Hello!

[velyrhorde.livejournal.com]

Hi all! *waves*

I'm a writer who has discovered that one of my characters is a multiple -- what can I say, characters can be every bit as surprising as alters themselves, and sometimes I wonder if writers aren't actually some kind of bizarre multiple-personality themselves!

Anyhow, I don't want him to be a cardboard-cutout or some sort of stupid stereotype, so I thought the best way to work on this would be to find some actual multiples who were willing to answer questions. I'm not talking about embarrassing personal questions like "ooo tell me all about your abusive relationships" coz I'm sure there are weirdos who get off on that sort of thing -- I'm interested in how a multiple survives in the "real" world, how the groups handle different situations, integration vs. non-integration as the way to go, how to handle internal arguments, that sort of thing.

If anybody would be interested, feel free to "friend" me or read my journal. If it's OK with people, I may occasionally post a question here and see if anybody wants to answer it. Or if enough people object to that, I could post the question on my journal and have people comment there.

Question 1 (I like to start with the easy ones) - is therapy absolutely necessary to heal, or do some multiples begin to merge/communicate/heal themselves spontaneously? AKA - will Jack (character name) realize that he is a multiple, or will he almost always think he's crazy or weird because of missing time, etc?

Comments

[plaidwater.livejournal.com]

It depends on what you mean by heal - for example, I don't think Ellen, Akyas or I are likely to be healed. We're a bit broken, but that's got nothing to do with our multiplicity.
But, yes, many systems begin communicating on their own - once it clicked for us (about a year ago), we just ... worked. We also didn't have much missing time - well, I can't remember what happened before my birth other than facts and what Anna's been kind enough to reveal over the years.

Ah, found that thread that almost drove us bonkers. Just don't do what Titivillus, Aux-Arcs and a few others talk about here (http://www.nanowrimo.org/modules/newbb/viewtopic.php?topic_id=1083&forum=151). I commented in there a good deal as ObviouslyAngie.

I'd tell you to check out a few books, but at this point (I'm making the assumption that this is NaNo), that would be kind of hard to do.
Here's the thing you have to remember:
We're not all Sibyl. We're not all Eve. We're not all not them. Everyone single system is different. You cannot say "All multiples are split by X-years, but starting no later than Y" because then you run into people like E, V, and A - who were the three who were in here from birth/infancy and people like Hope and Lenore who have only recently become distinctly seperate from Ellen and I, irrespectively.

I am now getting back to my own novel, but feel free to PM me on the NaNo forums, comment back here, or e-mail us at thecoalition at gmail dot com. We don't bite.

-Angie

[velyrhorde.livejournal.com]

"healed" -- I guess I meant "able to function without totally freaking out at every little trigger" - heck, I see so many "normal" people who I honestly think are a helluva lot more non-functional than some "mentally ill" people I know that it's not funny. I pretty much tell everybody I meet that they need therapy, it's a running joke with my coworkers and friends, but I really do think most people should see a therapist at least for six months or so.

Actually, my NaNo novel is science fiction and NOT the multiple character at all -- this is why I think writing is some variation of multiple personality, coz while I'm typing away trying to get my 2000 words for the day, my evil li'l brain is going .... hullo? this is Jack and I just wanted to remind you I'm still here, and what do you think about one of my triggers being the smell of oranges, coz that really makes me bonkers you know ... Meanwhile the rest of my brain is trying to decide how an offworld race of beings are going to plot a rebellion against a computerized government that can basically read their minds.

I need therapy! oh wait, I already have therapy ... I need something else then ... *chuckling maniacally*

[ex-kiota.livejournal.com]

...Nano?

*whimper*

*scurries off to try and write another ten thousands words in the next hour*