advice on working towards a DID diagnosis?
i've just gotten into therapy... recently, within the past few months. i haven't been able to for my whole life up until late 2020 due to familial and financial boundaries, so while i'm experienced in my own mental health and doing my own research i'm significantly uninformed on the whole... therapy process.
i'm 21, and i've been aware of my system since i was around 13 or 14, possibly even earlier. my memory is fuzzy since i'm a relatively new host so memories before "my time" so to speak are few and far between. but basically, i have my system very figured out besides a few handfuls of unidentified alters, and we have pretty decent communication and organization between each other.
me and my therapist discussed starting trauma therapy starting next week, and since my DID is so important to a lot of aspects of my trauma, whether it have been used against me or otherwise i feel like it's important to bring it up and... besides that i honestly really want a diagnosis for it in general just to have that 'validation' i guess, haha. either way, i know that being known as a system to my therapist will help me significantly since a lot of us have our own problems that need addressing and, since our trauma is so compartmentalized it'll speed up the healing process too.
in a way i'm afraid to tell her straight up that i'm already aware of having alters and having DID in case for some reason she tries brushing it off or reacts weirdly to it. i was referred to her for nonspecific "anxiety and depression" initially, and since then i've been explaining my other problems slowly but surely, so she's aware of my PTSD/trauma. my approach to most of my known problems is talking about my symptoms and acting like i don't already have some sort of idea and subtly implying things. which, i guess is making this process a lot slower for me but again! i'm very new to the therapy scene so i have no idea if there's a better way of approaching this.
since we've been aware of being a system for so long, we of course have journals, identities/alters mapped out, etc. so i'm guessing a good start is compiling them somehow. i just have no real idea of how to start bringing it up or pushing for a diagnosis/pushing for that acknowledgement.
any advice really, really helps!
@solipses I'm not an expert, but I know some therapists (in real life), and I would agree with you that it's important to bring up DID before getting into trauma therapy. I'm guessing here, but it kind of sounds like your therapist is perhaps not fully aware of how complex your situation is.
On the risk that she'll brush it off or react weirdly, I agree that the risk is there. So maybe the thing to do is to get that issue out of the way as quickly as possible. If she does react badly, then she's not the right therapist for you and I imagine it would be better to find that out now instead of perhaps many weeks down the line.
Many therapists are reluctant to make a formal diagnosis, because it's not really their job, and they would refer you to a psychiatrist if diagnosis is needed. But I think you are right to expect validation.
By the way, I notice your profile contains a link offsite that seems like it could be used to contact you. I thought I should mention that 7 Cups does not allow that.
If you'd ever like to chat, feel free to message me.
Charlie
@RarelyCharlie yeah definitely.. i've been sure to inform her about what i have going on (at least in symptoms) so she does know that i have a lot going on, but she has been quick to believe that a lot of my problems are sourced in anxiety/depression although not closed off to me insisting on my issues being beyond those.
i think you're right though! i'll be sure to mention during our next appointment and get it out of the way right away. she does know i have dissociative problems related to PTSD, but nothing formally beyond that, so i think i have a pretty good starting point.
i am currently seeing a psychiatrist too, so that part is good to know as well. i knew that psychs are the ones to prescribe meds but i had this thought that therapists were the ones to handle most diagnoses, so i'll be sure to bring up things more formally with my psych as well!
and thank you for letting me know, i made sure to get rid of the offsite link!
thank you so much and i'll be sure to keep this in mind, i really do appreciate the reply!