There arent 1000s of things it could be. Im here looking for answers, because its all so confusing. Its important to know that many of these symptoms can overlap with other mental disorders. I post information, resources, positivity, recovery, and thoughts on dissociation and trauma recovery. The remaining cases rarely manifest detectable identities, except when these patients are in crisis. This website uses cookies to improve your& experience. Transition from one personality to another is referred to as "switching." This usually occurs within seconds to minutes, but can also be gradual, taking hours or days to complete. Sometimes there is clear separation and total amnesia, but other times the lines can become so blurred that it is hard to tell who is who. In some OSDD-1b systems, switching very rarely happens, leaving one host who handles the majority of the system's life. Others might tell you that you sometimes act very differently, almost like different people. The same cannot be said for OSDD. You might have moments where you discover evidence of your memory gaps, such as text messages you dont remember sending or purchases you dont remember deliberating. Ive come to find the youngest one is actually two who are fairly close in age. That would be considered OSDD-1a. I think complex trauma also covers other issues like war and political torture but mostly we use it to think about people whove been abused and neglected as children . (amnesia between parts). Some people with OSDD may prefer the company of people with dissociative identity disorder who keep their parts as much as possible in the background in public situations, but still the lack of distinct parts can be felt to be in some way as if they are getting it wrong. I don't think our main persecutors ever fully fronted and were similarly very angry about this. Whilst someone with dissociative identity disorder might be working towards eventually narrowing the gap between their ANPs and EPs, for someone with OSDD that gap may already be relatively narrow, and paradoxically for many this can lead to more states of crisis as they do not have the well-developed (albeit dissociative) inner resources of people with DID. Wanting to be better but not knowing what was wrong. We often simply say we are a dissociative system and nothing more, because our alters are fully fledged and individual (to the extent we recognize as such), but experience hardly any amnesia aside from large portions of childhood. Your email address will not be published. Many people who have what we call complex trauma have had many years of trauma; mostly were talking about child abuse. Where are my memories? They still have distinct personality states and distress or issues caused by their symptoms. Vote 0 comments There are four presentations of OSDD listed in the DSM-5: In practice, subtype 1 is much more common than the others. In the harsh reality of the state of awareness of dissociative disorders in the UK today, we have to just keep moving in the right direction and not be dispirited at the challenges that still lay ahead. Every time I heard something the first instinct was hide my.phone, which I haven't done in years because I'm not 12 and I haven't been doing against the rules so like, no problem. Being blurry is not always a stressful or upsetting incident, this is more dependent on the individual and situation. OSDD fits a lot better. That's why I'm asking for experiences, I feel like I need a bigger, more closely sourced, base to make up my mind. i was misdiagnosed as psychotic and put into a psychosis treatment program which i did not respond to at all. Surely not. I am aware of some of their stories because they send me nightmares and occasionally send flashbacks if a person or circumstance is familiar to one of them. it quickly developed into them trying to traumatize me as much as possible to "break me" so they could "re-make" me as a person they'd want to have as their host. they can't front and they're very angry about it, which they take out on me pretty much 24/7. Sending awful thoughts and visual thoughts (images) to me (the host). While this disorder is hard to live with, we often lead fulfilling lives. When talking about a personality as a whole a sub system refers to emotional sub systems, or emotional action chains. In some respects, one way of looking at dissociative identity disorder is that it is a way for people to play out or act out their feelings and behaviours in another part of themselves whilst staying at a safe distance from it. i haven't heard of other systems where this is the case and was wondering if anyone else had experiences like this. The Alexandrite System are 25 activists, content creators, and intra-community educators in one body. Dissociative Identity Disorder Information - First Person Plural But I know its more than that. I know that the bibliography says these identities must be caused from severe issues to be considered DID, but could it be that all people have many voices/identities that appear and/or disappear throughout their lifetime (in other words, is having a singular internal monologue an exception, similar to those who have no internal monologue)? You should look into persecutor alters and the reasons they might exist. Maybe I will soon have a few more tools to work with. Just now I saw a comment by an OSDD system describing something similar to the above as a 'non-possessive switch' and would like to know if that's a common way of describing it. Passive influence can be described as intrusions from alters that are not currently prominent in the mind or using the body. This author does not have any more posts. Certainly where private therapy is being sought and there is no need for a definitive statement on some official piece of paper or medical record, this may be the preferable option for a large number of people. We will try to explain our experience with . I feel like the symptoms of these disorders are often misunderstood. We discussed the results but not the diagnosis (I know its mostly for insurance anyway, but I like to do research so I like to know whats going on). System discovery can be scary, its probably thrown your life completely off-balance for the moment, but know that it gets easier. For example, ducks at the pond could be a trigger for a 7 year old alter to push their way to front, or someone calling who is a special friend for one alter in particular might trigger that alter to switch out. OSDD is from the DSM, P-DID is from the ICD. The disorder and symptoms manifest in childhood, always. That includes what causes it, factors that influence its presentation, how alters are created, how switching works, all the current science behind this stuff, etc. All of you have a right to life, a right to be happy, a right to have some say in decisions. I believe my system falls under this category: I (the host) am always fronting, while the other alters can co-front and influence my decisions whenever they please. Vision starts to feel more like looking through a camera with motion blur. Sometimes for a split second, sometimes for hours, sometimes for a day. A full switch is rarely necessary. But an interesting point in this concerns the progress of therapy, which is to re-integrate traumatic memories into mainstream consciousness. The primary symptom of dissociative disorders, of course, is dissociation. Familiar places, objects, and people might suddenly become unfamiliar or detached to you. But many symptoms may appear to be non-trauma-related, such as depression, substance abuse, eating disorders and anxiety. The alters within the system may have contradicting thoughts, preferences, and opinions. Although perhaps the most well-known feature of dissociative identity disorder (DID), switching occurs less often than passive influence or other internal manifestations of dissociated parts. When an electromagnetic coil surrounding the tube is energized, the reeds close, making an electrical contact. In OSDD-1, severe childhood trauma causes different identities, known as alternate states of consciousness (alters) to form. I think writing about the experiences and types of otherwise unspecified DID which is not fully understood will help both professionals and those experiencing this to understand more fully themselves and lead to greater personal understanding , and access to support and help . Maybe not right away, but eventually. Thats all I can say. They were removed from the DSM 5 bc switching systems without amnesia (OSDD-1b) are more common. ), Complex trauma is also known as developmental trauma in that it is trauma that is chronic, pervasive, and it happens early in development from, say, birth to teens. I don't think you always cofronting is a problem, I've heard of it before. But some people do justifiably feel the need for an official diagnosis for a number of reasons, including the pursuit of treatment on the NHS (although a diagnosis of either DID or OSDD is never a guarantee of appropriate therapy); in order to receive better care from the NHS than the pejorative catch-all personality disorder label will elicit; to justify or at least corroborate a claim for welfare benefits; to negotiate appropriate support from an employer; or to determine the pathway of treatment, amongst other reasons. they are both caused by childhood trauma by way of the structural dissociation theory. So if you have DID or OSDD, you will likely heavily dissociate, you'll have alters tied to repeated intense traumas, and even with OSDD-1b it's likely that you'd experience occasional dissociative amnesia/memory issues. Required fields are marked *. We were a system of 13-14 alters and from my perspective there was very limited full switching. So not all information on this website might apply to your situation or be helpful to you; please, use caution. it's when "you" just sort of "become" someone else, but you still feel like yourself. Slow switches can also indicate that the system is heavily dissociated and, A full switch is rarely necessary. But at the same time, shame and embarrassment also run deep, as people with OSDD experience themselves in a semi-not-me state, but feel unable to do anything about it. These intrusions may also cause the fronting alter to gain skills and abilities that they do not usually have (such as public speaking despite normally suffering from, Both full switches and "partial intrusions" of alters are described in more detail by Dell in, "I have one particular child alter who has a very good sense of humour, and part of his role is to help us experience enjoyment and lift our mood. A voice saying yes there is, yes there is. Press J to jump to the feed. What will being a person be like? However, this is not our typical experience as an OSDD system. I appreciate knowing that the treatments are pretty much the same and a hit or miss either way. There are as many Plural experiences, as there are Plurals. In terms of other differences, it seems that as a general rule the degree of the trauma or attachment difficulties leading to OSDD will be less severe than people who are diagnosed with dissociative identity disorder, especially polyfragmented dissociative identity disorder. Horrible beyond belief, yet necessary. DDNOS is seen by many people as a not yet or a not quite version of dissociative identity disorder and although it is supposed to be a residual category and only given to a few people, in fact the vast majority of people diagnosed with a dissociative disorder fall into this category. Welcome to /r/AskDID, the sister subreddit of /r/DID which focuses on those that wish to ask questions about Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID), Other Specified Dissociative Disorder (OSDD) etc. What are things in your system that everyone has to abide by? Press J to jump to the feed. On the other hand, a switch that is forced is not wanted by one of the alters involved. I don't have OSDD/DID, but on two occasions where I was in an unsafe and triggering situation, the first time I turned into this older masculine and calm dude, the second (yesterday ago heh) into this caring 40yo+ female motherly figure. But there are a range of difficulties in gaining a diagnosis at all, not least the fact that very few NHS staff are trained to spot dissociative symptoms, let alone administer the gold standard, the SCID-D assessment tool. The most common metaphors that tend to get used for what it feels like to switch are very DID-centric. Hi, for the longest time, I thought that I had OSDD-1b, and its come to my attention that might not be true. Thanks to this article, I can see how I overlap into both criteria which makes sense to not have an official diagnosis. I too was committed to a psychosis ward and schizophrenia was ruled out. Not only was I meeting people with multiplicity; these individuals entering my life were normal human beings with much to offer. But other people with OSDD do indeed have less obviously distinct parts of the personality and report feeling perplexed when they read about people with DID talking about their 4-year-old part called Alice or their 6-year-old boy part called Ricky. I agree DID in its entirety gets more attention as complete fragmentation caused by trauma . In order to receive a diagnosis for dissociative identity disorder, you must display Recurrent gaps in the recall of everyday events, important personal information, and/or traumatic events that are inconsistent with ordinary forgetting. In clinical circles, it is often taken to mean amnesia between parts, so that if the apparently normal personality (ANP) is fully co-consciousness for what other parts are saying and doing (especially the emotional personalities or EPs) then that is not full DID. Also, if you can give me some more info on what this type of switching is, in what types of systems it's the most common, etc, it would be super useful! Hope this helps <3, Also: possessive switching is when you genuinely feel like someone else is in the body instead of you (so the consciousness stays with the alter that switched out), meanwhile non-possessive switching is when you feel like you become said alter (so the consciousness stays with the body). This is rarer. You might lose a lot of details or misremember the important bits. While this disorder is hard to live with, we often lead fulfilling lives. Switching Headaches Posted On May 26, 2018 A somewhat common problem for people living with dissociative identity disorder is switching headaches. so i guess i don't really have the space to care about their reasons for their behavior when i'm constantly feeling its consequences. (DNI: If you have been blocked, please do not interact. They emerged as fairly cognitively undeveloped (lacking pre-existing patterns of cognition) and made an active choice to become persecutors very early into their development because they wanted to make me into a better person, and thought that would be an effective way to do it. Most cases of DDNOS are partial forms of DID which lack either clear switching of executive control, full amnesia barriers between identity states, or clear differentiation and structure of identity states. Press J to jump to the feed. Google with appropriate quotes. But when I am in the dark side it is like the most whole part, yet I function in the light part. It can be pretty severe., Kathy Steele, a leading expert on dissociation & trauma, explaining what complex trauma is. I hope one day your plurality is something that you can take pride in. I didnt fight it because there was good reason for it, its just sad to be triggered so drastically. But mostly the books above ^. Some feel uncomfortable being lumped together with people with DID, as so often the conversation or the behaviour can revolve around the autonomy and distinctness of parts. Sandra in our system has described it as I dont stop fronting, but who that I is shifts. You might feel afraid or shamed of the possibility of others finding out your thoughts. Thank you. People with DDNOS were reported to have a 13% reduction in hippocampal volume compared to healthy controls, whereas people with DID showed a reduction in the region of 25% (Ehling, Nijenhuis & Krikke, 2003). I couldnt believe what I was saying and how I was behaving.). Please, feel free to leave comments or feedback in the comment section. Then we found out about OSDD, and suddenly everything made sense. These alters protect the main identity from awareness of trauma. It can be highly disorienting for those involved and can interfere with memory formation, concentration, and remaining covert (that is, not appearing visibly mentally ill to others). For example, the host may ask a more academic alter to help them to take a standardized test on a certain date. (PLEASE dont use this list to diagnose yourself. It does cause distress, but that does not indicate what type of help I should be looking for. It is all very strange. If this is causing distress or difficulty for you, seek out a professional who specializes in DID to help you sort out whats going on. Feeling those feelings, thinking the thoughts of that child and feeling his body as it had been used. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience. Others can try to contribute by taking over body parts to write messages etc. You may find that sometimes you cant even remember more recent things, such as what you did today or what the last conversation you had was about. (And if parts are integrating or fusing during therapy, at what point should you likewise shift along the spectrum and change your diagnostic classification?) The outputs are commonly 24vdc but they could be other voltages or relay contact-based as well. Because I only struggle to remember when recollecting, and there is plenty of downtime between events in my brain that I just dont remember at all, and my recollection is out of order. You might have moments where you feel like you are in a dream or a fog. In general, you are going to more easily be able to orient new system members on your current life situation and possibly be able to communicate with them better than DID systems. But the difficulty remains, especially as there is such a dearth of writing and literature from the perspective of people with OSDD, who possibly feel that their viewpoint is not worth expressing, again because it is not proper dissociative identity disorder.. So one option, favoured by many people that I have been in contact with, is to merge the categories and to count the condition as DID/OSDD and leave it at that. As always, we encourage you and your System to follow your own truth, to soul search, to find words, labels, visions, theories and communities that arent only within your values but also match your lived experience and/or long term goals, so that you might find belonging and dont have to try to fit in. Many people assume that DID and OSDD are such extreme rollercoaster disorders when thats usually not the case for any mental disorder! For others, it may be validating to recognise that the distinguishing line between OSDD and DID is largely arbitrary, and to subsume the diagnosis of dissociative identity disorder into their own self-definition of being a dissociative survivor. And that gives rise to the difficulties that many people with OSDD have reported, of feeling that they dont belong anywhere. Finally, triggered switches are not desired by any of the alters involved and occur when a stimulus has been registered that forces out an alter who can better handle it. You might experience other conditions without any medical cause, such as pseudoseizures. Thanks. Please give this a read! In the meantime, we will be continuing to push the idea that dissociation is truly a spectrum disorder! It allowed us to finally explore our system on our own terms without worrying about any sorts of theoretical rules about how we should be. Empathize with them. My current therapist isn't even trauma-informed, and the ones that are, here at least, are either mad expensive, don't work with dissociative disorders, or don't exist. I am just getting to understand myself and my actions diverse according to the situation I am in . I didn't start getting dissociation issues until I started exploring my trauma, what if it's just my brain creating more overt coping mechanisms and me misinterpreting them? People with OSDD need to understand that their experiences are valid and real and not inferior in any way to people with dissociative identity disorder. Create an account to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations. [1] Along with Unspecified Dissociative Disorder it replaces the diagnosis of Dissociative Disorder Not Otherwise Specified (DDNOS). It should be kept in mind that some systems use the term trigger to refer to both positive and negative stimuli that can catch an alter's attention. Information, resources, positivity, recovery, and thoughts on dissociation & trauma, explaining what complex have. First Person Plural but i know its more than that but i know its more than that many assume. Your browsing experience made sense on me pretty much 24/7 uses cookies to improve your experience... Happy, a leading expert on dissociation & trauma, explaining what complex have! Is shifts you that you can take pride in and suddenly everything made sense which they take on. Alters involved feel afraid or shamed of the possibility of others finding your! Distress, but that does not indicate what type of help i should be looking for answers, because all! Concerns the progress of therapy, which they take out on me much! Of others finding out your thoughts they 're very angry about it, its just sad to be triggered drastically! 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Think our main persecutors ever fully fronted and were similarly very angry about it, just... Work with as a whole a sub system refers to emotional sub systems, or action... As it had been used a few more tools to work with of course, is dissociation complex trauma had! Mostly were talking about child abuse how i overlap into both criteria makes. Starts to feel more like looking through a camera with motion blur ever fully fronted and similarly! Fully fronted and were similarly very angry about it, its just sad to be non-trauma-related, as. To feel more like looking through a camera with motion blur when these patients are in crisis that many assume. On dissociation and trauma recovery his body as it had been used out. Yes there is, yes there is, we often lead fulfilling.. One body they could be other voltages or relay contact-based as well details or misremember important! Content creators, and opinions or misremember the important bits appear to be better but not what... 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