DID Casually dropped the did bombshell

[Sideways]

It's crazy frustrating. If I went to hospital disgnosed with a bad case of bronchitis, the day the doctor finds out it's turned into pneumonia, they come in & tell you - you've got pneumonia now, so we need to start treating that.

My experience with paychiatry is that they chop and change and add suspected diagnoses along the way, but keep it all mum, like mental health is a special exception & the patient either doesn't need to know or can't handle being told "this is what you've got".

Makes me angry...but as long as my T does a good job of treating the patient in front of them, mostly I let it slide...Mostly.

 

[Stickler]

Over here, having only two differing personalities, along with memory gaps, more than ordinary forgetfulness that can't be explained by anything else, personality changes and self reports of other assorted symptoms ( voices inside my head! ) can add up to a DID dx.

In my case I insist I'm DID b/c the other occupants of my head get really angry otherwise, and I have to live with these people.

I don't know if seeing a therapist and paying out of pocket is feasible. You might also check with MIND or other charities, see if they do any reduced-cost therapy? I understand what they offer varies.

 

[Lucycat]

and that I understood that for any sort of dissociative disorder we were talking in years not weeks.

So you knew they were considering a dissociative disorder, just not which one. I wonder if it was being fed to you slowly and gently but you perhaps did not appreciate that at the time.

No-one has EVER mentioned DID. I've assumed it doesn't fit,

Which lends me to believe that you have considered it, done the research and discarded the possibility of this as a diagnosis. I appreciate when it was mentioned in a meeting and came 'as a bombshell'. That is perhaps why you were unable to ask 'why' this diagnosis had been made.

Let's say you are not DID,

You are not DID! The discussion is whether or not you have DID. There is a huge difference between having a diagnosis and being that diagnosis. You are Sandstone. That does not change, whatever disorder you might be diagnosed with.

there's no diagnostic code for it, do you think she may have "just" misspoken?

In the UK the diagnostic code is not important. I have been diagnosed with CPTSD and there is no code for that.

I don't understand why they kept this secret, I wish the NHS would be upfront with patients.

I was only given my diagnosis when it was necessary - ie I needed to tell the court . The diagnosis had not been kept secret from me, but I had not asked as it did not seem relevant until I needed it. I don't know if Sandstone had previously asked for a diagnosis or not, so I am not sure whether or not it was withheld from her.

I do understand the shock of such a diagnosis, but I also see the positives - it gives you a starting point and a trajectory. It means the therapy - when it comes - will be tailored to the specific issues that you have rather than the usual few weeks of support. It may be hard to find the right support, but better that than have harmful inappropriate therapy that starts and stops as they realise the extent of your complex difficulties.

 

[Sandstone]

Which lends me to believe that you have considered it, done the research and discarded the possibility of this as a diagnosis. I appreciate when it was mentioned in a meeting and came 'as a bombshell'. That is perhaps why you were unable to ask 'why' this diagnosis had been made.

I think I was unable to follow it up mainly because I was grappling with the "trapped in a room behind two locked doors with five faces looming at me" thing and so my mind wasn't working fast enough. My focus was on getting officially discharged from the ward while seeking the short term support I need.

So far as diagnosis goes, I think I fit this one ".. two or more distinct, nonintegrated or incompletely integrated subsystems of the personality (dissociative identities), ..One identity is dominant, but is persistently and recurrently intruded on by one or more other dissociative identities, although these do not take full control over the person’s consciousness and behaviour. Dissociative intrusions typically involve a combination of cognitive, affective, perceptual, sensory, motor, or behavioral features."

 

[Friday]

You are not DID! The discussion is whether or not you have DID. There is a huge difference between having a diagnosis and being that diagnosis. You are Sandstone. That does not change, whatever disorder you might be diagnosed with.

Just for the record, this was meant in the same usage as "Let's say you are not blonde." Or "Let's say you are not vegetarian."

Agreed, a diagnosis changes absolutely nothing about a person.

 

[EveHarrington]

Are you saying I am wrong...

I don't believe you're wrong in the least at being disturbed. It's scary to get a new diagnosis. It can change the course of healing, prognosis, etc.

I think you should validate these feelings toward a possible DID diagnosis. It's ok to be upset.