Common Misconceptions of Dissociative Identity Disorder
Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) is one of the most misunderstood mental health conditions out there, often trapped in a web of misinformation and outdated beliefs. It’s frustrating to see how much defamation surrounds this disorder, especially considering the immense effort by some organizations to undermine its validity, perhaps partly because of their troubling histories. But that only fuels our passion to disseminate accurate, credible information to everyone interested.
For those who may not be familiar with it, let’s briefly break down what DID is. At its core, DID is a dissociative trauma disorder that typically arises from prolonged, severe trauma during early childhood. This early trauma, alongside other factors, interrupts normal psychological development, especially regarding one's identity. Through an adaptive process called dissociation, individuals may develop “differentiated self-states” or alters—distinct parts of the self that can think, act, and feel in vastly different ways. Each of these alters may have their name, age, and personality, and can take control of the body, often leaving the primary personality unaware of the time lost during those shifts. The resulting gaps in memory can stretch from mere moments to days, or even extensive periods of childhood.
These alters serve a crucial purpose: they help the survivor manage immense trauma by keeping those painful memories at bay. However, what once was a protective mechanism can become maladaptive when the individual reaches adulthood or finds safety, leading to real-life challenges. It’s also common for individuals with DID to grapple with symptoms of PTSD, such as flashbacks, nightmares, hypervigilance, and insomnia, alongside other co-occurring disorders.
Given the complexity of DID, we’ve organized our discussion into three engaging parts: myths perpetuated by the public, misconceptions held even by those somewhat familiar with the disorder, and some truly outrageous misunderstandings.
Myth: Dissociative identity disorder isn’t real
Fact: Dissociative identity disorder is a real, diagnosable disorder. Research has confirmedthe existence and validity of dissociative identity disorder. Guides to properly diagnose this disorder are emerging and structured interviews have been found to identify symptoms successfully. Researchers havefound evidenceof dissociative identity disorder around the world using scientifically validated measures. Failure to recognize the existence of dissociative identity disorder prevents individuals with this disorder from receiving beneficial treatment.
What are some of the everyday challenges that people might not realize someone with multiple identities faces?
A blurred sense of your own identity. Severe stress or problems in relationships, work or other important areas of life. Not being able to cope well with emotional or work-related stress. Memory loss, also called amnesia, of certain time periods, events, people and personal information.
The image of dissociative identity disorder in the media has created confusion regarding the symptoms of this disorder
Myth: Dissociative identity disorder is extremely rare.
Fact: Dissociative identity disorder has been found to occur in as many as 1% of the general population. While1%of the population may seem relatively small, dissociative identity disorder prevalenceis much higher than many would believe. Somestudieshave found a diagnosis of dissociative identity disorder in as many as 6% of patients in clinical settings with highly traumatized patients. It is believed that more people may be affected by this disorder that haven’t been diagnosed since dissociative identity disorder can be difficult to identify if only one personality presents to a treatment provider.
Dissociative identity disorder (DID)
People with DID have two or more separate identities. These identities (called “alters”) control their behavior at various times. Each alter has its own personal history, traits, likes and dislikes.
Myth: People with dissociative identity disorder are violent.
Fact: People with dissociative identity disorder are no more violent than the general population. While the idea ofdissociative identity disorder violent altershas frequently been the premise of horror movies, it is not supported by what is known about dissociative identity disorder. There is no link between increased criminal activity and dissociative identity disorder. The false belief that people dissociative identity disorder are violent is dangerous as it causes unnecessary fear further stigmatizing and isolating people who have a seriousmental illness. Not only are people with dissociative identity disorder no more likely to be violent than other people, but they are also more likely to be the victims of violence. Dissociative identity disorder has been traced to childhood trauma. Individuals with this disorder are more likely to be re-traumatized and experience abuse from multiple people throughout their lives.
Mentally removing yourself from a traumatic situation can be a coping mechanism that helps you escape pain in the short term
This coping mechanism can become an issue if it continues to separate you from reality and removes memories of entire periods of time.
Dissociative identity disorder movies, such as 2017’s “Split,” may get some aspects of the disorder correct, but tend to get the majority wrong. Dissociative identity disorder symptoms are exaggerated in the media and in many cases, the symptoms shown are entirely fictional. Many people assume that the symptoms shown on TV and in the movies have at least have some basis in reality. Even if a person takes media’s portrayal with a grain of salt and assumes symptoms are exaggerated, they may still believe many falsehoods about the condition to be true. Switching between states usually does not occur as frequently or dramatically as is portrayed by media; in most cases, states subtly and covertly shift. An additional problem with the media portrayal of dissociative identity disorder is the stigma it creates. The negative stereotypes of the disorder perpetuated by TV and movies may discourage people living with the condition from getting help.