Are Alter Personalities Real People? | Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID)
Often those with DID think their different personalities are different people. But, are they really completely different people?
A question I often hear is if alter personalities in those with dissociative identity disorder, or multiple personality disorder, are real people. This is an important question since those with DID may feel like their altered states are completely different people, and those perceiving the individual with DID may also see them as distinct individuals. We are going to be answering this question and drilling down into the idea of different people inhabiting one body.
Dissociation is a coping mechanism, often linked to childhood trauma. It is to protect the mind from the abuse that happened in the past. Additionally, it’s a form of escape from problems in the person’s life as they dissociate and be someone or something else to not have to deal with the problems they are facing. With that being said, DID specifically is alter personalities that form due to childhood abuse where the individual becomes someone else to protect them from trauma at the time it’s happening.
This may sound like alter personalities are different people, but the honest truth is, they are not. Someone with DID is just one person, they are not multiple people. However, to the individual with the disorder, it feels like different people since one state will go dormant and another controls the body. It may also feel like different people because each personality has different likes and dislikes, way of talking, and even eyesight, and so on. The whole premise is that the person with DID thinks they have different personalities because that is a symptom of their disorder. But, it simply is not true.
We must analyze this from two perspectives, a psychological one, and a spiritual one. From a psychological perspective, it simply is impossible for two or more minds to inhabit a single body. It is not the way human beings are designed. However, when trauma is involved, the mind will change in such drastic ways that it can seem like it can do anything. But specifically when it comes to trauma and dissociation, there is a huge connection. Trauma, especially during childhood and when it’s chronic and repetitive, will cause the individual to dissociate to cope with the abuse that’s being done to them. As a young child, who is extremely impressionable, they will develop this skill rapidly and be able to use it to help them cope with traumatic events. They will make up alter personalities, often with different likes and dislikes, ages, appearances, and so on to help them become someone else to cope with the abuse and traumatic events. To them it feels like different people helping them cope, but it’s not. They created them within their mind due to trauma.
Also from the psychological perspective, the people around the individual needed to be looked at as potential alter personalities. For instance, someone who was abused by their mother each day in many horrific ways will often develop protector personalities to help them cope. However, they will also often have another personality that is self-destructive and causes more damage to them. This personality could act and say the things their mother did, almost like the trauma is repeating. The individual has not only created personalities to help them cope with the trauma, but also encapsulated the abuser as a personality. This is because trauma sticks with the person until they are able to let it go and move on. Since they have not yet done this, the abuser and protectors stay, often at war with each other.
Now from a spiritual perspective, things can be a bit more complex. When someone is abused, their vibration lowers, making them more susceptible to negative energies and spirits. This is often why some people view different personalities as demonic possession, since there is some truth to that statement. However, there are also positive forces at work like guardian angels, helping the individual deal with the problem by integrating a part of them into their body. Since trauma can cause a disconnect from the mind, body, and spirit, outside forces that are not of the physical realm will impact the individual to some degree, latching onto them. I have a dedicated video on this topic which I recommend checking out as it goes into much more detail and we’ve only grazed the surface.
Finding this article helpful?
But in conclusion, alter personalities are not different people. From a spiritual perspective there is some truth that they could be, but from a strictly psychological perspective where trauma is a play, they are not different people, but different expressions of the core or host individual. It’s important to understand the difference as treatment can be quite different for each one.
Let me know how this works for you. Have a great day!
Additional Info
As a topic that has been talked about for so long, I am really surprised I didn’t do it sooner. Nevertheless, here it is. Are alters real people? No, they are not. I’ve mentioned this before, but never had a dedicated video to it. I know my perspective will upset some, as they call me ableist and whatever else, but I really do not care about that. Maybe that’s why this topic wasn’t done before now, because I was concerned I’d trigger and upset someone’s feelings. But, that’s really not my concern now since that’s never my intention with any content I make anyway. So, here it is finally after so many years.
About the Author
