Sunday, July 4, 2010

Sometimes I don't make sense

Got in the car this afternoon to drive the (outer, in real life [IRL]) family out to lunch. While backing out of the garage, I was suddenly overcome by... well, it's really hard to describe, but... suddenly feeling like someone else.

Like we were so close, I could feel what he (yes, he) felt. Like sudden passion for things that didn't interest me one bit only seconds before. A swell of emotions, a weird kind of pressure through my body. I had to stop the car and close my eyes, chase whoever it was. Because while the feelings were familiar---I've "met" him before---I don't actually know who he is. Or how to talk to him, or how to get him to come out. I don't even know his name.

And then, just as quickly as he was there, he was gone. I checked with others inside that I can talk to easily. Shea has worked together with him, had limited co-consciousness when working on specific tasks, but she doesn't know his name or who he is either.

What I do know is that he's not from childhood. He's more recent, maybe the past 15 years or so. Did we create a new alter 15 years ago that I don't know about? How? How did we do that?

We did it for grad school, when we needed someone for a very specific course of study and we needed not to be triggered. Leslie was with us for a few years, came out for work and nothing else, and then was kind of quietly reabsorbed by the system when we no longer held that type of job. We were all ok with that.

But this? It's baffling.

I feel like I'm a whole person. I have medical problems that others in the system don't have. I have a way of doing things that others don't. And it frustrates me to no end when they mess up my systems for doing things, like paying the bills. At the same time, if I'm having a hard time opening a jar, I can ask John for help. He can usually open it. Sometimes I can get help from someone inside who's left-handed (I'm right-handed). It's like doing hand-over-hand exercises that one might do with a young child or in physical therapy, except his hand is inside mine. And his muscles are stronger. Almost like he puts on my hand as a glove.

I know, it doesn't really make sense to me, either. Except that it does, sort of. It's my life.

So, after sending Shea to chase down whoever came close to me in the driveway, I continued the drive to lunch, and realized that my vision wasn't doing very well. It's been flaky for a while now. I really have to get my vision checked, except that I think it's my eyes, not the body's eyes. How do I explain that to the ophthalmologist? Fortunately, Liam offered to drive, and after he took over (and moved the seat back and adjusted the rear view mirror---which means I have to adjust it back again), I peeked out and he could see just fine. Of course he could. Grr.

Lunch went fine. I actually remember all of it. And I asked my husband on the way home if he'd noticed any switching. Oh yes, he said. Someone else drove us to lunch, he said. I asked how he could tell. "Posture, driving style, the set of the face," he said. "And energy. Definitely male."

When I asked him to clarify a bit more, he said, "There's just a distinct difference between masculine energy and feminine energy. Yours is feminine. On the way to lunch, it was definitely masculine. No question."

I could sense TA nearby and heard/felt her question, "How can I make up masculine energy? How can I make this up if I don't know what I'm doing?" TA still doesn't accept the multiplicity, even after nearly 20 years. We cornered her one time and told her that if she was making us all up, she could un-make us, too. And then we didn't let her out for over a week. We kept saying, if you're in control, if you're making it all up, you should have control of your body, your memory, even your wallet. And then we had a field day in the mall, just to make a point. She accepted us for a while, but then she seemed to reject us again.

I know, it doesn't make sense to me, either. Except it does, sort of.

Now I'm back home and I'm bone-tired. I have work to do. Work-work, as opposed to housework or yardwork, that I wanted to have done before business hours open on Tuesday. But I'm so tired. I can't concentrate. All I want to do right now is sleep.

-Chris

2 comments:

  1. OMG! It's like you are in my mind. (Join the club, lol). You have described my world - my life, in such an intimate way that no other could unless she's living it.

    My therapist just started a DID group. I'm the first client she's ever had with it and she's in an intense course to learn how to treat it. Plus she says she learns so much from me that they can't teach.

    Now she has DID clients sent to her from other clinicians. There are now enough bodies for a group. I am the most senior in the group in terms of therapy and that's only 1-2 years (for the DID).

    Since the others have had no therapy or met anyone else, I'd love if I can read this post at group. I had the wonderful opportunity to be in a 6 week inpatient trauma program with others with DID so this isn't completely brand new.

    thanks!

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  2. Happy to hear from you! Your username caught my attention (echad). Yes, absolutely, you may read this in your group. I'm honored. Thanks! :-)

    In some ways, because we've been "dealing" with just living life as a multiple, not doing active therapy on the DID anymore (until about a year ago, but that's another story), it's not new and different and weird... but then there's been a lot more switching in the past 2 years and it's become an issue.

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