Could dissociative identity disorder be connected to astral projection? Are we leaving our bodies and experiencing possession?
I would like to approach my topic from three directions and see if they meet in the middle. Would you like to take the journey with me?
When I speak of making connections, it’s not merely from the curiosity that I hold within, it’s also because I have been searching for answers the entirety of my life for strange things that happened to me. So, let’s start with the basics – dissociative identity disorder.
Formerly known as Multiple Personality Disorder, DID is a form of dissociative disorder. Dissociative disorder, alone, is the disruption of memory, mental functions, and consciousness, but with the addition of the identity disorder, victims experience a change in identity, randomly, even to the point of complete separation from the original human “soul”.
There is a complete and utter split between the host personality, in favor of alternate versions.
As fascinating as this may be, dissociative identity disorder can be dangerous. It can also display facets of astral projection (consciousness leaving the body).
Astral projection, although slightly different from OOBEs (basic out of body experiences), is the operation in which the mind leaves the body with a purpose-driven intent. There are two theories on this occurrence, one being a phasing belief and the other being a mystical one.
The phasing belief says that astral travel is simply the mind moving to other locales in the consciousness, other radio stations, or channels, so to speak. In this belief, the mind never leaves the body at all, just learns how to phase into new regions of the mind.
In the mystical belief, however, we see the classic out of body travel. The mind actually does leave the body, for undetermined amounts of time, and returns to its physical state later on. During the mystical astral projection, the mind knows it is separate from the body but still feels attached, usually in the form of a long silver “umbilical” cord.
The classic interpretation of possession has spiritual roots. Religious beliefs speak of possession as a form of an evil entity inhabiting the human body. There are other forms of possession, however, instances where disembodied humans enter bodies other than their own, either in an attempt to gain a better body or in accidental circumstances.
Either way, possession is something up for debate, some believe it is real, while others believe it is just another creative twist of the human imagination.
Now, I wish to get personal, as I want to do at times. I am a survivor of sexual abuse – 6 years of relentless attack from another family member, which occurred between the age of 4 and 10 years. I endured this hardship beyond the knowledge of any other adult family member, or at least that’s what they claim.
Something else happened during this time and it defies logic. Simultaneously and some time well after the onset of my abuse, I began to experiment with astral projection.
At some point, either before or after my experimentation, I started to experience what the doctors call “psychosis”. Of course, this diagnosis wasn’t present then, I just started to see things and decided to call them my “imaginary friends.” I experienced shadowy figures and doppelgangers of myself.
Now, for just a moment, let me rest my tired typing fingers. Have I lost you yet? No? Good.
Soon after these occurrences, and during one particular episode of abuse, I started to split. Have you ever seen that movie “Split”? Yes, that’s a severe case. Anyway, I began to develop independent feelings, personalities, and traits, which at times would argue with me incessantly.
When my abuser was active, I would leave my body and watch something else enter. All the while, I watched from above. It was probably one of the most horrifying incidences of my childhood.
After the abuse, and as I carried on with my childhood and adolescence, I started to experience the split more often. It came easier and the alternate versions of myself started to take on a more solid persona, a name, a different color of the eyes, and a strong personality all its own.
It took a long time to grow accustomed to my condition, of which I told no one, but after therapists, doctors, and child psychologists poked and prodded, I decided to bury it deeper, hiding all the supernatural and paranormal evidence from sight.
There was no way they would ever believe me, and so I learned to live in darkness.
There is a scientific standpoint and then there is a supernatural standpoint. In all honesty, they may never be reconciled. I was diagnosed with Manic Depression in 1993, then diagnosed formerly with the Bipolar disorder with psychosis, anxiety disorder, PTSD, and OCD. I take several medications to alleviate these strange symptoms and actions.
I cannot say, in good conscience, that I no longer see things that shouldn’t be there. I am sure, however, that I am the soul that as originally planted within this body when I was created. I am not sure if I am the only one present residing within.
Science says this is psychosis, schizophrenia, etc, but I am not so sure. I remember what I did as a victim in the throes of sexual violation, and I remember the times I read those Omni magazines and practiced tirelessly to leave my body. I remember that I was successful as well.
I am not sure what this means, but I see the connection. Whether it is spiritual, or if it is a figment of my damaged psyche, I may never know. I invite your opinions.
Thank you.
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Hey, it is a very interesting story. Basically, you already know the answer. Due to your childhood trauma, in order to protect your identity, you "split" at some point to avoid a direct harm to your soul. You are also able to see shadow figures, and they are basically dark type of energy that exists in other unseen dimensions since our reality is multidimensional. I have a feeling that you pretty much recovered from your experience, but this trauma thing is hunting you all your life and preventing to enjoy your life. Astral projection itself doesn't lead to possession since it can be absolutely spontaneous. However, if your soul is getting into the lower astral dimensions, it can be pretty much possessed by entities that reside there. I never go to the astral planes on purpose, because of the risk of possession. But it does happen spontaneously at times. I would recommend simple protection and visualization techniques. Dark entities hate white pure light, it damages them. So visualize white, gold or blue light daily around yourself. Visualize that this bright light is coming from above. Visualize your protection through all your body and how it leaves you and see what happens. You have nothing to loose, just explore and learn new things :) Also, don't keep this feeling of hate toward your abuser, forgive him, he is just a weak human being, maybe sick. Just try to let it go from inside, otherwise it will eat you alive.
Thank you, July
I have struggled in this area for years, coupled with my curiosity about the afterlife. Something is always pulling me to other realms, almost like a message that needs to come through. Most of the time, I go about my daily routine and push the entities back, but they are always there, I can feel them. As I work through this, I hope that I can find the answer to the madness. Healing is not always easy, but I will not give up.
To me it seems like jinn possession.
I guess it is a possibility.
A very interesting story Sherrie. I came here because I recently had an encounter with a person that I believed had DID. The experience proved to be traumatic to me, and also somewhat spiritual in nature. I can't recount the entire story, but as a person who had very little faith in anything a few months ago, i tell you with certainty that the "other" you experience is a demon, or several. It is also possible that you also have fractured pockets of personality in your traumatized mind, i don't know, but in the course of my story it first traumatized my mind and then tried to enter, and i felt that same "splitting" in my mind. It is no longer with me, as I intuitively knew what was happening, and I prayed, and I commanded it to leave, I cried out and God removed it from me and he healed that trauma, which was like a cut in my brain, burning, neurological shock, panic at times. I was shown many things in that healing, about my friend and the nature of what afflicted this person. I know it/they force my friend to "timeshare" the body. At least one of the spirits is not unique to him, Ive seen it in others, it seems to move through people by the use of a certain drug. I'm not sure he is as certain which one is himself. I am not promoting a religion, but the bible is the word of God, and everything it says about demonic possession i have found to be true in the last several weeks. It is a statement of the spiritual nature of our reality. I believe because I have seen, a lesser blessing, but a blessing none the less.
"The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles." Psalm 34:17
Cry to him.
I seem to go in circles with this. I have sought healing in all sorts of spiritualities, religions etc, but she is always with me. She has been with me since my early childhood. I push her down when she is causing trouble, but as soon as someone threatens my happiness, she comes forward, strong and angry. I know this sounds absolutely crazy, but for a child, this was just a friend I found on the playground one day.
Even earlier than her arrival, I met him...a dark thing, a shadow moving between the trees. He came and he whispered for me to do bad things. Of course, I was smart enough to see his suggestions as evil, and so I didn't do most of these things. I got into fights because of him although. These were the things I did do.
The third one came in adulthood after a friend of mine was murdered. Now an image of her comes randomly and comforts me. When I need it most, she enters me and I am her.
I didn't ask for these things. I was a small child. I was traumatized by years of abuse until they came to me. I want everyone to know they are not alone.I also want families to understand that what we deal with is real. It's almost impossible to deal with alone.
Thanks for the read! Very interesting! :)
I have DID and for the most part, don’t like to view it as possession. We like to work together and help as much as we can. When we aren’t working together as a team, it gets VERY hectic so I guess I could see why people say that.. At times, nobody gets along and it’s VERY frustrating, but there are other times where we work AMAZING together and can accomplish more than most people would in a day. As for spirituality, I feel like I’m way more connected with God and the universe than most. Not sure if I stand alone though with that or not!
I guess I’m only commenting to say that the last comment probably wasn’t DID related. Most people with DID are caretakers and have big hearts. :) AND DONT FORGET! We generally have higher IQs since our brains did this amazing thing so we can survive. 🤗
Cole,
I feel like I am still struggling to survive. I wonder if she and he and the other one will be enough to stand for me. I think there could be others, but as of yet, they have no names. I generally don't talk about this part and this is why these comments have gone unanswered for so long. The truth is, I always seem to get into places where I need them desperately. People abuse me and disrespect me until I've had enough. My origin is a rather calm person who gives hundreds of chances to people who do wrong toward me. But there's one in there who comes forward for one reason and one reason only. That is to cut away people who are no good for me. So, while others threaten to leave or use narcissistic weapons on me, I stay calm, trying so hard to be humble. I ask them to be patient with me and forgive me when I have hard days. When I've been through too much, this one comes, and this one says no more. There are no threats. It's just over. I always try to avoid this day because it feels so cold.
My 14 year old daughter is in the same exact situation. Victim of sexual abuse at the age of five and various childhood traumas, she has been in and out of psychiatric hospitals since 11 years old for suicide and self harm. At some point came the dissociation, the visual and auditory hallucinations. These often involved other "people" and voices saying the most random things and literally calling for help. Shadow figures, angels, orbs have started to come in this year. As well as the realization that she can not only traditionally dissociate, but leave her body, only to be connected by what she describes as a "white rope." Because of her age, there is no official diagnosis, but the terms Bipolar, Dissociative Disorder, Borderline Personality Disorder, all with psychotic features have been thrown around. And she also suffers from debilitating anxiety and PTSD. She is on several medications as well and has been on just about every medication there is to the point that they have her on lithium now and a low dose of seroquel. But she still things. She still "dissociates" in spite of the medications and until recently when I decided it was time to look into the spiritual and alternative side of her 'illness" she was living in fear. I have come to the conclusion that my daughter although mentally ill by traditional standards due to past traumas, has also had a spiritual awakening which has awoken amazing abilities in her. Most people who claim they are psychic have a background of some sort of trauma or great loss, whether physical or mental, that accompanies them with their "opening up." It's a unique process for each person. Some people it happens all at once, or for others, like myself, it occurs with several different traumas throughout the life span and the abilities become stronger with each one. And it can be hard to determine which came first....the abilties or the mental illness. kind of like what came first, the chicken or the egg? Did you have these abilities before your abuse, but were too young to remember and the abuse simply triggered them, or made them stronger or you simply remembered them because of the abuse? Or where these abilties indeed triggered by the fact that you became mentally ill? You may never know. But I believe that by training my daughter about the spiritual world as well as the physical one, she is actually becoming more stable as she learns to see it as something amazing and that can be worked with, as opposed to something horrible and undesireable. Now I do believe there are people who are straight up mentally ill. I don't think that when an individual is unable to maintain relationships or function in any capacity that they are a person who is experiencing any kind of paranormal ability, but are rather truly mentally ill. I suggest anyone who questions their illness...whether simply anxiety, addictions, or even just depression, if nothing seems to be working, consider the spiritual. That's what we have done after 3 years of struggling through with psychologists and psychiatrists and medical doctors, I felt it was time for an alternative approach. And much to my suprise when I mentioned this to professionals, they agreed it could not hurt. You will be surprised how many will not bat an eye when you tell them your suspicions of spiritual attack or ability....we were actually referred to an energy healer/psychic by our current liscensed family therapist who has been working with my daughter on managing her abilities (I don't call them hallucinations). Anyway, thank you for this and i hope that others share their stories.
There are a few things I remember from before the abuse. I remember catching bugs and butterflies and talking to them. I remember once I found a butterfly with a broken wing. My father was building a convenience store and he had just laid the cinder blocks (these are the blocks at the base of most small foundations) (They have holes in the top of them.) I was looking for a place to hide the butterfly so that something wouldnt eat her, and so I hid her in one of the cinder blocks. The next day my father had built upon the cinder blocks and shut my butterfly up in the darkness. For some reason that traumatized me.
A few weeks later, my cousin started to sexually abuse me. I don't know for sure what all this means, but I feel as though it's something terrible and gut wrenching...and I was supposed to realize that I was that butterfly forever trapped in darkness.
Reading this just gave me hope again. Hope in humanity. You are an unbelievably amazing parent first of all. When I first started to read your comment I was feeling so bad for your little girl reading about all the meds and them not doing anything or making it worsen. Then you said, so I started teaching her about the spiritual side of life.... you need to give yourself some credit. Screw those doctors you and your girl do what works for you. Your right she has had a spiritual awakening and each awakening is so unique to each soul and their experiences throughout lifetimes not just this one. It's going to be hard to hear but she went through that trauma for a reason. In order to align and connect with her higher self/God. And she chose you specifically as a parent in order to guide her through this. If her and you can keep strong and try everything you can to eliminate any type of fear. She is going to go on to do some really amazing things for this world. 🫶