DID And Being A Christian

[Epiphany]

To Life Immortal

Hallo. I am a newbie Christian and I have dissociative identity disorder. I would like to know how should a Christian deal with the alters and littles. What if your alters aren't Christian? Will you still go to heaven? What would Lord Jesus think about DID people? Sorry for all the questions, but I was diagnosed with this recently.

Thanks in advice for your help.

Peace and Long Life
~*~ Epiphany ~*~

 

[giverforjesus]

bible says believe and be saved, maybe only that personality will, personally i believe if you pray enough this problem will go awway, although im not educated. also explain to me what you have cuz it seems wierd.

 

[marc]

To Life Immortal

Hallo. I am a newbie Christian and I have

dissociative identity disorder

. I would like to know how should a Christian deal with the alters and littles. What if your alters aren't Christian? Will you still go to heaven? What would Lord Jesus think about DID people? Sorry for all the questions, but I was diagnosed with this recently.

Thanks in advice for your help.

Peace and Long Life
~*~ Epiphany ~*~

What is this?

 

[bjh]

To Life Immortal

Hallo. I am a newbie Christian and I have dissociative identity disorder. I would like to know how should a Christian deal with the alters and littles. What if your alters aren't Christian? Will you still go to heaven? What would Lord Jesus think about DID people? Sorry for all the questions, but I was diagnosed with this recently.

Thanks in advice for your help.

Peace and Long Life
~*~ Epiphany ~*~

1) How do you know your alters aren't Christian?

This begs the question, "What makes a Christian a Christian?"

2) What does the Lord Jesus say about anybody? DID people aren't any better or worse than anybody else. John 3:16, and Romans 3:10, 23, and 5:8-9 apply to everybody, do they not?

 

[Epiphany]

bible says believe and be saved, maybe only that personality will, personally i believe if you pray enough this problem will go awway, although im not educated. also explain to me what you have cuz it seems wierd.

To Life Immortal

DID (dissociative identity disorder) is when you have 2 or more personalities. My therapist, Bette, says that it happens when you're young and going through severe trauma. In my case, I was physically abused, isolated, and terrorized over a long period of time. I tried to run away, but I was punished for it. I couldn't physically escape, so I split into others so I could escape mentally. I have at least 5 alters. 3 are littles. I have big memory laspes and I miss time. I can hear the others speaking to each other and to me. I am aware most of the time when one of them takes over. It's like being in your own car, but you're not driving and you can see what the driver is doing.

Peace and Long Life
~*~ Epiphany ~*~

 

[Epiphany]

1) How do you know your alters aren't Christian?

This begs the question, "What makes a Christian a Christian?"

2) What does the Lord Jesus say about anybody? DID people aren't any better or worse than anybody else. John 3:16, and Romans 3:10, 23, and 5:8-9 apply to everybody, do they not?

To Life Immortal

One of them is a very angry teen. He says mean things about people and sometimes wants to hurt them. He doesn't like children nor teenagers. He scares me at times and I work hard to keep him under control. I don't think he's a Christian.

The littles are children. One is too young to understand. The older one does understand. I don't know if she's a Christian or not.

As to 2) I asked the question because I am a newbie Christian and I don't know what to think about this. Some people think mental/emotional illness is demonic possesion. Others know it is an illness or a condition that happens to people. I know what John 3:16 says; I have to look up the other verses that you posted. Thanks for answering

Peace and Long Life
~*~ Epiphany ~*~

 

[marc]

To Life Immortal

One of them is a very angry teen. He says mean things about people and sometimes wants to hurt them. He doesn't like children nor teenagers. He scares me at times and I work hard to keep him under control. I don't think he's a Christian.

The littles are children. One is too young to understand. The older one does understand. I don't know if she's a Christian or not.

As to 2) I asked the question because I am a newbie Christian and I don't know what to think about this.

Some people think mental/emotional illness is demonic possesion. Others know it is an illness or a condition that happens

to people. I know what John 3:16 says; I have to look up the other verses that you posted. Thanks for answering

Peace and Long Life
~*~ Epiphany ~*~

Sometimes it is demonic possession, but not if you truly accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior and received the holy spirit.
When it is a brain malfunction, as you are right, it definitely is sometimes, I don't know what to suggest. I would be lying if I said I knew.
One thing I do know for sure though, if your therepist is not a true born again believer in Jesus Christ, you are wasting your time.

 

[Epiphany]

Sometimes it is demonic possession, but not if you truly accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior and received the holy spirit.
When it is a brain malfunction, as you are right, it definitely is sometimes, I don't know what to suggest. I would be lying if I said I knew.
One thing I do know for sure though, if your therepist is not a true born again believer in Jesus Christ, you are wasting your time.

To Life Immortal

I've been going to Bette for a while; I didn't ask her what religion she follows. It is hard to get a good therapist when you don't have money. I don't ask a doctor/therapist what their relgion is. I need their help, their advice on how to deal with this.

I know there are Christian psychologists/psychiatrists, but then I have to find one that takes my insurance and deals with DID. I am blessed to have found help where I am going to now.

Peace and Long Life
~*~ Epiphany ~*~

 

[bjh]

To Life Immortal

As to 2) I asked the question because I am a newbie Christian and I don't know what to think about this. Some people think mental/emotional illness is demonic possesion. Others know it is an illness or a condition that happens to people. I know what John 3:16 says; I have to look up the other verses that you posted. Thanks for answering

Peace and Long Life
~*~ Epiphany ~*~

Don't take this the wrong way, but I'm glad you had to look the other verses up. You see, the best place I can send you for direction is to God's Word. So between that and prayer, I pray you will find your answers.

I'm not sure which Bible version you use, but the following verses are my prayer for you. Feel free to look them up as you like.

"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit" (Romans 15:13, NASB)

"Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:7-8, NASB)

In Him,

== B. J. H. ==

 

[klewlis]

Wow, that's a really interesting and difficult question.

It seems to me that if it is caused by early childhood trauma, it is an emotional problem and not a mental one--what I mean is that it is not a malfunction of the brain, but stemmed in the abuse you suffered as a child. This is good news because emotional trauma, though devastating, can be worked through and overcome, whereas physical brain defects usually cannot. If your therapist is good she will help you work through the emotional traumas that you experienced and help you learn how to relate to other people and yourself in healthy ways, thus *slowly* untangling the damage that was done when you were little. It may take a long time but I firmly believe that with God's help and healing, and with wise counsel from your therapist and friends, you can overcome this and live a normal, healthy life with ONE personality--the one God created for you before people messed it up.

Please accept my heartfelt empathy for your situation and the pain that you have had to deal with. I work with lots of people who have grown up in horribly damaging homes and my heart breaks every time I meet a new one, because of the pain that they have had to bear. But they are also some of the strongest, most determined people I know, enduring things that most of us can't imagine, and still able to get up and try again, every day. Be encouraged, don't be afraid to face the things that you have buried, and absolutely trust God to help and comfort you. Be well!

 

[Crazy Liz]

I have a friend who sometimes talks about "sheep in goats' clothing." He is referring to Matthew 25. What he means is that there are people walking around acting like goats because they don't yet know they are sheep. I'm not sure exactly how that applies to DID, but it came to my mind when you said your "alters" are not Christian. Maybe they just don't know it yet.

You might ask your therapist what she thinks of you praying for your alters. If you do ask and are willing to share, I would be interested in hearing what she says about that.

Jesus' discussion of separating the sheep from the goats may bring up different levels of meaning for you than it does for most of the rest of us. Have you read the gospel of Matthew? How do you feel about that chapter?

The gospels, especially Mark, also describe many exorcisms performed by Jesus. Without suggesting right now that you go to an exorcist for help, I wonder what these stories evoke for you.

Do you have a good, sympathetic pastor or pastoral counselor you can work with in addition to your therapist? If they do not work at cross purposes, you might find this beneficial. If I were working with you as a pastoral counselor, I would have you read and reflect on the gospels, and would want to discuss your reflections with you.

Sorry I don't have answers. I hope something I've said here proves helpful in some way. I feel the Holy Spirit led me to these particular questions and associations.

I'm praying for you.

 

[corgscot]

I am not sure what to think of this either. I am of the opinion that DID is probably a form of demonic possession, but I am not sure. I believe that sometimes we can end splitting or fragmenting when we are not Christians, but the Bible is pretty clear that we are to love the lord our God with ALL our heart mind, soul and strength.... That doesn't leave very much room for these alters. I also want you to know that the Bible says that those whom the sets free (that is you if you have truly let Jesus in your life) are free indeed. That means that your alters DO NOT have control over you. If I were in your situation I would memorize these scriptures and make sure and pray through them in Jesus name when you are "in the car but not at the steering wheel".

I would definitely talk to a Christian Counselor even if it means the trouble of dealing with insurance. Any other type of couselor comes from a strictly humanistic point of view and will not try and interpret your condition in light of the scripture and what God wants for you life. God wants you free....

 

[Epiphany]

To Life Immortal

Hallo. I am a newbie Christian and I have dissociative identity disorder. I would like to know how should a Christian deal with the alters and littles. What if your alters aren't Christian? Will you still go to heaven? What would Lord Jesus think about DID people? Sorry for all the questions, but I was diagnosed with this recently.

Thanks in advice for your help.

Peace and Long Life
~*~ Epiphany ~*~

To Life Immortal

I would like to thank everyone who pray for me; I can feel a difference. I am realizing that DID is a blessing in disguise, as I could have become insane and not able to function at all. My therapist, Bette, says that the alters and littles are a part of me and I should get to know them better, even the angry one.

I am not good with strong emotions like anger and love. I don't really know what love is. One of the reason why I converted to Eastern Orthodox Christianity from Paganism was because of what I read about Lord Jesus and how He cares for people and wants to help. I don't understand the Crucifixion and things like that. I don't understand why it had to happen.

When I was a Pagan, I told people that I ccouldn't accept salvation based on injustice. Now that I'm Christian, I have problems with accepting love from God as well as people, but I'm trying to work on that.

Anyway it's getting off topic but I just wanted to say thank you for your prayers and advice.

Peace and Long Life
~*~ Epiphany ~*~

 

[thereselittleflower]

Hi Epiphany

You are Eastern Orthodox, right? I am asking because of the icon you show is the Eastern Orthodox icon here at CF .

What does your priest say? Is he aware of this?

If you haven't spoken to him yet or sought counsel from him yet, please do so . . some of the wisest counsel you will get will be from a priest . .

I think he will be able to do far more to reassure you and help you than any of us here can . .

Have you gone to TAW . . The Ancient Way forum here at CF? Please put this to them as well .. there are many people there who can offer good advice and they are Eastern Orthodox as well . .


Peace in Him!

 

[thereselittleflower]

The other thing I would suggest that you do is go and spend time in prayer on a regular basis . . weekly or more often, at your Church in front of the tabernacle . . the Real Presence of Jesus is there . . there is healing in the Presesnce of Jesus . .

I had some issues that I wasn't even really aware were issues until they were gone . .

And I regularly spent time in front of the Eucharist in the Adoration Chapel at my Catholic Church for months . . one day, my problem was gone . . I suddenly realized it wasn't there any more . . just vanished . .


Peace in Him!

 

[Debbi]

I don't think that alters are demons. DID is a mental illness, why didn't you post it in the depression and mental illness threads? I was diagnosed with a milder form of DID before along with other mental illnesses. Some churches, they thought I had demons but I didn't, I just acted differently than what they thought was normal. Do you ever totally not remember stuff for periods of time? I did that at times too. I have blocked out memories of parts of the severe abuse too. I have alters too, didn't ones. Do they ever get you to do things like cut or self harm when you try to remember the abuse? Ever feel like you walked out on yourself and felt strangely totally alone? Or had 2 alters come out at the same time? Sometimes I feel like I totally have not hear the gospel and pray for the ones inside for salvation or get saved again while I'm someone else. Do you have the core you, the one that goes by your birth name or did that one get killed in the abuse? Sorry, I ask too many questions. I didn't get much response when I asked before about DID maybe you will get more help.

 

[Epiphany]

Hi Epiphany

You are Eastern Orthodox, right? I am asking because of the icon you show is the Eastern Orthodox icon here at CF .

What does your priest say? Is he aware of this?

If you haven't spoken to him yet or sought counsel from him yet, please do so . . some of the wisest counsel you will get will be from a priest . .

I think he will be able to do far more to reassure you and help you than any of us here can . .

Have you gone to TAW . . The Ancient Way forum here at CF? Please put this to them as well .. there are many people there who can offer good advice and they are Eastern Orthodox as well . .


Peace in Him!

To Life Immortal

I am in the process of moving to another parish of different jurisdiction. I spoke with Father over the phone about service hours and language of liturgy. I will visit this church tomorrow. (Su 15 Feb 04)

I do not plan on telling the priest about DID. It's one thing to tell people here on CF;I am anonymous here. I don't tell people about this because I am still learning about how to deal with this and people have wrong ideas about mental illness. There is a stigma associated with this condition. I would rather keep it to myself. I've been rejected too many times for various reasons and I don't wish for this part of my life to be public. I hope you understand.

If after a long time, I feel as if I could tell priest about this, I would. It is not easy for me to speak of this even with the therapist and doctor. I only told them about the way I feel in January 2004. I was afraid that if I told the doctor, they would take my freedom away. I don't wish to be locked up in a home; I've been isolated from people most of my life and I want to learn how to socialize with others. I only told the therapist because my lawyer knows about the DID and he persuaded me to disclose everything. I'm glad I did; the therapist understood and I've met other people who struggle with the same challenge.

I joined CF in late January of this year and I am a regular poster in the Eastern Orthodox forum. I have not 'come out the closet' there. I may in the future when I have more courage and faith to do so.

Peace and Long Life
~*~ Epiphany ~*~

 

[Epiphany]

The other thing I would suggest that you do is go and spend time in prayer on a regular basis . . weekly or more often, at your Church in front of the tabernacle . . the Real Presence of Jesus is there . . there is healing in the Presesnce of Jesus . .

I had some issues that I wasn't even really aware were issues until they were gone . .

And I regularly spent time in front of the Eucharist in the Adoration Chapel at my Catholic Church for months . . one day, my problem was gone . . I suddenly realized it wasn't there any more . . just vanished . .


Peace in Him!

To Life Immortal

Amen! I agree with you strongly. Being bipolar and having DID keeps me praying. One of the reasons why I've come to realize that these challenges are blessings in disguise is because I know that I can not do this alone. I need God's help and guidance. It is also why I've been trying to find a church that said the liturgy in my own language. I felt lost and alien in the church I was baptised and chrismated in. I'm not Greek, and even though I'm very good with foreign languages, I just couldn't learn the 'music' of the Greek language. I've found an Antiochian church closer to home which uses English.

I haven't had communion nor gone to confession in a long time. Now that I've found a church, this will be correctly shortly. I enjoy receiving the Mystery of the Eucharist; it is my favourite part of the Divine Liturgy. Orthodox do not have an Adoration of the Sacrament like Roman Catholics do, but I understand what you mean. I believe in the Real Presence of Our Lord within the bread and wine and that Lord Jesus can give us strength to overcome and survive.

I would like to visit an Adoration Service at a Catholic Church one day. I only learned about this since coming to CF.

Thank you for your posts; they are deeply appreciated.

Peace and Long Life
~*~ Epiphany ~*~

 

[Epiphany]

I don't think that alters are demons. DID is a mental illness, why didn't you post it in the depression and mental illness threads? I was diagnosed with a milder form of DID before along with other mental illnesses. Some churches, they thought I had demons but I didn't, I just acted differently than what they thought was normal. Do you ever totally not remember stuff for periods of time? I did that at times too. I have blocked out memories of parts of the severe abuse too. I have alters too, didn't ones. Do they ever get you to do things like cut or self harm when you try to remember the abuse? Ever feel like you walked out on yourself and felt strangely totally alone? Or had 2 alters come out at the same time? Sometimes I feel like I totally have not hear the gospel and pray for the ones inside for salvation or get saved again while I'm someone else. Do you have the core you, the one that goes by your birth name or did that one get killed in the abuse? Sorry, I ask too many questions. I didn't get much response when I asked before about DID maybe you will get more help.

To Life Immortal

I did post in another section and got a few responses.

I have a moderate form of DID. I have at least 5 alters. 3 are children, 1 is an adolescent. I am aware when they come out. For example, Baby was crying when I woke up one day. She was crying because we had a fever and we are growing 2 new molars. I called Bette and told her about this, as well as the DID online group I belong to. They said that Baby is a part of me and if I were a baby and not feeling well, I would cry too.

One of the littles wanted a discarded toy which was in the middle of the street. She wanted to pick it up and play with it. I said no, it's dirty; i'll get you a toy. Bette says I should buy toys and stuff for them. I feel strange as a 41 yo woman buying toys for myself, lol.

I have serious memory and perception problems. I am in the process of applying for SSI Disability. I was at the Social Security Office for an interview. The lady asked me questions about my past work history and I couldn't remember it. I got a little upset about that and one of the little ones came out. She was talking nice and friendly with the interviewer and giggled a couple of times. I don't think Mrs. Webster noticed; I hope not.

When I was younger I hurt myself. I don't understand why I did it. I think it was because the pain made me feel something or maybe the mean teen, another of my alters, just didn't like me.

I have felt what you describe, dissociation and a lost feeling. Feelings that you are not totally human or an alien of some kind.

I don't know if my alters are Christian. The mean teen is not. He is angry all the time and wants to hurt people. He will say bad things about people, especially children and teenagers. He is afraid that they will hurt us. Bette says I should try to understand him and not be afraid. He has a right to be angry because people have hurt him.

The person who is typing this now is the core me. I am the thinker, the writer, the one who expresses the thoughts and tries to keep things under control. Rarely does one of the alters post. They have on other forums and I don't think people notice the differences. Sometimes they use different fonts when they really want people to know they post something instead of me.

I remember some of the abuse/trauma/isolation. I was hunted down by older children and teenagers when I was younger for about 3 years. I had a concussion when I was 8. I don't remember much of adolescense and grade and junior high. My memory is like a defective hard drive with bad sectors on it. (Sorry, I'm a computer geek)

I do remember when I became a Christian. I was a Pagan of the Germanic (Asatru) then Egyptian traditions before I converted to Christianity. My testimony is posted in the testimony threads.

I appreciate you posting to this thread. Sometimes, I feel like i'm the only one in the world with this condition. It is good to share with another who knows what it is like.

Peace and Long Life
~*~ Epiphany ~*~

 

[Debbi]

Epiphany,

You quoted my posted but said "Life Immortal". Are you talking to me or someone else. It looked like you were answering my post, though. I'm Debbi, not Life Immortal. Sorry, you just confused me.

Debbi