Split Personality

[Esoterica]

Disassociative identity disorder formally referred to as mulitple personality disorder.   A personal perspective.

The host person disassociates from a previous mental state to another which appears (to others) as a different person.  There are differences such tastes in clothes, and foods, writing styles.  Some are shy and passive and others are outgoing and witty.  Some are older, some are children and some personalities don't believe they're human.   Things to rule out are mood disorders, seizure disorders, this type of thing.  There seem to be stand alone symptoms that are specific to DID in diagnosing DID.  

Stress, abuse, flashbacks, conflict, nightmares and even a personal feeling of being perfectly safe and content in the environment can cause alot of switching.  Lost time and hearing tales from others who've known you for a long time that you have no recollection... are symptoms indicative of multiple personality disorder.   Some people, like a mother or a father, can trigger a switch.  

The tragedy of this disorder is being unaware of the facts of me, us, we.  Being unconscious of the fact that individual realities are disconnected from one another or that others even exist in us/me.  A history of turmoil, upheaval, heartache, broken relationships seem to be a pattern for people who live with DID unaware.

[Metatron]

On the continuum:

There's moods (smooth transistions)-

Then there's moody (roller coaster ride)-

then there's emotionally labile (flips like a switch)-  

then there's the total split (doesn't even know its happening)-

Getting it together is more than just a metaphor.

Learning integrate the various aspects of ourselves is not so easy when situations become overwhelming.

[Vishwas]

We all have the split personality in us, the second personality is like the inner us which does or says what we really want or think, but can't say outside for the fear of ....... (too long to classify all the fears).

The best solution would be to merge them all into one & be truthful to ourself. Something which will cause a lot of troubles, but they are worth it.



BTW, if u meant in the medical terms, there are some rather strange or bizzare things which have happened with ppl who have split personality or multiple personality, & there a lot of things have to be taken in consideration before the truth can be found out.

[spiritalk]

Thats interesting to me Vish:  While I was describing some of the mental exercises my mind can go through in a Spiritual community I was visiting, a friend said I sounded like I had a split personality.  I can be so many things to so many people.  LOL

[suzisco]

Having read through the thread I am struck by how much people still have to learn about Mental health.  its also interesting to see how many diagnosis there are out there.

What i am going to say is that you are all working of your own countries classification of mental health diseases and conditions.

Icd and dsm are not identical and this just emphasises that different countries have different ideas as to what the signs and symptoms are for mental health issues.

for example: icd10 does not feel that borderline personality disorder is a classification to its self and lives within personalities disorder classification.  DSMIV says that borderline personality disorder is a classification all to its self and is taken very seriously in america, whereas in the UK you will be hard pressed to find a consultant who thinks that Borderline personality disorder is a disease (most consultants feel its a cop out and a lazy diagnosticians disease).

So with that in mind, when your giving your idea of what a split personality disorder is remember, the person asking doesn't live in the UK or America and so whilst your defination is right for your country it may not be for other people.

Regards

Suzi

[xo0oxTriiShaxo0ox]

I think split personality is a mental disorder and in some situation can be very dangerous to the person and others. It can be like on one hand that person is a very nice person but on the other, they can be a psycho killer and don't have a clue about it. It's scary, have you guys seen High Tension? it's a good scary movie about split personality.

[Metatron]

Movies love to play into peoples fears.

                           

People who suffer are not all psychopaths. In fact such characters are out liners on the bell curve.

Get a grip on reality and stop splitting off!

[VN Purohit]

Many have this which can be identified by watching & analysing their behaviour in pulic and private for same thing /person.

[swetha]

sometimes the person suffering from it isnt aware of it himself?

[Jewel Cherie]

Hmmm, this topic is very interesting to me, as I have a sister (also in her forties, like me) who has been diagnosed with what the doctors call Bi-polar Personality Disorder, which presented itself after suffering Post-natal Depression initially.
Her symptoms are like those of schizophrenia at times, but massive high and lows in moods occur mainly with delusional thoughts. I am at present not able to support her in this as it affected my health and drained me emotionally for about 8 years until my GP said it was in my best interests I limit contact for my health's sake.
This brings me to the initial question of 'is it really crap or not?'
Whether or not it is real or not I undoubtedly find her illness to be a thoroughly attention-seeking one. She is not happy unless all eyes are on her and everyone is involved with her life dramas.
I have found my sister has used this illness to manipulate, control, and cause conflicts and friction between family members and friends alike often with disastrous results until we all get together to compare stories about she has said, accused us of, etc
Most of the time, things she is supposed to need desperate help for, amount to nothing and are often untrue in the outcome.
I love my sister, but cannot afford to be drained (almost like a vampiring affect) in such an intense way, especially if there is no real threat or danger despite her efforts to convince us all of such.
I can only hope one day, she will find her true self-worth and be better.

[seadrenea]

This brings me to the initial question of 'is it really crap or not?'
..........
I can only hope one day, she will find her true self-worth and be better.

Bi-polar is a serious disorder. It isn't fixable. And as painful as it may be, her only hope is the support of family and friends. Self preservation may have you running for the hills, but she needs you and other family members to help her sort through what is real and what is not. It may seem like manipulation or attempts to draw attention to you and everyone else, but I assure you, her world is very real to her.

My heart goes out to you. It is tough being on this side of the fence. I also have a brother with a severe case. He has been through 7 bad relationships and 2 failed marriages because of his denial. We are trying too!

[amyelizabeth]

is a split personality always obvious though, can you tell just from talking to a person for a while or would you have to know them well and see changes in them or what?

[seadrenea]

Until my brother sought treatment for alcohalism, he wasn't even sure.
It is not very obvious for several reasons. First off, unless you really know someone, how could you know? Sometimes the different "personalities" seem to be just "moods". Like "There she goes off the deep end again!". Which brings us to the second problem, that we just accept them as is.

Nobody, not even his wives, knew my brother had a serious disorder. He was tagged as easily tempered, moody, unreasonable, opinionated, etc. Now that he is on meds, he is better able to cope with the "mood swings". They don't go away, however.

[bluebell10]

here is a poser/question for online  mental health proffessionals.

what would a person be defined as if:

1. they woke up in the morning

2.wondered what personality, or part of a personality , they should be for the day

3.then live that personality for the day

4. be unable to decide which personality they should be

5. to avoid confusion and conflict, decide to be nothing.

6. this nothing being what used to be.

[WITCHYNANNA01]

It's hard for everyone involved if they are bipolar or addicted to something. I know, I have family that is like both.