DID OSDD Type 1?

[Angelwings]

I have what was, up until recently, called DD-NOS. I have shared this information here before, but am still looking to see if there is anyone with a similar experience. I dissociate. I lose time. It happens frequently. My aunt (whom I live with) and my therapist have both witnessed it. My therapist says that I believe that I am a child again, the age that I was abused, which varies from time to time. I have complete amnesia in these instances. The last time it happened I lost 8 hours. This is strange to me because these "child like" people in me answer to my name, have knowledge of things from that time period, and do not know who my therapist is. I cannot find any other instances of this occurring in others with DD-NOS. My therapist said that it does happen with other survivors of extreme abuse, and when pressed further, she said that I am the only client she has that has this particular issue. Is it possible that I am just on the edge of having DID? Thoughts?

 

[shimmerz]

I am not qualified to say whether you are on the edge of DID or not. I can tell you that I share your experience as you describe it quite closely. I tend to not lose time but am what they call co-conscious. I know what I am doing when regressed but have no way of stopping it.

So for me, I tend to relate more to structural dissociation theory than DID. There are a few posts on this site that speak about SD.

It could be that you got a diagnosis of DD-NOS (which I have had as well) for now until your therapist or whoever has diagnosed you, has more time to really see what is happening so you can be slated with a more specific diagnosis, or it could be that you display symptoms that span the Dissociative Spectrum.

 

[ILoveLife]

I tend to relate more to structural dissociation theory than DID.

Same. For one reason, dissociation is just recently being studied again, like 20/30 years. Previous to that, there's some conflicting evidence and theories with no scientific background. Every T or pdoc has one opinion, differing from another, if you're not textbook.
DSM and ICD evolve, things change. So... I try to not get hung up on any diagnosis to be honest, particularly if things seem too "everyone has to fit in this particular box".
Van der Hart, Boone and Steele, Janina Fisher and others have studied multiplicity extensively, so I like to read what they have to say about it, and talk to my mental health providers about it. Their opinions and the way they interpret what they read tells me a great deal about what kind of treatment I will get from them.

There's a lot of disbelief multiplicity even exists, particularly in the mental health community. And everyone has a different perception of what dissociation is.

So, my question is does it matter if it's DD-NOS or DID? Or does it matter what your experiences are and how you treat them?
Does a diagnosis help in this case or might hinder? Just something to think about, no need to give answers to this.

You might benefit in reading around the science and research behind dissociation and structural dissociation.

 

[Angelwings]

Same. For one reason, dissociation is just recently being studied again, like 20/30 years. Previous to that, there's some conflicting evidence and theories with no scientific background. Every T or pdoc has one opinion, differing from another, if you're not textbook.
DSM and ICD evolve, things change. So... I try to not get hung up on any diagnosis to be honest, particularly if things seem too "everyone has to fit in this particular box".
Van der Hart, Boone and Steele, Janina Fisher and others have studied multiplicity extensively, so I like to read what they have to say about it, and talk to my mental health providers about it. Their opinions and the way they interpret what they read tells me a great deal about what kind of treatment I will get from them.

There's a lot of disbelief multiplicity even exists, particularly in the mental health community. And everyone has a different perception of what dissociation is.

So, my question is does it matter if it's DD-NOS or DID? Or does it matter what your experiences are and how you treat them?
Does a diagnosis help in this case or might hinder? Just something to think about, no need to give answers to this.

You might benefit in reading around the science and research behind dissociation and structural dissociation.

I am doing my own research and my new therapist does treat DID. Yesterday was the first time I've ever lost time in her office. I wonder what her opinion will be. I will continue to research and try to find information on symptoms that are similar to mine. Could be impossible to find, but maybe not.

 

[theshadowoftheliving]

Have you checked out the ISTDD guidelines for treating dissociative disorders? They can be read here: Link Removed

I found this really helpful when I started my journey of figuring stuff out. Essentially, there are two types of OSDD-1 - "not yet" and "not quite". As in - people who have not been officially diagnosed as DID (and their therapists are using the OSDD label as a more cautionary diagnosis until they personally observe clear switching or executive control of parts or amnesia or whatever else), and then people who don't fully meet the criteria. I started as DDNoS as well and now have DID, although I always had DID, just didn't have the label.

For what it is worth, the treatment guidelines are exactly the same for OSDD-1 and DID, so in many ways, the label is just a label.

Hope that helps.

 

[grit]

I am sorry you are struggling with this. It sounds very serious if you are losing that many hours. I do not want to sound like broken record but I found the "haunted self" book really helpful. I am not DID...I just have dissociation that I perfected for 30yrs....this book made sense to me about how to become aware of my many emotional sides that I thought were fully me...no just parts that everybody has it but for me it was confusing.

anyhow, hope you find relief.

 

[Angelwings]

So, I asked my therapist if I had OSDD-1a, and she said yes. She didn't want me to feel like I had a label, and just wants me to do the trauma therapy and resolve these things together, that it didn't really make a difference. I suppose this is true, but I'm one of those people who will search for answers until I get the right one, and this seems like the right one. The lost time, the reports that I am a younger form of myself while dissociated, differing ages, history of dissociative amnesia, derealization and depersonalization....makes sense to me. I just wish she had told me this on Friday.

 

[Abstract]

Hi Angelwings. I thought you were diagnosed with this before? Have you thought about seeing a psychiatrist for a formal diagnoses? You seem like someone who needs to have answers as much as possible.

 

[digger]

@Angelwings - I've merged your latest thread on this diagnosis with your previous one rather than have two threads open on it.

 

[Angelwings]

@Abstract I was diagnosed with DD-NOS but didn't know enough about it to understand what it meant until I started getting obsessed over missing time and being told that I believed that I was a child, who answered to my name. The more I read, I found the OSSD-1a online and then asked my therapist about that specifically, so, sort of, yes I was diagnosed with this before, but then I thought it meant that I had a dissociative disorder that couldn't be defined.

 

[Angelwings]

@Angelwings - I've merged your latest thread on this diagnosis with your previous one rather than have two threads open on it.

Thanks, I'm sorry. I am trying to get the posts in the right place and often forget about previous posts.

 

[Abstract]

Hi Angelwings.
I seem to have 2 modes. One where I am entirely oblivious with no awareness and then obsessive pedantic knowledge seeking. I think part of that for me is having such a blurry non existant connection to my experiences and self for so long. As that has started to change I don't seem to be as obssesive with researching. Just my story!

The way I understand it the DDNOS diagnoses and its followers can fit a range of things. Including what you seem to be describing.

What does the diagnoses and the understanding of the possibilities of the diagnoses mean to you do you think?

Agreed with some others on here by the way. I found structural dissociation theory helpful for me.