You may wonder if dissociation is always wrong, or if it is always an indicator of a problem. In this final video of the 5 part series on dissociative identity disorder and multiple personality disorder issues, I talk about the difference between normal dissociation and destructive dissociation.

In this series I have been talking about the type of dissociation which became necessary in order to survive abuse, and how when there has been a pattern of abuse, learning to disconnect and dissociate has been the only escape and the only place that feels safe. Dissociative identity becomes a relief and an answer for these people. It becomes the coping method they use to deal with life itself.

Is disconnecting always a problem? I give a few examples of normal disconnect such as we see when watching young children involved in their play. Even as adults we can disconnect or dissociate in a healthy and normal way, for example when caught up in the excitement of planning a vacation but as long as we can still come back to the present, live in reality and be able to carry out our responsibilities, this is not a worry.

Have a look at this video as I wrap up this 5 part series on multiple personality and dissociative identity disorder. I hope that you have enjoyed it and please feel free to comment or post your questions in the comment form.

With You in Mind,
Norm Quantz

I mentioned in the first video in this series about multiple personalities and dissociative identity disorders that I would talk about the importance of having an independent mindset.

Although I realize that this is a controversial subject, I believe that in the very nature of human beings is the need to grow out of childhood and dependence and into independent mindset.

The reason that DID and MPD are referred to a disorder is because there is a lot of chaos in the life of a person struggling with multiple personalities or alter personalities. To take personal responsibility for what is ours, to respond to our responsibilities and to know what that means are very important parts of our mental wellbeing. In regards to DID or MPD, the importance of having the knowledge of who you are, is a key factor in becoming one person.

Have a look at this video as we take a look at why an independent mindset is so important to understand both to the struggling person with dissociative issues and to the person who is trying to become whole.

With You in Mind,
Norm Quantz

In part two of this video series, I talk about the history of how I came to understand what was happening with clients who had developed multiple personalities and why I deal with clients the way that I do in the areas of multiple personality disorder and dissociative identity. I explain why I have come to view DID and MPD as a coping method and how the alter personalities came to exist.

As clients began to describe the nature of their alter personalities, they also talked about their childhood environment, abusive pasts and about some of their current relationships, I noticed that these alters represented different experiences for them. I started thinking that the alter personalities were the way that the client thought and lived and expressed the pressure that they were under, without revealing or exposing the real people responsible for the abuse they had suffered or were still suffering.

The clients reality became the presence of the alters and as I realized this, I simultaneously understood the nature of abuse that was imposed upon them which the client had tried to understand was somehow normal, when in fact the normalization of their lives was actually abnormal and not suitable to good mental health. Because they had to justify it somehow, they sought to distinguish differences between their real life, and the mindset they had to develop in order to cope.

Understanding psychological abuse is a great benefit in dealing with multiple personality and dissociative identity disorders. Have a look at this video as I expand on part one of this series on MPD and DID. As always I welcome comments.

With You in Mind,
Norm Quantz