The Misunderstood: A Discussion on Dissociative Identity Disorder & Multiple Personality Disorder

Abstract

In this presentation, I explore the misunderstood life of people with Dissociative Identity Disorder and Multiple Personality Disorder through a presentation and discussion of what reality is for these people. Multiple Personality Disorder and Dissociative Identity Disorder are widely misunderstood, making life for those diagnosed with these particularly harder. The media tends to depict these people as incapable of function or dangerous, which majority of the time is not the case. Because of the stigmas surrounding mental health, I will shed light on what life is like for those people who live with these disorders.

Some major points of my research include that the stigma of Dissociative Identity Disorder (and Multiple Personality Disorder) is generally formed by the public media's interpretation and dramatizing of the disorders. These media tend to frame the people diagnosed with these disorders as incapable of daily function or dangerous. People diagnosed may find complications with job and career placement, housing, and other stabilizing factors for the general person.