Term

Dissociation Made Simple by Jamie Marich. Chapter “Glossary of Terms”

Community contribution - how do community members experience this? What are their perspectives on this topic?

Alter

“From the Freudian term alter ego; refers to a part perceiving themselves as a separate entity, often taking control of the system; can show up in Dissociative Identity Disorder and certain forms of Otherwise Specified Dissociative Disorder.”

Alters can be extremely varied in terms of presentation. Most people think about them as “another person/identity” but it’s actually a lot more complex than that. Sometimes the final call on who or what counts as an alter depends on the individual. Alters may not be extremely differentiated from other parts of the system (ie. may have the same name, same manner of speech, same habits), etc. but there is enough of a dissociative barrier or distinction to view them as separate parts

Amnesia

“Blocking out time or memory/recollection of something having occurred or a part even existing; can present in various degrees within dissociative disorders,”

There are a few types of amnesia that are commonly experienced. 1) Blackout amnesia is a complete loss of time during a dissociative switch or symptom, such as reacting to trauma. 2) Grey-out amnesia is where the memory is difficult to access and hazy instead of a complete lapse of time. 3) Emotional amnesia, where the feelings of a certain event may not be retained but the facts might still be remembered, mostly due to the brain being in ‘survival mode’ and either avoiding recording the painful emotions or unable to retain them due to stress (and already working too hard to ‘just remember the facts’)

Co-consciousness 

“Two or more parts/alters sharing consciousness at the same time (i.e., not blacking out, “going away,” etc.)”

Co-consciousness can appear in a variety of ways, so the most common understanding of it is when two parts are “around” or “active” or “aware” and not gone or completely inaccessible by the body-mind

Dissociation

“In clinical understanding, dissociation is the inherent human tendency to sever from the present moment when it becomes unpleasant or overwhelming. Dissociation can also refer to severed or separated aspects of self.”

There are many kinds and levels of dissociation, from benign (feeling immersed in a movie), to more disordered (numbness or going into a haze as a reaction to a traumatic event). In general, people with complex dissociative disorders experience ‘structural dissociation,’ which is where their dissociation starts to affect the structure of their self (ie. memory, personality, identity, emotions, beliefs and values, name, etc.)

DPDR, or Depersonalization & derealization

(not defined in Marich’s text, but a community suggested term).

DPDR refers to both a diagnosis and two specific types of dissociation. Depersonalization is dissociation where you don’t feel like yourself or don’t feel like the person you’re supposed to be, or don’t feel like a person at all. Derealization is where dissociation affects your perception of reality, such as things like space, time, colours, sensations, feeling that other people are fake, feeling the world is bigger or smaller, unable to tell fiction from reality, etc.

Introject

“Based on a term from Gestalt therapy, can refer to parts that are intruding with the process of the core self or the entire system, and sometimes seem to align with a perpetrator or an abusive figure”

Introjection is the process in which someone internalizes an external source/experience/concept (such as a person, media, etc.), which then subconsciously serves as the structural basis during the splitting or formation of an alter. Because these types of alters tend to have a unique relationship to how the outside world’s experience influences their own sense of self, they are categorized into a unique category called “introject alters”

Littles

“A colloquial term among people with Dissociative Identity Disorder or other dissociative disorders used to refer to the youngest parts in the system, those with child-like qualities”

This term can be used more loosely in online spaces. It can refer to an alter who presents as a child or has child-like qualities, or an alter that formed related to when the system was young and holds on to childhood memories. Typically, a little requires some amount of extra care that is related to how one would take care of a child physically or emotionally. However, not all littles have the personality of a child, and not all child alters are considered littles. How the alter is identified will vary from person to person.

Parts

“A general term used in the psychological and helping professions that can refer to many different things. Parts is the most generic term possible that can be used to describe aspects, sides, or facets of self that do not necessarily represent the presence of another ego state. Some people even conceptualize their parts as the various roles they occupy in life: for instance, mother, teacher, friend, client, bowler, social justice advocate, etc.

Parts is a term used to discuss dissociation in many degrees. Sometimes it’s used abstractly or metaphorically, other times more concrete. Parts also has the value of being the vaguest (and thus least baggage-heavy) term. However, the word ‘part’ doesn’t inherently indicate to what degree the part is separated structurally, personality-wise, or identity-wise. So without being able to tell what degree of dissociative separation the word ‘part’ is referring to, it means that the word ends up being extremely contextual when used colloquially. The best way to understand what ‘part’ may mean for someone is to ask or see how they typically use the term when referring to their own situation!

Perpetrator / perpetrator- identifying part

“Denotes a part that either takes on the qualities of a perpetrator or abuser, or aligns/takes the side in some way of the perpetrator or abuser”

This is a tough topic as perpetrator (or sometimes referred to as persecutor) parts are what people think about typically when they imagine the violent and ableist depictions of DID. However, they are actually quite common, and also commonly misunderstood. Parts in some way are all internalized versions of external experiences, including the abusive ones, which may be repeated internally as a survival mechanism to “keep oneself in check” or to give oneself a semblance of control over difficult experiences and feelings. Perpetrators are therefore, extremely traumatized parts who may express their pain in a desperate or malignant way due to a variety of reasons.

Plural / plurality

“A colloquial term for people with dissociative disorders that identify having a system with many parts or alters; people with Dissociative Identity Disorder and other dissociative disorders can identify as being plural”

Plural is a cultural movement, separate from the clinical diagnoses of DID, OSDD, P-DID, etc. It encompasses spiritual and non-clinical perspectives on having many parts as well. Not all dissociated individuals identify as plural for many reasons as well, so the concept of the movement is not one-size-fits-all. The biggest organization behind the plural movement is not without controversy as well. Despite this, many community members have found solidarity in plurality because of its acknowledgement of the different lifestyles dissociated individuals have to live as compared to non-dissociated individuals.

Psychosis 

“Comes from the Greek psyche, meaning “animation of life”; typically identified by reality testing in the form of delusions and hallucinations”

Psychosis is hallucinations, delusions, or otherwise situations that happened to you, but didn’t really happen the way that you experienced them, such as hearing voices or sounds, or seeing things due to extreme stress or other conditions. It differs from dissociation in the way that it feels more intrusive or external, and has to be treated differently. Sometimes, dissociation can appear to be very imaginative or symbolic, which can cause people to confuse it for psychosis, but the two are not the same.

Switching

“A movement back and forth between different parts or aspects that are fronting; some people switch often and rapidly, some very subtly or not at all”

Switching refers to when the “fronter” (the alter who is primarily accessing the body-mind) changes. This can be short or long, smooth or rough of a process. Typically disorienting or tiring, switching can occur due to triggers, or for seemingly no reason at all due to the fact that the dissociative individual goes through their day-to-day life at a higher level of dissociation compared to most people.

Trance

“A state of semi-consciousness in which a person is not fully responsive to external stimulation; can be a state that is associated with many things, like dissociation, hypnosis, or meditation”

A dissociative trance is when dissociation, whether it’s brought on by an immediate trigger or otherwise, causes the person to enter into a lulled state. During a trance, a person may experience their mind slowing down, depersonalisation, derealization, difficulty conceptualizing their sense of self, or difficulty accessing their typical skills and abilities.

Trauma

“Comes from the Greek word meaning “wound”; in the human services; relates to any unhealed wound (physical, emotional, psychological, sexual, or spiritual in nature). Unhealed trauma can manifest as a variety of clinical diagnoses in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM)”

Trauma for the dissociative community typically involves long-term trauma that has impacted a person severely, whether they are aware of it or not. Typically, the trauma is complex, as current theories on how dissociative disorders develop involve the individual having experienced repeated lack of support and traumatic experiences (sometimes due to that lack of support) over a period of time during their developmental years. Impacts such as race, disability, neurodiveristy, social class, family and world history can also significantly impact someone’s trauma(s).