I see a lot of people on the Internet who make out that #DissociativeIdentityDisorder is just an alter syndrome, where your brain makes these different characters and you become them at random intervals. I’m here to tell you that that’s not even the half of it.
1) Switching headaches
You can get absolutely the worst headaches you’ve ever experienced when you switch from alter-to-alter. These can be mistaken for your average #Headache , a #Migraine , or even a cluster #Headache . They can be that bad.
2) Amnesia
You have amnesia barriers between alters. Generally speaking, unless your communication is on point, if you switch with another alter, you will lose time, that alter will be confused and have no idea what, when, where, how…
3) Depersonalisation/Derealisation
You know that feeling where you think that everyone around you is a robot, you aren’t real and the world around you is a made-up simulation and everything in it is non-existent? No? Look up DPDR and you’ll understand how scary that is.
4) Identity Confusion
You forget who you are. You have periods where you don’t even know who you are. Imagine having a constant identity crisis. In fact, as I write this, I have no idea whether I’m Alex or Sapphire right now.
5) #Depression
Ah yes, the big #Depression . Considering that DID is a #Trauma -based disorder, you’re bound to feel a little down about life. I’m down-playing it a lot here. A huge percentage of people with DID have attempted suicide, self-harm etc in their lives.
6) cPTSD
Again, DID is a #Trauma -based disorder. PTSD is common, cPTSD, or complex PTSD, is a little less common. cPTSD forms after repeated or prolonged #Trauma . Think regular PTSD and amplify every symptom by 100, then you might be close to cPTSD.
7) Lightheadedness
What causes this? I don’t actually know. But I do know that when I’m feeling like I’m about to switch out, I get lightheaded. I don’t lose consciousness in the traditional way of #Fainting , but I lose control of my body, and when I come back, the lightheadedness returns until I can ground myself into real life once again.
8) Seizures/Jerks
I’ll be honest, I don’t know a great deal about this. Look up non-epileptic seizures and you’ll see what I mean.
9) Dissociation
Yes, even though it’s literally in the name of the disorder, you rarely see dissociation portrayed in the media, on social media etc. Imagine you’ve been on autopilot and gone from one place to another and gone “whoa, how did I end up here?” Once again, amplify that, you may have a dissociative disorder.
10) Disordered attachments
Bear in mind that different alters may have different feelings towards different people. For example, in my system, one of my alters sees a man we know as very attractive, while the majority of the system is asexual and many are aromantic. This same man is an abuser to some alters.