DID/MPD DEFINED IN MY OWN WORDS
(non-professional definition)
Dissociative Disorders
Dissociative Disorders by definition bear witness to sudden alterations in identity, consciousness or behavior. Alterations of consciousness include amnesia. This is experienced by the dissociative person in that they cannot remember traumatic past events in their lives.
What was formerly called Multiple Personality Disorder (MPD) and is now re-classified and referred to as Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) involves alterations in identity. "Normally" integrated identity is split through the traumatic events one has experienced usually at a very young age in life, into two or more independent identities,or fragmented personalities, alters, or fragmented parts within one person.
In the case of DID one's consciousness, behavior, and identity has been split or altered from oneself. So a person with DID/MPD experiences multiple selves.
At times this "multiplicity" of selves, parts, or personalities can be experienced with the "core identity" in a co-conscious way. This is to say there is then in co-consciousness an awareness of self and others inside, a part from self.
I understand that there is much debate among Mental Health Professionals as to what some argue, namely that DID/MPD is an extemely rare disorder. This opinion, or position, however, is not shared by all Mental Health professionals. There is plenty of disagreement as to how to actually define and diagnose DID/MPD.
The shift to the category of DID, as I understand it is an effort to better define, classify, understandand diagnose and treat the many varying degrees to which these alterations in consciousness indeed do exist and are experienced by many more people than was originally thought by most.
It is estimated that MPD as it was defined and as it has been represented in books and movies is rare. It has been speculated that there have actually been only 200 diagnosed and confirmed cases world wide up to 1979. However since 1979, some 5,000 other cases have been verified.
I believe that the disservice of the classification of MPD as opposed to the classification and definition of DID was that the established criteria for MPD was simply too narrowly focused and frankly misunderstood as to its cause, effects, and as to how it was best to treat it.
Whereas with DID not only does the umbrella classification cover what was originally referred to as MPD but it also extends to a wider spectrum of the variable presentations where degrees of dissociation, splitting and fragmentation that are experienced by many, especially the survivors of sexual abuse, ritual abuse, and satanic ritual abuse. No longer is Sybil the rule in terms of defining dissociation itself.
There are also other categories of classifications of dissociation which as I have read include diagnosis of dissociation unspecified, (DDNOS) in which dissociation, fragmentationand splitting are experienced but to a lessor degree than in DID itself.
This brings me even further to what I must remind you is my own opinion based not only on my experiences and the experiences of others I have talked to, but based also on much reading: When I am speaking about dissociation and dissociative disorders it is my opinion that Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) belongs in this discussion and in this classifcation or category. Some professionals do believe and purport that BPD is an axis I form of dissociation in its ownright.
I strongly believe that much of the "suffering" experienced by people diagnosed and labelled as "Borderline" is very similar if not the same as what is experienced by those diagnosed with various forms of dissociative disorders. So it is my contention that BPD is just a "garbage catch-all" type of category that often people get placed in. It is, however, and unfortunately still widely perceived by both the Professional Mental Health Community and by the general public at a large in an extremely negative and stereotyped way, which I believe does many many people not only a great disservice but often times considerable psychological harm as well.
I am an expert at what life is like as the consumer of Mental Health Services. So I have spoken here from the point of view of a person who has experienced much of what I have tried to define in my own words.
A.J. Mahari (soul)
More About What Dissociation Is
"Dissociative Reactions"
"Dissociative reactions consist of the separation of one or more components of the personality system from the rest. This separation begins as an ego defense, as an attempt to isolate something that arouses anxiety, to gain distance from it. But the separation ends up as an ego defect, as a disturbance in object relations."
"Normal Dissociation"
"Mild and temporary dissociation, sometimes hard to distinguish from repression and isolation, is a relatively common normal device used to escape from severe emotional tension and anxiety. Episodes of transient estrangement and depersonalization are often experienced by persons, ...when they feel the first impact of bad news...Everything suddenly looks strange and different; things seem unnatural, distant, indistinct, and foggy...Often the person that he himself is unreal,..."
"Abnormal Dissociation"
" Dissociation becomes abnormal when the once mild or transient expedient becomes too intense, lasts too long or escapes from a person's control. It becomes abnormal whenever it leads to a separation from the surroundings which seriously disturbs object relations.""Definition [of] dissociative reactions are attempts to escape from excessive tension and anxiety, [trauma] by separating off some parts of personality function from the rest.
Dissociation is an attempt to preserve ego integration by reducing ego span, that is by eliminating some ego functions in order to bring emotional tension within manageable limits. The process is a pathological form of the common demand of many a [healthy] person who exclaims, 'One thing at a time!'"
"Object Estrangement"
"In object estrangement the once familiar world of ordinary objects--by which we mean things, persons, places, events and situations--seems to have undergone a disturbing and often indescribable change."
From the book: " Personality Developmentand Psychopathology" by Norman Cameron
A Personal Summary Of What Dissociation Is-Touching Also Upon Issues Defined As Borderline (BPD) Issues
The consequence of this is the impairment of the ego function of "object constancy". When this is related to the people in one's life the invariable consequence is always, among other things, polarity of thoughts, and inconsistency, of affect, or of thoughts, emotions and subsequent behavior. (Incongruence)
Of course, for most people who end up with dissociative issues in their lives this impairment of the ego in terms of object relations, object estrangement and object constancy has its roots in childhood trauma. The first OBJECT that we all experienced was our mother, or primary care-giver. Often the roots of dissociation are formed when this relational experience is abusive and does not meet the needs of the individual. For example, if you, as an infant or young child looking up at what John Bradshawrefers to as the "original face" had mirrored back to from that face, anger, you as an infant or young child have no concept of anger, it is essentially foreign to your ego, and when this happens an infant naturally places the anger outside of him or herself. Thus they literally become beside themselves with anger. This, in and of itself, is a dissociative experience, and one fostered by ego defenses.
If the "orginal face" is bad than the child has mirrored to it, "I must be bad", simply because the "original face" to the infant is his/her world.
In summary, Dissociation takes many forms, and is exibited by different individuals in different ways. It also is felt, experienced, on the inside, and demonstrated to the outside world of each individual to varying degrees of severity, from mild trance-like transitory states, to flashbacks of sexual abuse to partially split off parts of self to full blown DID which is now defined as MPD has been in the past. The existence of at least two or more separate personalities within one individual person.
A.J. Mahari (soul)
I have included below some quoted, professional material that further defines DID/MPD from the standpoint of Mental Health Professionals.
Go To Quoted Definition Of DID/MPD Go To "Multiples Speak Out" Dissociation Front Page Borderline Personality