(Tumblr glitched trying to send this as an ask, so here!)
Hi! Thank you for being respectful, and I will respond in kind. Please take your time reading this, as it is a lot of new information. I hope ive answered all of your questions!
So. Systems! The current most accurate source for how systems form is the Theory Of Structural Dissociation (TOSD). The TOSD states that in early childhood the personality is made of 'ego states. These ego states are very undeveloped, and hold the 'needs' of the child. For example: 'happy, 'sad 'hungry 'sleepy. They aren't necessarily emotions, just focused around what the child needs.
For the average person, between ages 4-11 (although commonly toward the end of this), the ego states fuse into one whole personality! After it has been fused, it cannot break apart. This is what happens to most people.
However, when a child experiences trauma in the age 4-11 range, they may form dissociative barriers between these ego states. As an example, if they are neglected at dinner time, there'll be a barrier between the state that focuses on food and the state that focuses on parental affection, so that the child can get the affection from their parent without stressing about meal time.
These dissociative barriers prevent the typical fusing of ego states. This is how alters or parts torm.
This is the most scientifically correct model for how parts form! There is no accepted study for parts forming in any way that excludes trauma. It simply has no scientific backing, and all the properly studied evidence points to the fact that parts are formed by trauma and dissociation.
The parts formed via the TOSD method are found in CDDs, complex dissociative disorders. These are always 'traumagenic"- i.e formed by trauma.
There are a few disorders that fit under 'CDD'-generally, DID, OSDD, and P-DID (which will be explained later)
'Endogenic' would refer to parts that formed without trauma. This has zero relevant scientific study and everything points to the other explanation. The endogenic label would fit any part that isnt caused by trauma.
Tulpamancy is a tibetan buddhist practice of forming parts through meditation. These are not the same parts as CDDs, and are more akin to very very reliable imaginary friends, beings to ‘channel' when you are in difficult situations. (NOTE: I am a buddhist who has researched this, but I am not a Tibetan buddhist and do not practice tulpamancy.!)
Western culture has taken this closed practice and bastardised it into 'haha im willing parts into my head haha' (in the westernised context, these are also called willos)
The CDD community generally dislikes endos, willos, tulpas, etc, because they use CDD terms (alter, system, switch, etc), have zero scientific evidence and frequently invade our spaces and harass us.
There is also a push in the community of endogenic spec systems to 'demedicalise systems'. This is extremely harmful to CDD systems, as we already have to fight against the stigma of our trauma disorder in media (think movies like SPLIT, that depict us as murderers.) And now we have to also fight with people who want our disorder to stop being recognised as such. People either think we are dangerous or think we don't exist.
Our attitude could be correlated to someone who nearly died of influenza, but was saved by the vaccine, having people say 'oh yeah i had the flu and didnt get the vaccine i just drank lemon juice and was fine lol' (they didnt get the flu, they got like- a mild cold.). Its almost insulting to person As experience for this B to be claiming their experience but bastardising it when it isnt the same.
As for your friend, i have two possible explanations.
A: Due to stress and neglect in their childhood, they created imaginary friends to cope with the loneliness. Imaginary friends. This is okay. This isnt bad. Headspaces are possible in singlets as a visualisation method
B: Due to stress and neglect in their childhood, they formed a CDD to cope with their trauma. (Yes, neglect is trauma. Its unfortunately shockingly easy to traumatise a child.) As CDDs are generally covert, they have a false belief that they made the parts up to cope with the fact that they were actually trauma based. This is very common in CDD systems. It could also be an unconscious false narrative of 'im creating this alter' to cope as they actually formed, due to trauma.
Your friend might fit into the P-DID criteria.
(The below are the diagnostic criteria for DID, OSDD and P-DID. The crossed out boxes are our experience as a DID system)
DID - Dissociative Identity Disorder - Is your 'standard' CDD. The symptoms are listed above
OSDD - Otherwise Specified Dissociative Disorder - is diagnosed when the criteria of DID are not fully filled. The symptoms are also listed above. I will note here that the diagnosis for OSDD would be named as such, but that the 1 & a/b are community terms, taken from previous diagnostic manuals.
P-DID - Partial Dissociative Identity Disorder - This is diagnosed when switches occur rarely or never, and passive influence is much more common. There is likely one dominant alter and then others who comment or influence. This is what i suspect your friend may have
Thank you for your kind comments about my layout! It is very cute! And thank you, have a lovely time of day too. I hope this is helpful and educational. This blog is a safe space for genuine questions made with good intent and im happy to use my knowledge to educate!!
