Here are some tips to reduce the headache of living with dissociative identity disorder (DID). Unfortunately, there are no hard and fast rules for ‘dealing’ with it, as what worked well yesterday might not work today and what works for one personality might not work for others. So knowing all that, here are 10 general tips for living with DID on a daily basis. The first thing to remember with all of this is: be flexible.
1. If you drive, get a GPS (Global Positioning System)
Depending on how fragmented it is, which of the alters drives, and what’s going on within the ‘system’ (is it chaotic? calm? does everyone mostly work together?) sometimes the body ends up on the other side of town , or worse yet, halfway there. been (or more) before you know it. Here’s how it works: One minute you’re standing in your kitchen cooking dinner or talking to your partner; *blinks eyes* and the next minute you’re behind the wheel of your car with no CLUE as to where you’re going, why you’re there, or how to get back. Program the GPS for home first thing in the morning. Just last week this [psychogenic fugue] it happened to me, and I ended up near the Canadian border!
2. Put up an internal whiteboard or keep an external notebook.
One of the most important things you can do to try to maintain some kind of conscious continuity between your parts is to make it mandatory for all of you to take notes on some central notebook or internal whiteboard. Because we tend to lose time due to personality change, it is vital that detailed notes are kept. Some people may keep an internal ‘whiteboard’ where alters write notes of important things they have done or committed to (doctor appointments, dates, exams); others carry an external notebook in which they all write. I have been able to make both available even though the whiteboard is neglected.
3. Let the people around you know what to call your most cooperative personalities, just in case.
Sometimes when the system is in chaos or you are having a panic attack, it helps if someone around you you trust can call on a reassuring personality, one who will get things under control for the system. But only do this if you feel comfortable and trust the person; otherwise the ‘shout’ won’t do any good. In fact, I could activate a protector [potentially violent alter].
4. Secure your funds.
Understand that there is more to it than just spending your money and wanting to spend your money. So if you have bills to pay, do them first as soon as you have money. Better yet: have your bills on auto pay or try to pay them in advance so you don’t have as much debt. That way, the bills get paid whether you remember it or not. Make it so that all of your financial responsibilities and life needs are taken care of first, that way you can spend any remaining money and it won’t affect your lifestyle. Set a two-signature requirement on checks if possible, and avoid having an ATM card with you.
5. Have a place for important documents or unexpected documents (traffic tickets, IRS notices, etc.) and make sure everyone in the system knows to see that place when they’re away.
This is in line with trying to stay as close to continuous awareness as possible. Not all alters are considerate or care about cooperating with others; Some are extremely reckless, in fact. Make sure you keep all your documents in one place; here’s a real life example of why. Imagine you are in your car and for whatever reason you are pulled over and find you have outstanding tickets and a warrant for your arrest. That would upset even the nicest of people. Something similar to this happened to me. So, make sure you keep your papers in one place, no matter how horrible they are (I’ve had a few alters hide documents from the rest of us). This is difficult advice to follow, as you will have to get others to agree and not hide things. Be willing to be a mediator.
6. Keep an emergency contact phone number (next of kin) in your purse, wallet, and/or cell phone.
Even people without DID should have this information on hand. However, for those of us with DID, it is also important that we have contact information for our psychiatrist and/or therapist or treatment facility.
7. Establish a safety net for yourself in case of a panic attack or similar emergency.
It is very important to have a support team when you have DID. Your team may include your partner, supportive friends, your therapist, even your child. It’s also important for me to say that it’s not always necessary for any of these people to know that you have DID. People who care about you will help you in any way they can, and most of the time, without asking too many questions. Find those people you can trust and build your safety net from there.
8. Keep all prescription medications in a safe place and keep track of when you take them.
Unfortunately, there are alters who are suicidal and who hate the body in general and hate all other personalities as well. At some point, these alters come out and sometimes damage the body by putting it in dangerous situations, by self-mutilating, or by trying to overdose on drugs. Therefore, it is better to keep the drugs in a place that these alters do not know about. It’s also a very good idea to keep track of when you take your medication. Otherwise, if an alter comes out and doesn’t know they’ve already taken the required dose, that alter can take another dose as well.
9. Become a good actor/actress.
Learn how to ‘play’ when someone approaches you and act like you’re good friends. These people may be strangers to you, but they could be best friends with one of your alters. You just don’t know because you weren’t co-conscious during the interaction with that person. So, become a good actor and/or actress when this happens. Use your judgment with this one, I mean, you know a vine when you see one, right? There is a difference. Just be careful.
10. Be prepared for your child’s alters to perform at Toys-R-Us and other places.
If you have alter kids, be nice to them and have something for them to play with in the house. I learned this the hard way when, while I was at Toys-R-Us, one of my alternate kids came out, grabbed a toy and ran down the aisle with it, free and free from fantasy (at least that’s what I was told). later) . Yes, I am a 42-year-old woman. I don’t have stuffed animals. I don’t even have board games, but the body was running and playing. So now I have some toys at home and I have ‘the talk’ with my alter son before I go to the post office or the grocery store as I got so tired of finding sweet cereals and toys in the shopping cart at checkout. hour.
I hope these tips are useful to you. If you have questions, let me know.
