Happy DID Awareness Day !!!
And since this is YOUR day to inform people about DID — what is it that YOU would like to say to increase awareness about DID ?
Originally, March 5 was called National Multiple Personality Day (MPD). But of course, we know that MPD has had a name change to Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID).
I don’t know how many non-DID folks read at this blog, but…. if they do read here, what do you want them to know?
This is National DID Awareness Day — what do you want people to be aware of ?
I am including some “DID Awareness Raising” links for other articles that address a few common questions asked about DID. I’m going to add a few, and in the comments below, you can add or list your favorite Article Links that explain DID.
OR, please feel free to add your own thoughts and comments from your own words. What you have to say matters too!
10 Benefits of Being Multiple
Integration – A New Category and Nine Quick Opinions
DID Insiders: Are They Parts or People?
How Many People Have Dissociative Identity Disorder?
And please don’t forget — we have another helpful resource available here at Discussing Dissociation. You and your friends and your family or anyone interested can get a free copy of the eBook:
101+ Ways to See DID — Dissociative Identity Disorder Described
Be sure to sign up for the email newsletter and confirm your email address to get the links for this free eBook.
Let’s work together to increase the awareness of Dissociative Identity Disorder.
AND … let’s let people know the TRUTH about DID while we’re at it!
Your voice and your truth matters too.
And of course, I wish you the very best in your healing journey.
Warmly,
Kathy
Copyright © 2008-2018 Kathy Broady MSW and Discussing Dissociation
We’re a french system and psychologist student.
As there’s almost nothing about DID, OSDD and UDD, or even about DP/DR on the french side of the internet, we’ve decided to creat a forum where we translate english things into french.
For the 5th March, we’ve shared the link of our forum on the facebook groups of our class and university. It was scary, but as we don’t have the name of the body on our account, it’s stupposed to be safe.
We did it because we’re not educated at all about dissociation at the university. I would even say we’re mis-educated about it.
The teachers still say things like “dissociation is a schizophrenia-related thing”.
When I briefly talked about dissociative disorders during a presentation about non-psychosis disorders, my teacher said they are kind of tricky because dissociation is a psychosis-thing.
I had to bit my tongue to not make her another presentation just on dissociative disorders in front of the rest of the class.
Another teacher used DID as an exemple for false memories and never explain anything else about it, making it sounds like it’s a fake disorder.
We were sooooo mad…
So my system and I felt is was important to share the forum with other psych students.
We know we can’t educate people if we don’t expose ourselves a little bit, it drives ours protectors crazy. They want to help as much as me, but they want to protect us first, and doing both can be hard sometimes.
Our long-term goal will be to creat an association to educate people and help ones with dissociation. There’s already one in Europe, but it’s mainly for psych. We want to creat something different thant that.
My mom sometimes jokes and says we want to change the world, but eh, why not ?
We just have to find a way to do it which will be okay for our protectors xD
Anyway, sharing the link totaly worth it ! So many people came to visit the forum ! And some people still come today !
We were so proud to see it worked.
Hi Dwelt.
I so understand what you mean by professors. I have dealt with this type of stuff as an undergrad, and now as a grad student. My intro psych professor was showing the class videos on how Sybil was a fake and how DID doesn’t exist.
I think your goal is awesome, and yes, I’ve been doing the same thing as well teaching throughout my education to therapists. I’ve also helped assist therapists with their DID clients… I mean who else gets it better than the one living with DID.
The most important thing if you are not doing this already is above all else, make sure you are practicing your own self-care and seeing your own therapist, especially as you work your way through school and take more advanced classes. I’m currently in a master’s level clinical mental health program at school. I did not realize just how much the classes I was taking would stir up things because I have to take classes that can be intense on su*c*de, s*x*ality (I take this in the fall), diversity, diagnosis (where the professor doesn’t believe in DID), group, and intro to marriage & family. I’ve taken some other classes but those are what I call the “nuts and bolts” of counseling–the boring stuff. The diagnosis class wouldn’t be on that list of intense, triggering classes if it hadn’t been for the professor.
Keep up the good work.
Lee
Lee, it must be very painful to have your situation invalidated by a professor. I could help you craft a complaint, if you are so inclined. I work at a university, and am often the voice for people who are silenced.
Andrea, thank you! I appreciate that offer so much.
At the end of the semester, I did write up an anonymous complaint on the “end of semester” survey that has to be filled out by each student for each professor that was taken during the semester. It is online and is an anonymous survey. The result of that survey is this same professor who denied the very existence of DID was removed from teaching the suicide class. He has not been removed from the program. My mentor helped me with what I wrote and even suggested that I go higher up with my complaint.
I may need your help because I am supposed to take him for another class, I think for advanced practicum counseling techniques. I just feel his view/opinion is very damaging, not just for DID but other disorders as well. I’m not sure what the “chain of command” is but I don’t feel comfortable or safe taking the risk and exposing myself as having DID and filing a complaint against him, especially since I am so close to graduating.
Some of the writing is in a weird script. Not sure what is going on with that.
Hey Lee —
Can you tell me more what you mean about the weird script? Are you referring to this article or the email that just went out? I see both of them just fine, but I’m looking from a computer, not a phone. Not sure if that makes any difference.
Is anyone else having trouble seeing the email ?? Sorry for any inconvenience !!!
Warmly,
Kathy
Kathy,
The links you have listed on this page looks like it is in greek writing. The rest of the article is okay, it’s just the links that look weird. I tried posting a pic of it here but it’s not letting me.
Lee
Thanks Lee —
I changed the font I used for the links — does that make it look different and better now?
AND, if that works…. **note to self** — don’t use that font on blog posts again.
Thanks for the heads up — I most definitely appreciate that!
Warmly,
Kathy
Hi Kathy
The links still look like they are in Greek to us. Technology, eh?!
SoF
OH gosh, LOL. Okay — I think maybe I’ve fixed them now????
SeekingOurFreedom — are they legible for you yet?
Hoping so, lol.
K.
Hi Kathy,
Yes much better but there are still 2 links that have that same greek writing. The first one is right under the question you asked about non-DID folks that read the blog. The other link is right below the part about getting a free e-book.
Glad to be of help
Lee
Thanks Lee — I was able to find more of that same font — the one that was looking Greek to you (and others too, to my horror!!), and yet looking like regular letters for me. REALLY no intention of posting anything in Greek!! My apologies to you and everyone.
I think (!!!!!) I’ve changed the font everywhere — BUT PLEASE — if you or anyone see any other weird fonts like that, please let me know and I’ll change it right away. I only recently began exploring with a few new fonts, and I don’t recall if I’ve used it in other places or not. So if you see any Greek writing, please let me know so I can fix that ASAP.
Thanks to you all.
Warmly,
Kathy
Hey Kathy,
You fixed the links!!! Looks great. Isn’t technology great?!?! NOT! I think it is wonderful that you are exploring how to use the various fonts.
hahahaha — thanks, Lee.
Technology is allergic to me.
I’ve said it for YEARS and it is STILL allergic to me. !!!!!
But YAY for fixing links by using the correct font! That’s all that was — and I know to never use that other font ever again! Lesson learned. 🙂
Good job, Kathy. 🙂
Hi Kathy,
Do you mean to say that it’s NOT all Greek to you? 😀 (LOL)
Glad you were able to fix the issue, even though I’m coming upon this article long after it was fixed.
Caro
Hey Kathy,
I do teach therapists about DID. I’ve assisted therapists in the past with their DID clients. A couple years ago, I was asked to do a presentation at an eating disorder treatment center about DID. My presentation was on the history, evolution, and treatment for DID. I currently volunteer at a place that helps survivors of sex trafficking, and recently was asked to teach a presentation on DID. I’m taking the previous presentation from a couple years ago that I did and updating it a bit because of my current audience.
I also have a blog on my journey living with DID and becoming a therapist. I do go by a pseudonym on my blog due to becoming a therapist and all the negative feedback I get when people find out I have DID and in the process of becoming a therapist. Apparently, people don’t think that folks with DID can actually function in this world, and help other people. Geeshhhh! I guess some people don’t think that a person with DID can provide the greatest insight and help to clients who have DID and are struggling through their own journey. The key component–that every therapist should be practicing is self-care.
I want pepl to no we dont be crazy
that i am 6 i am rel
evn tho i liv in a big pepl body
i still be here
but i dont be stupid i can here wen pepl talk bad abot pepl that got DID
haveng DID dont be bad it be a good thing
i want pepl to no that if you got DID you can have lots of frens in sid
We didn’t do anything per se for awareness day but i did make a info graphic about how DID is NOT rare and i posted it along with other DID facts to my Instagram account. It has a wide range of people who follow it and only about 3 of the 700 are DID’ians themselves, so doing that little bit of fact sharing helps me feel like i’m contributing somehow lol. Plus the poster is really cool :p
Hi All,
This is amazing. I had no idea that there was actually a DID Awareness Day. Thank you for sharing this with us Kathy. And wow – a big shout out to Dwelt, Lee, Andrea, Mindy and Astrie. You folks are amazing. I have not done anything so grand. I am just trying to be honest about who I am in my everyday life – speaking my truth.
ME+WE
03/09/2018
This is a great truth…being honest about who we are. Kind of scary though too. I was just talking to a friend about how we’re trying to keep DID stuff quiet. Especially on the big social media sites. But one like or follow is out out there, then people know and that’s scary. What if were stigmatized?