What Triggers Split Personality Disorder?

What triggers split personality disorder

Dissociative identity disorder is a type of mental health problem in which you have two or more different “alters,” or personality states, that can affect your behavior at different times. These alters may have different names, voices, personal histories, mannerisms and outlook on life.

The cause of dissociative identity disorder is not known, but experts believe it may be a result of severe trauma during childhood (usually extreme physical, sexual, or emotional abuse). Sometimes, people with this condition may have experienced other traumatic events, such as war, kidnapping or even invasive medical procedures.

Symptoms of dissociative identity disorder include the presence of multiple ‘alters’ or personalities, and a feeling that your identity is fragmented and out of control. This can lead to feelings of isolation, anxiety and even depression.

There are several types of therapy used to treat dissociative identity disorder, and it’s important for teens who have this condition to get treatment as soon as possible. The goal of therapy is to help your teen work through the different emotions and reintegrate the multiple alters into one consolidated identity.

Talk therapy is the most common treatment for people with DID, but other therapies can also be helpful. For example, art and movement therapies can help people connect with parts of their mind that they have shut off to cope with trauma.

Hypnosis can also be helpful for people with DID to access repressed memories and control problematic behaviors. These therapies are often combined with psychotherapy, which helps the person work through traumatic memories and find coping strategies to manage them in the future.

The main triggers of DID are traumatic events, like abuse or neglect in childhood. But these traumatic events can be happening at any age.

What’s more, if a person has another mental health disorder, such as schizophrenia, it can also contribute to the development of split personality disorder. This is because the brains of people with these disorders are not producing enough serotonin and dopamine, which can make people more likely to develop addictions to drugs or alcohol.

In some cases, drug abuse can aggravate symptoms of dissociative identity disorder because it causes the repressed trauma to surface in the form of dangerous behaviors. So people with this condition should try not to use alcohol, drugs or other substances that can exacerbate their symptoms.

The most effective way to treat DID is to work with a mental health professional who has experience treating this disorder. You can find these professionals at a mental health clinic, hospital, or university.

Encourage therapy – Talking to a mental health provider and family members about your teen’s symptoms can help you decide what type of treatment is best for them. Some options include talking therapy, medication, and meditation.

It’s also a good idea to talk to your teen about the causes of their DID, and to explain what types of therapies they could benefit from. For example, some teens respond well to art therapy or meditation.