This is the best explaination of DID I have found. hope it helps

Dissociative Identity Disorder

Well, hopefully it doesn't apply to you,Dissociative Identity Disorder (D.I.D.)*

But it might. We used to call it Multiple Personality Disorder. Some people think this label applies to Schizophrenia, but because you read this blog, you know the difference.

People who suffer from Schizophrenia may hear voices, but they don't usually have multiple personalities. These are both Axis I disorders, by the way, not personality disorders (Axis II).

And this is not Depersonalization Disorder, either, which is getting some press because Adam Duritz of Counting Crows (a popular rock band) is said to have it. (Read Dr. Deb). Depersonalization Disorder features persistent or recurrent experiences of feeling detached from one's mind or body, as if watching the self as an outside observer.

I first came upon Dissociative Identity Disorder when I met a client who had been a victim of incest, we're talking about 1984. (If you're faint-hearted you may not want to read on. I'm changing all the details for you, so this is total fiction, and it's a quick read, but nevertheless. . .upsetting).

The patient, age 40 at the time, recalled being a child of about six years old laying helpless on a sofa while her father molested her in every way imaginable. She grabbed onto a lace tablecloth that covered an end table and twirled it in her hand while he did this, all the while imagining that she was someone else, another child, complete with alternative personality, looks, parents, name, toys, friends, etc.

She played her fantasy so well in her head that she didn't feel (as much as she might have otherwise) what was happening to her. You can see why she did it, tranced out like that. She came to like this other self, so much in fact, that she often referred to herself as the other girl, used the other's name.

The patient became the other girl, too, had multiple selves. After all, the other girl didn't exist except in her head. And as confusing as this sounds, she could switch off all the time, unconsciously or at will. She experienced reality at different times as two different people.

Since that time I've treated only two others with this disorder who described similar circumstances, one sexual abuse, the other physical abuse. This ability to dissociate, to separate the self or ego, from what is happening in "real" time, is obviously the ego's defense system operating in a most sophisticated fashion.

Sometimes a person develops several personalities, in which case they are called, multiples. One identity suffers, so it helps to have a few who do not. Understudies.

Treatment's remarkable.

Anyway, I thought you'd like to be able to diagnose this for real, just in case you sometimes wonder,

Am I? Is she? Is he?

Here you go. 300.14 Dissociative Identity Disorder

A. The presence of two or more distinct identities or personality states (each with its own relatively enduring pattern of perceiving, relating to, and thinking about the environment and self).

B. At least two of these identities or personality states recurrently take control of the person's behavior.

C. Inability to recall important personal information that is too extensive to be explained by ordinary forgetfulness.

D. The disturbance is not due to the direct physiological effects of a substance (e.g., blackouts or chaotic behavior during Alcohol Intoxication) or a general medical condition (e.g., complex partial seizures). Note: In children, the symptoms are not attributable to imaginary playmates or other fantasy play.

therapydoc

*You can read more about it in the Merck manual. Posted by therapydoc at 2:57 PM

Docs appt

Just had another appointment with my psychologist. Its always exhausting even though all we do is talk for an hour. I feel very still and and 'calm'..but maybe the calm before the storm. Maybe I am waiting for one of the identities to react to what we talked about. I have had a bit of a reaction. Elaine (my Psych) and I talked a bit about the abuse I went through as a child and one of the memories I had of it. It was not easy as I had never told anyone about that memory before. Since then one of the personalities has been making me feel nausious and has been arguing with me. She seems to have settled down now but I really didnt feel like eating much for dinner tonight.
Elaine is amazed at how I am coping with life and that I am so aware of my other personalities and that I can sometimes feel myself dissociating and stop. She says she is reluctant to 'unpack' me too much as she doesnt want to make me less able to function.
The key is healing what we need to without making it worse. I need to have some understanding of how I got this way and gain some ability to cope with my changing alters that can happen so fast and without warning and can affect how I feel both physically and emotionally. I guess ultimately we will know what need to be done as we go along. Once again it is a journey and we cannot know the end until we get there.

Day to day

I was diagnosed with Dissociative Identity Disorder about 3 weeks ago although I have suspected for some time that I had it. I have heard voices all my life but thought it was normal and every one had the same thing. It was not until a few years ago that I realized not every one was like me. I connected with a great group for people who hear voices and from there decided it was time to get help.
My journey begins....trying to understand the madness and confusion that often invades my brain. Each day can be a struggle, but on good days I am happy.
I have a wonderfully supportive husband and friends. Please feel free to take this journey with me.

I am many!

As I stand before you, you see a 42 year old woman, mother of 2, stepmother to 3, and wife. But what you can’t see is who I really am.

You see only the outside, the front we put on for you, the way we survive. The way we function. You see us as one functioning human being, we know us as many. Many, trying to coexist in a body and mind that fights to leave us behind. We speak trying to be heard but you cannot hear us. Our life is not full, we live in part, and some do not live at all. We are shadows that persist even in the dark. She fights to make us silent but we cannot let her go, she is us and we are her.

We are many but you see only a few. Only those who can come forward and be present will show you their thoughts, but some are never known and only mumble quietly in the dark. They are not welcome to come forward, maybe they cannot be controlled. Maybe they are too scared. We cannot say.  

We hold many secrets, too many to tell. Our life is often broken, and we never feel safe, even with those who love us. Life is hard, sometimes too hard for us, so we hide.

We want to be heard but no one can hear us. We want to be seen, but we have only one face. How will you know it is me, if I don’t appear? How can we trust you? How will we know when we are safe? Will the hurting stop and the pain subside?

I am troubled.  When will I be free?

I am many.