Dissociative Identity Disorder: How it Physically Changes the Brain

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Dissociative identity disorder, previously known as multiple personality disorder, is a mental disorder where a person splits into multiple identities, usually to cope with a great loss or abuse. The person will separate themselves from the traumatic memories to survive, causing their brain to split into multiple personalities to allow for their primary identity to repress the damaging flashbacks. The disorder causes the areas in the brain called the hippocampus, which controls memory and emotions, and the Amygdala, which controls emotional reactions and memory, to shrink. Cerebral blood flow, the blood flow to the brain, is often less in patients with DID. This lack of blood flow to the areas of the brain controlling emotions, memories, and decision making are often another factor to the cause of dissociative identity disorder. When people switch personalities there can be physical changes in the different personalities, including a change in eye sight or a change in the language they speak. Different personalities also can have different genders, ages, names, personal history, or habits.