If someone has multiple personalities, he or she may suffer from dissociative identity disorder, previously known as multiple personality disorder.

People who suffer from dissociative identity disorder commonly experienced severe trauma during childhood, including extreme physical and/or sexual abuse. These painful experiences during childhood usually lead adults to dissociate from situations that are too violent, traumatic, or painful.

Dissociative identity disorder is usually characterized by two or more distinct personalities that control an individual’s behavior. People who suffer from dissociative identity disorder are unable to remember key personal information and can be regarded as forgetful. Also, individuals who suffer from dissociative identity disorder have different memories depending on which personality is being depressed. Each identity may even have a distinct age, sex, race, posture, set of gestures, and accent. The different personalities can be fictitious people and may even be animals. It is now acknowledged that these personalities are not fully mature and represent a disjointed sense of identity. The change between the different personalities is called “switching,” which can happen in a matter of seconds, minutes, or even days.

People who suffer from dissociative identity disorder may also suffer from depression, mood swings, suicidal thoughts, sleep disorders, anxiety, phobias, drug or alcohol abuse, compulsions, eating disorders, and psychotic-like symptoms. According to WebMD, some additional warning signs of dissociative identity disorder include headaches, amnesia, time loss, trances, and out-of-body experiences. Some people who suffer from dissociative identity disorder also experience self-persecution, self-sabotage, and even violence.

If you or a loved one are suffering from dissociative identity disorder or if you would like more information on this condition, please contact Solace Counseling. We can help you or a loved one start on the road to recovery today!