Therapy and Counseling for
Dissociative Identity Disorder
Do you find yourself “losing time”? Do you have episodes of feeling disconnected or detached from your body and thoughts? Do you hear voices that are talking to you or talking in your head that others cannot hear?
Dissociation is a common, naturally occurring defense against childhood trauma. When faced with overwhelming abuse, children can dissociate from full awareness of a traumatic experience. Dissociation may become a defensive pattern that persists into adulthood and can result in a full-fledged dissociative disorder.
Formerly known as Multiple Personality Disorder, Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) is a condition in which a person has two or more distinct identity or personality states, which may alternate within the individual’s conscious awareness. The different personality states usually have distinct names, identities, temperament, and self-image. At least two of these personalities repeatedly assert themselves to control the affected person’s behavior and consciousness, causing long lapses in memory that far exceed typical episodes of forgetting.
At Kairos Counseling & Family Therapy, we understand the development of dissociative identity to be a result of several factors:
- Recurrent episodes of severe physical, emotional or sexual abuse in childhood.
- Absence of safe and nurturing resources to overwhelming abuse or trauma.
- Ability to dissociate easily.
- Development of a coping style that helped during distress and the use of splitting as a survival skill.
This being the truth for those with DID, honoring all parts is a vital component of the process of healing. The goal(s) of therapy can be varied, and are directed by the client alone.
How does Kairos Dissociative Identity Disorder Counseling & Therapy Work?
First and foremost, our priority is safety of the system. At Kairos Counseling & Family Therapy, we move only as fast as all involved feel safe to do so. Rapport building between client and therapist is the first step. As the relationship is being built, exploration into the system and introduction to the parts can be a part of the space at the pace the client feels is appropriate.
Utilizing Sandtray Therapy, we can work to build the story of the system and of the individual parts, understanding that there are various stories to be heard and considered toward healing. Through acknowledging and honoring each part, ego state strength is fostered toward working through the traumas with EMDR Therapy (Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing) that created the mind, body, and heart’s need for dissociation.
