Identity disorder, also known as multiple personality disorder, is a mental illness that forms from a person’s dissociation with their true identity. People will create new personalities in their mind and live through this persona, or multiple personality. It is often a coping mechanism for people who experienced severe childhood trauma or abuse. As such, it needs to be handled with care.
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Understanding Trauma
It is believed that identity disorder is the result of severe childhood trauma that has not been dealt with, but rather buried deep in a person’s memory, almost forgotten. The person needs to confront this trauma and find a way to move past it so that they can start living their life and leave behind these multiple personalities they’ve created for protection.
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Therapy
Therapy is a very common way to bring out repressed emotions and incidents, such as abuse and trauma. There are different types of therapy that have proven successful, such as talk therapy (cognitive behavioral therapy); art, music and recreational therapy; or hypnotherapy. No matter which therapy technique you choose, you must stick with it, for months or years, if you want to get better and improve your mental health.
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Meditation
Meditation helps us focus on the present moment and experience feelings and thoughts that come up while we sit in silence. People with identity disorder have spent a lot of their lives repressing feelings and finding other ways to hide and ignore the way they feel and the thoughts they have, so meditation is an excellent way to have them face what they’re afraid of. It is after all, what they have to do if they want to get better.
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Journaling
Writing things out always helps to calm the mind and heart. People who have experienced severe trauma have a lot of pent up energy and stress and it can’t stay inside forever. Taking some time everyday to journal helps to release that pressure that’s been building up inside for so long. It also teaches us how to deal with our emotions in a healthy way while still retaining our privacy.
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