Research

I n July of 2012 Richard J.

M cNally, Rafael Hunt jens, and

Statistics
-

Number of di agnoses
has r i sen.
1 i n 10, 000 peopl e i n
t he popul at i on have
DI D.
0. 5% t o 2% of
psychi at r i c pat i ent s
have DI D.
Maj or i t y of di agnosed
DI D ar e women, some
st udi es show 90% or
mor e. Aver age age of
devel opment 5. 9
year s.

SOURCES:
www.psychologytoday.com
http:/ / www.humanillnesses.com
http:/ / www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/ pubmed/ 16172082
http:/ / news.harvard.edu/ gazette/ story/
2012/ 08/ a-story-that-doesnt-hold-up/

Bruno Verschuere did a st udy

concerning memory loss and
DI D. They det ermined t hat DI D
does not complet ely erase all
memory. You can remember
t hings such as your best friend
while in different personalit ies
when prompt ed wit h visual aids.

DISSOCIATIVEIDENTITYDISORDER
BYHARRYANDJENAI

Diagnosis
Symptoms
Dissociative Identity Disorder is difficult
to diagnose because the personalities are
practically different people. Each personality can have a different disorder, and the person
themselves usually has different disorders as well. The doctor has to see two dominant
personalities before it can be diagnosed as DID. Another telltale sign of this disease is gaps
in the memory. People with DID often find things in their house that they did not buy or
have long, frequent gaps in their memory. It is usually about six years between the first

Symptoms
In Dissociative Identity Disorder, the
individual with have at least two or more
personalities, each with their own way of
perceiving the world. The amount of
personalities can vary, some have only 2,
some have more than 100, but most
have less than 20. At least two of these
personalities will frequently take
control, and may have there own history,
behavior, characteristics and names.
Sometimes, certain circumstances
awaken a particular personality.
Personalities may deny knowledge of

the other personalities, be critical or

openly be at conflict. Psychosocial stress
often is what triggers the change of
identities. In DID the individual may have
gaps in their memories, and the different
identities remember different things.
Passive identities tend to have more
gaps than hostile or controlling
identities. A person with DID may also
have symptoms of depression, anxiety,
passivity, dependence and guilt.
Problems with behavior and inability to
focus in school may be present in
childhood. There may also be

Treatments
The current treatment for DID is therapy,
either psychotherapy, talk therapy, art or
movement therapy, or other types. The
goal of psychotherapy is to combine the
personalities into one. There is not a
specific medication for DID. However, a
victim of this disease may be prescribed
anti-depressants or anti-anxiety
medication. Scientists are also conducting
single-case studies of patients with DID
using Cognitive Analytic Therapy (CAT.)