#system mapping

Communication

Sometimes, it can be useful to map out who in your system can talk to whom. This is a very simple kind of map to make, and it gives you useful information about your system that ranges from "huh, these two can't reach each other" to "there's a gap here- are we missing someone?"

Lay out every known system member on a piece of paper. If two people can talk to each other, draw a line between them. If the communication is one-way only, draw an arrow. If two people can't reach each other, don't connect them. If two people can reach each other indirectly but you don't know who's linking them together like that, draw a line with a gap in it.

You might also add dotted lines for weak or unreliable communication, or other kinds of lines for other special cases.

Relationship

It can be helpful to know how different system members get along (or don't). Relationships in a system can be mapped with something similar to a shipping diagram, and looking at the resulting map can make it very obvious if someone is overall liked, disliked, rejected, etc. It can also point out interesting patterns in who gets along and who doesn't.

Draw your system members arranged in a circle. Then, draw color-coded (or otherwise coded- make a key) lines between members that like each other, dislike each other, or have other important opinions about each other.

Structure

Sometimes, drawing the arrangement of your system can teach you how to work with it better.

If two people feel close to each other (e.g. they may have unusually easy communication, common interests or themes, common issues, etc.), then draw them close together. If two people feel far apart (e.g. poor communication, lots of differences and disagreements, don't really understand each other), then draw them far apart.

By the end of this, you have a map that shows you which people are clustered together and which people are disconnected, rejected, or otherwise pushed away. This can be very useful when trying to bring any cast-out people closer to the rest of your group, as it can make isolation very obvious.

You can also map other aspects of system structure. For example, you might consider mapping the relationship between the different places that people can occupy in your system (front, back, etc.):

This kind of map can be very abstract sometimes. We have a few structure maps that we've made over the years, and they probably don't make a ton of sense to people that aren't in our group, but they've helped us a lot.

You might also consider mapping associations. What colors are associated with your system members? Do they have common themes or imagery? Does everyone associated with the color green have a hard time talking to people associated with blue? Are powerful people usually associated with certain species?

Timeline

Sometimes, it can be helpful to make a timeline of important life events that happened to your group. If you have guesses about when some people showed up or changed, then putting those dates on the timeline can give you insight into what those people might be dealing with.

Content warning for trauma, suicide and egocide, and general unpleasantry if you read this one. We censored the most sensitive parts (and those we'd simply prefer to keep private), but it's still heavier than the other maps in this post.

Headspace

If your headspace is possible to map, then sometimes mapping it can teach you something about your system. It doesn't have to be very detailed to help, nor does it have to be entirely logical.

We don't have the one headspace map we've made in easy reach, unfortunately, and it's out of date. That said, conventional land mapping tricks will often work for places in headspace. Recreating headspace in a game like The Sims or Minecraft is also an option.

If multiple places overlap, then consider making a pop-up map or otherwise representing that overlap- it can be useful information. Likewise, if parts of headspace correspond to parts of your body or parts of your system, then it can be helpful to make a note about that.

Adapting for Large and Complex Systems

Larger systems may not all fit on one piece of paper. Complex systems may not fit on a 2D surface at all- there might be layers involved that need a 3D surface. System mapping still works for these cases, but you may need to approach it a little differently.

Try mapping your system's subgroups instead of individual people.

Try making multiple maps for different "regions" of the system. Consider including information on how those maps connect together.

Make good use of color coding and keys to pack more information into a smaller space.

Try mapping by using digital drawing programs and tools. A digital canvas can be much larger than a physical one.

Try mapping in 3D. Make a sculpture, stack sheets of paper, fold the paper, use the back side, draw a 3D shape, and experiment with other ways of arranging the map to better reflect your situation.

Use multiple kinds of map. Each map is likely to have part of the overall picture, and looking at them together is likely to give you useful information about how it all fits together.

System mapping can be a really helpful tool when trying to get to know your system and what you experienced. Getting to know your system takes a long time, don't try to rush it. Also don't overwhelm yourself when you first start tracking, try to start with very basic information and add onto it as you learn more about your system. No need for aesthetically pleasing templates and extremely long questionnaires, although feel free to do that if it helps. Maps should be redone frequently to add new information and catch system changes. It's usually recommended to keep them in a binder or otherwise together in an app or journal.

Please evaluate your own environment and how safe you are at the moment. See how much information you can safely track in your specific situation. A safety net may be helpful for system mapping especially later on when it's more about what happened to you.

Don't share sensitive system information with people you can't trust. You don't need to prove anything to anyone. Keep your medical data safe.

What is safety? (link)

Tracking general information:

Tracking alters: tracking alters can be helpful to see how they differ from each other and to get a basic understanding about the members of your system. usually people track information like names, age, pronouns, sexuality, gender, likes, dislikes, how they look in the inner world and what role/job they fulfill in the system. other helpful information can be personality traits, how to tell if fronting and triggers.

Tracking inner relationships: tracking relationships between alters can be helpful for seeing how they are connected to each other and what could be subsystems. it can also help you see on which alter communication you still need to work on. you can do this visually with mind mapping apps or on a piece of paper.

Tracking sub- /sidesystems, layers: this can be a tricky task at first and not every system has subsystems, sidesystems or layers. subsystems refer to some kind of internal alter group that is connected in any way. they may be from the same split, split off from the same alter at different times, front together, hold the same memories, are in one area of the innerworld, etc. sidesystems are systems formed from mind control programming that are extremely separate from other sub- /sidesystems with a very high amnesia and only containing programmed alters. they function similar to subsystems but with higher amnesia and usually no awareness of other sub- /sidesystems. layers are often referred to as vertically stacked and separate parts of the innerworld. they can appear differently than vertically stacked. a sub- /sidesystem may also be a layer or can access multiple layers.

Tracking front changes: this can be helpful for seeing how much who fronts and who may be frequent fronters or hosts. it can also help with recollection of what happened before you where in front. it can be tedious and it isn't helpful for everyone. you can simply track switches on paper in your physical journal, use a plural app or use a community plug in for obsidian tracking.

Tracking the innerworld: tracking the innerworld can be helpful in getting to know your inner structure more. not everyone already has a innerworld and not everyone is able to build one. but it's always good to try and give your alters a safe place to communicate in the innerworld. you can track areas of the innerworld with apps like foretelling or other world building apps, create your own template for another app or a physical journal. you can also make pinterest boards to visualize them better.

Tracking trauma related information:

this should only be done in a private place and probably separate from alter profiles/pages so they do not get triggered while just tracking basic information. please do this with caution and don't dig for more information. only track this when you feel safe and know how to cope with flashbacks and other symptoms that might come up.

Tracking splitting dates and causes: again not everyone is able to do this but it can help with understanding how your splits are connected to real life events. this is a heavy map to do and takes a long time, feel free to take as many breaks as you need, don't rush this. you can start with doing a map of traumatic or other big events that happened throughout your life, a timeline would be helpful for this. don't write too many details just big events that help you connect the years to memories. then you can connect the alter who split during that time period with the events that caused them to split. later on you can also track who split from who or merged with who.

Tracking flashbacks: this is helpful for understanding what happened to you and so you do not forget the flashbacks you have. tracking reoccurring themes in dreams/nightmares, bodily flashbacks, phobias without known cause, emotional flashbacks and memory flashbacks all can help you figure out the connection of those events.

Other sources to check out:

Mapping for DID/OSDD systems (link)

System mapping isn't easy (link)

System Work in a Sand tray (link)

With what to track?

every method will have very personal pros and cons, this is something you need to try for yourself and evaluate what helps you best.

physical journal

plural apps like hivemind, ourcana, pluralspace, plural log, ampersand, Lighthouse etc.