I'll start with the reason I disagree. Many people with DID live their lives in secrecy, which is half the reason why it can take so long to diagnose the disorder. When alters start making their own Facebook pages things can start getting very complicated. For instance, alters see themselves as how they 'really look'. They don't see themselves as a variation of the physical body, they see themselves as different people. Some alters can get very confused by this if they don't understand yet that they are all part of the same body. Photos can be confusing. Some of my alters have made their own profiles and one in particular was quite upset that people didn't see her the way she sees herself. This meant she ended up searching online for a photo that she thought was close to resembling her 'true face'. Not only is this confusing for the alters, but also for the people they end up communicating with online! It's not too bad if people you know know about your DID but what if they're strangers that they've decided to make friends with? What about the private messages you don't know they're having? What about any meetings they're planning to arrange that, again, you don't know about? This goes back to the complexity of being a multiple!
In other ways though, there are some pros to the whole idea. It allows alters to communicate with each other and also to communicate with other people. They have the option of being themselves and they have the option to be more open with one another and help other alters who don't yet understand the concept of being a multiple. In my experience alone, having alters on Facebook has been helpful as I've also met other people with DID and the alters all friend request each other and can talk openly without being scared of being judged. Also, since my first alter made a Facebook, we've also found out that an unknown alter has now felt comfortable revealing herself. I guess the Internet is easier to use rather than face to face contact. I can say that I much prefer writing things down rather than speaking to people!
Overall, depending on your situation, alters on Facebook can be a good thing. To me it is, mostly, because I'm actively trying to raise awareness of the disorder. If people want to be friends with my alters then that's perfectly fine with me. What surprised me was that a shy alter who didn't want to be known has found it easier to be on Facebook and work from there. Unfortunately for her she has no idea she's a multiple but I know she is having conversations with Clarissa (another alter) who is trying to explain, to no avail as yet.
Have you got alters that have their on social networking profiles? Have they worked for you or have they just caused chaos? Opinions are welcome either on the DID Campaign page or on this blog.
No comments:
Post a Comment