Academic Study That Symptoms of Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) Can Be So Significant That They Cause Suffering Not Only For The Affected Person, But Also For His Family, Friends, And The Broader Community

Dissociative Identity Disorder, commonly known as DID, is characterized by a disruption of an individual's identity due to the presence of two or more identities that exist and have the potential to take control of the person, also known as personality states. Signs of this condition are changes in behavior, awareness, memory, perception, cognition, and/or sensory-motor functioning, as well as a keen sense of spontaneous dissociation and agency. It is possible for the person to experience recurrent memory loss about normal, daily events, important personal information, and/or traumatic experiences (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). The symptoms of dissociative identity disorder (DID) can be significant enough to cause suffering not only for the person affected, but also for their family, friends, and the wider community. Comorbid conditions such as helplessness, anxiety, drug use, self-harm and non-epileptic seizures are outcomes; moreover, seventy percent of outpatients tried suicide multiple times in addition to selfharm (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). They may suffer from deficits in awareness and forgetfulness, unaware that they may be suffering from dissociative identity disorder (DID), an unknown disease. This may be because they are not aware of their condition. There is a debate as to whether dissociative identity disorder (DID) is a real condition, and there is also a debate as to why it occurs. Media presented DID; however, the way it is presented is not always correct and may prove to be just a media gimmick to grab the public's attention and make the issue more captivating. According to Robert T. Muller (2013), fiction tends to overgeneralize and exaggerate the situation, giving the public a false impression and concept that the disorder exists, and that the diagnosis is incorrect. For example, in films such as Raising Cain (1992), Fight Club (1999), Secret Window (2004), the main character gradually transforms into someone with a more sinister mindset to achieve their most sinister goals.

Keywords: DID, Dissociative Identity Disorder, Human Psychology, Psychological Disorders