memory and thinking.
    • Signs and symptoms may be observed by others or reported by the individual.
  • Ongoing gaps in memory about everyday events, personal information and/or past traumatic events.
  • The symptoms caused significant distress or problems in social, occupational or other areas of functioning.

What causes DID?

This condition is commonly caused by and associated with severe trauma or abuse in early childhood. It has been found that as many as 99% of individuals who develop DID have experienced recurring, often life-threatening traumas before the age of 6 [2].

How does DID look in real life?

At the age of eight or nine, children developed identities of DID through the creation of imaginary ‘friends’[3]. By doing so, it allows them to escape when they are under extreme stress or feeling threatened. This becomes a coping mechanism for these children who undergo severe abuse or trauma. This repeated dissociation from reality can result in numerous separate states of consciousness, which therefore become identities and ‘personality states’ of their own.

Risk Factors

Dissociation becomes a disorder when a person relies too heavily on it as a coping mechanism. This will affect their sense of personal history and identity in the long-run. Subsequently, this will present issues in relationships or even day-to-day functioning, especially in relation to stress and relationships. 

Read Dissociation to find out more about the act of dissociation

References:

[1] American Psychiatric Association. (2018). What Are Dissociative Disorders?. Retrieved 16 June 2021, from https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/dissociative-disorders/what-are-dissociative-
disorders

[2] WebMD. (2021). Dissociative Identity Disorder (Multiple Personality Disorder). Retrieved 16 June 2021, from https://www.webmd.com/mental-health/dissociative-identity-disorder-multiple-personality
-disorder

[3] Sidran Institute. (2021). What is a dissociative disorder?. Retrieved 16 June 2021, from https://www.sidran.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/What-is-a-dissociative-disorder.pdf