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The Alters of Dissociative Identity Disorder Dissociative Identity Disorder, previously referred to as Multiple Personality Disorder, is a condition in which a person adopts two or more distinctly different identities. Each identity is completely unique in how it views and interacts with the outside world. These alternate personalities, called alters, inhabit a person's behavior and mind, leaving the victim with no recollection of their previous life and actions during the time of the alter personality's domination (Porterfield 2665).

Formations of Alters

Stems of the Disorder

In its most general form, dissociative qualities are commonly inherent in the general population. These instances usually occur as lapses in attention or daydreaming which are both considered to be healthy psychological functions. Frequent fantasizing, however, has been proven to lead to more severe psychological disorders in the future (Giesbrecht 623). A study comparing 26 participants with frequent fantasy lapses, and 26 less prone to fantasize, proved that the participants who were more frequently daydreaming showed higher signs of dissociative symptoms (Giesbrecht 618). Dissociative symptoms are also more common among individuals with closely related disorders like schizophrenia and posttraumatic stress disorder (Giesbrecht 620). In fact, 59-98% of patients diagnosed with Dissociative Identity Disorder had suffered physical or sexual abuse as a child (Porterfield 2665). Many children dissociate themselves from the trauma they experience and create a fantasy world to escape the brutalities of their everyday life (Strickland 191). This can often culminate into a multiple personality, beginning the growth of the Dissociate Disorder. This is one theory of why the onset of Dissociative Identity Disorder is usually in the childhood years around the age of four (Strickland 191).

Frequency in Women

Dissociative Identity Disorder also occurs much more frequently in women than it does in men (Porterfield 2665). This may be partly due to the fact that some individuals can dissociate better than others simply because of their brain chemistry (Porterfield 2666). There are four main circulating theories as to why this occurs. The first theory explains that men and women express their emotions and stresses in life very differently from one another. For men, a main outlet of emotion is through alcoholism whereas with women they are prone to hysteria which closely relates to dissociative episodes (Seeman 24). Another explanation claims that men with DID behave more violently than women and are therefore arrested and put into jail more frequently where there is less of a chance of them being diagnosed. Women on the other hand often seek mental health care where there is a much more likely chance of them being diagnosed with DID (Porterfield 2665). These visits to a psychiatrist can often instill unintentional suggestion into the minds of women that they may have Dissociative Identity Disorder when, in reality, they do not. They therefore begin to involuntarily embrace the disorder prominently enough for a diagnosis (Seeman 25). In addition to these theories, the fact that most cases of DID stem from childhood sexual abuse can account for the higher occurrence of the disorder in women simply because they are more frequently the victims of this type of abuse (Seeman 25).

Lack of Hereditary Proof

These alternate personalities are not proven, however, to be hereditary. There are higher occurrences of the illness in patients with a first-generation relative diagnosed with DID, but there is no proof that the disorder is specifically inherited by any means (Porterfield 2665). These alters form mostly from traumatic childhood experiences and create many unique and diverse personalities in every patient.

Various Alters of DID

Complexities of Different Alters

For a patient to be diagnosed with Dissociative Identity Disorder, he or she must possess two or more completely different personalities. Most women patients acquire an average of 15 different personalities and men exhibit around eight alters (Porterfield 2665). Some patients have been recorded as reaching up to as many as 100 different alters within one individual (Porterfield 2665). Each alter will have its own unique set of mannerisms, posture, tone of voice, vocabulary, and some patients have even registered different handedness in each alter (Strickland 190). Some alters can be more similar to one another, and others starkly unique (Porterfield 2665). Each alter has its own set of preferences and even handles situations and relationships differently than other alters. Some even speak in a different accent or, on occasion, a completely different language (Porterfield 2666). Some common types of alters include a depressive, exhausted identity, a strong protector who is usually a man in the form of a cowboy or trucker, a helper, an internal persecutor who blames the other alters for his problems, and an identity as a child is almost guaranteed for every patient (Giesbrecht 618).

Common Occurrence of Child Alters

Since most cases of DID stem from childhood abuse, it does not come as a shock that 86% of patients have at least one alter with the personality of a child (Porterfield 2665). This alter will act as an outlet for the emotions that the patient could not express when they were being abused as a child personally. This type of alter will often show a lot of anger or terror, mirroring the patients intrinsic feelings they kept bottled up as a child (Porterfield 2665 ). This common alter among DID victims has remained consistently through the generations of most patients (Seeman 31).

The Animal Alter

Some alters even stretch to the creation of an animal personality or imaginary creature (Porterfield 2666). In one study of a DID patient, she adopted the alter of a dog, induced by an odd case of child abuse. When she was young her parents forced her to act like a dog, feeding her only with leftover scraps in a dog dish on the ground, and often forced to remain in the backyard. When no one acknowledged her presence in addition to these abuses, she began to think she may actually be a dog, and after a time an alter was formed (Beere 50). The brutal murders of her pet dogs as a child, demonstrated so she witnessed the entire thing, also contributed to the later formation of this strange alter personality (Beere 50). Many other patients have adopted the personality of a pet or animal of some kind, exhibiting traits that seem especially odd in social situations.

Host Personalities

One alter that is present in almost every case of patients with DID is the domination of a "host" personality. Many would assume this is the patients original personality, but it is rather a separate alter that gets formed along the way. Usually, it is this personality that is most commonly dominating over a patients mind. It is also the alter that often seeks help from a psychiatrist (Strickland 191). Therefore, the host personality is usually the one who the psychiatrist deals with one on one rather than the person's original personality. Psychiatrists often use methods of hypnosis to persuade the host personality and other alters to communicate as a remedy for the disorder (Porterfield 2666). Sometimes eating disorders even occur within DID patients because a certain alter will tell the host personality not to eat while a different one will try and persuade it to binge eat (Seeman 22). This may be due to the fact that alter personalities are often more lively and forceful than the host personality (Seeman 26). Although psychiatrists use this communication between the host and other alters for therapy, it can evidently lead in the opposite direction, towards emotional abuse.

Interactions Among Alters

Other alters also communicate with one another in various ways throughout patients with DID. One alter, often referred to as "the gamekeeper" demonstrates a sense of power and control over the other alters, even going so far as to tell them when they can and cannot reveal themselves (Porterfield 2666). Many men and women have alters of the opposite sex which fight with one another for power and status just as the two genders regularly do (Seeman 32). Other personalities also fight with each other for control over the patient's mind and functions. For the most part though, the host personality dominates and the patient can seem to lead a regular life (Porterfield). Friends and family will not be fooled, however, when the patient begins to become subject to the starkly contrasted personalities that inevitably at some time or another take control of their facilities.

Switching Between Alter Personalities

The process in which one personality changes to another and reveals inhabits a patient is called "switching" (Porterfield 2665). Each alter personality usually stems from a specific drama the patient experienced as a child whether it be abuse, tragedy, or some other negative life-altering experience (Seeman 21). Switching can occur frequently or not very often depending on the subject. However, when most patients learn to use dissociation in reaction to severely negative events, switching can begin to occur automatically at the occurrence of even minor stressors (Giesbrecht 621). Switching soon becomes a habitual reaction to all of life's problems. Over time, new identities can form, and the DID patient will experience new switches to previously unseen personalities. These fresh identities form as the patient faces new situations and uses a new alter to overcome them (Strickland 191). Perhaps one of the most ungraspable concepts concerning Dissociate Identity Disorder is how through switches between identities, a patient can experience very different biological characteristics (Porterfield 2666). These characteristics are not normally alterable in any way, unlike the other common differences between alters. The different mannerisms, tone of voice, and outward appearances are enough to baffle a witness to this disorder. But it is the unexplainable changes in heart rate, blood pressure, body temperature, pain tolerance, and even eyesight abilities, that cause one to wonder at the effects switching can cause in a patient (Porterfield 2666). Occasionally, a perfectly healthy host can experience asthma and other allergies when switching to another alter (Porterfield 2666). And although there have not been extensive studies on DID patients with drastically different alters, there have been cases where these phenomenon and others like it have occurred.