Before I begin with this post I would like to invite people with doubts about DID/OSDD to please leave and not read what follows.
DID/OSDD is a disorder that develops after childhood trauma and is a coping mechanism to help the child deal with trauma. 'Alters' is short for altered state of consciousness and they are alternate states of being. Instead of forming one personality, a child who is experiencing extreme (and often repeated) traumatic events before the age of 10, can develop multiple personalities or identities.
Alters are personal and unique to each DID/OSDD system. Alters can be any race, gender, age, sexual preference, religion and appearance. Alters can also be animals, fictional characters or mythical creatures. The number of alters that a system has is also completely unique. Some have as little as 2 identities, while others have over 100! The number of identities does not affect how valid or challenging the trauma was.
ALTERS ARE NOT DANGEROUS! The stigma of alters being scary or dangerous is supported in the media and Hollywood. Films like, Sybil or Split are examples of this. If not being told that alters are dangerous, we are told that alters are just imagined by a crazy person. This blog is named "diary of a psycho" to shine light on the bad stigma of being seen as crazy or "psycho". Alters are a lot more likely to hurt their host body, rather than hurt others. Remember that this is a coping strategy.
So, meet my alters.......
Jen: My name is Jennifer and I am the host of the system. I am the 'original' and this is my body that I am in. We are pansexual, female, 17 and born in England. My favourite food is chicken sushi but I also love chocolate just as much. I have an amazing boyfriend and we have been together for over a year.
Cassy: Cassy is our protector and 'parent' of the system. She age slides between 19 and 28. Cassy has blonde hair, glasses, green eyes and a perfect smile. Cassy is so caring and helps me deal with stress, school, family issues, uncomfortable situations and bad flashbacks. She talks a lot different to me and has a lighter tone of voice.
Lucas: Lucas is only 13/14 and doesn't really age too much. He has 'olivey' skin, brown fluffy hair with some spikes, hazel eyes and is taller than the body height. Lucas is vegan and loves nature, animal, and the outdoors. Unlike the rest of us, Lucas loves sports and the more healthy lifestyle. His favourite sport is basketball and he is an asexual.
Vicki: Main protector of the system is Vicki. She is only 11, but has strong opinions on pretty much everything and everyone. Vicki doesn't care much for other people inside or out of the system and has caused the most disturbances in my relationships with others. Due to her important role in the system, she has really bad trust issues and to much faith in humanity as a whole. Despite being so young she understands more than most adults and is very mature.
Henry: One of the youngest alters (littles), is Henry and he is only 6 years old. He is very cheeky and obsessed with dinosaurs. Henry loves to draw but is the only one in the system who is left handed. He loves chicken nuggets and ice-cream.
Josh: Josh is a unique alter to our system in that he is very reserved and quiet. We don't know much about Josh and he dent like to talk to anyone. Josh likes video games, tv shows and loud music. He has black shoulder length hair and glasses.
Izzy: Izzy/Isabelle is the most anxious and scared alter of all. She gets overwhelmed easily and holds a lot of trauma from what I can gather. Aside from this she loves to cook and bake as well as tidy around the house. Izzy is 17 and ages with the body. OCD has a major impact on her and is often a tell tale sign of her fronting. She loves pastel and soft colours and regularly dyes her hair.
Zoe: The other young alter of the system is Zoe who is also age 6. She loves to be treated as a princess and be dressed in white, gold, silver and beige dresses as the make her feel like a 'pretty princess'.
Mia: The only persecutor of the system is Mia. She is a very sexual alter and causes a lot of issues with dating and relationships. Mia is very cruel to other alters and especially me. She has beautiful brown hair and tan skin. Mia likes to put me down and remind me of past traumas.
So, they are all my alters. I have 9 in total and we are still learning to trust one another. Hopefully one day they will feel safe enough to make their own posts so that you can meet them more personally. I hope that this was informative and helped you understand this condition a little more. I was a bit dissociated during this post so I apologise for any errors or spelling issues.
Thank you for reading :)
Jen x
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