Hi Auntie, I'm a Christian too, and understand very well about the questioning of salvation, God's plan and all. I've been exploring these questions for about 4 months now, and have found some pretty good answers if you would ever like to chat.
As for a pastor understanding about DID, it was my pastor/friend who actually diagnosed me. We had gone through deliverance ministry, but things weren't going as they should have for that, and then he figured the DID out. If you are in the kind of church that believes in deliverance, you might have someone to talk with there. Meanwhile, welcome to DS. Hope you find us helpful
Stephanie

Yes, I am also a Christian. I had a LOT of issues like what you are describing, too...and as with any other life crisis or difficulty, like the loss of a loved one, or getting unjustly fired at a job, etc, I've let it keep me seeking him for the answers. And much of the time, those answers are simply, to give it up to him in prayer, and trust that whatever the reason, there is one, and he is faithful and just and will turn it out to be for his glory somehow, some way. Even if we don't see the results of it until we enter the hereafter....now THATt is building up our faith!!! UGH!!!

the people who have God in their hearts, can feel him at all times. you need nothing more than just that feeling and his tools he gives you in return, to know he's here for you. no matter which God you mean.
there is no need for you to retreat from your religion only because alters dont believe in it. mine have their own religion as well. some are sadistic satanists. but i would never be. even the thought scares me.

i deal with it by keeping my connection to God strong. and i can, because God keeps me strong on the inside to manage.

and in fact, if you are eager to solve it in Christian ways. i wouldn't be surprised to find out that there are quite some Christian pastors who try to fix MPD according to religion. i dont believe it but other people might.. if you're interested i could give you a link to a free book, written by a Christian pastor, where he writes about people he claimed he healed. i read part of the book because it was recommended to me. i dont know what to think but i have never been a Christian by definition.

the book is written by Ellis Skolfield, and is called, The Shining Man With Hurt Hands. cant find the link because that page wont load. but it is free online somewhere, and you can also order it.

i guess if you're Christian the book makes sense.

just wanted to quickly thank you for your replies.....I sometimes can't really stay online long bc with some of my other health issues being online tends to make me really sick, but I did read what you wrote and I appreciate the replies

Yes, I'm a Christian who often struggles with DID. Better when I take my meds. I had one person tell me I had to pray all the different alters to Christ and I refused. I believe that Jesus Christ died for my sins, all of them, and he is trustworthy...he does not hold any against me. Therefore, the distortion concerning salvation happens on my end. I don't know, I just felt that praying the alters to Jesus would be a slap in the face like I didn't believe he totally and completely accepted me.

As for praying, God already knows what's in our hearts but we need to say it anyway. And when we can't, the Holy Spirit is praying on our behalf.

Truth always overcomes lies. I think God gave me dissociation to deal with horrible things as a child and now he wants me to live in truth, not the lies connected to dissociation. So work hard to identify all the lies the various alters believe and then believe and act on TRUTH.

treasured,

thank you for your reply....it helps

you are rt that Christ saved us from all our sins and that would inc the different parts of us, but they feel so separate it is hard to grasp that

i know that my counselor has said something about having each one pray, but I think that is to give them their own chance to have the relationship that comes thur prayer, not to say that they are not also saved (if that makes sense)

I think you are right about the counselor's perspective. Many times alters believe they are autonomous from the others, so to give them the opportunity to pray is respectful of the patient's frame of mind at the time. It has also been shown to me in abundant measure during the last several months that God is not surprised by this diagnosis, or the condition, or any of it. He does save all of me/us, even when I/we can't acknowledge it. He is the healer and provider, and he is faithful even when I/we can't be.

I will be completely honest with you, I am Pagan, but I I have some helpful advice.
Be cautious to whom you speak to within the church about your DID. There are plently of nice people within the church that will accept your DID and even be there at your side to help you.

I would, However, try to stay away from the old school chrisians, by old school I mean those that believe that having any other outlook even slightly different from that which is written in the bible, your doomed to eternal damnation. These people will do their very best to prove you are pocessed by the devil.

I do have friends within Christianism and Catholicism that lead churches and happen to be well versed in mutlipe religions (Both evangical and non-evangicl) and psychological disorders. These people I concider to be true friend as they are always their to help me and are never close minded to scream out "POCESSION!"

This is my advice though, take it or leave it. :P

Hello. I appreciate your post and everyone's comments. I do not have DID. I am actually a therapist--- a Christian therapist. I belong to the Church of Christ. Just as you profess, God is the center of my life. Everything I do is based on my faith in Him. Just as you have struggled with your diagnosis of DID, there have been many times in which I have struggled to completely accept DID as well as other diagnoses. Ive done a lot of reading-- both Biblically as well as academically. I have come to the same conclusion as you-- DID is real. It does exist and its existence does not mean that God does not exist. There are many things that are not mentioned in the Bible. Just because God does not speak secifically to DID in the Bible, does not mean that it doesnt exist. The Bible speaks of mental illness. In Biblical times, many mental illnesses were thought to be demonic possession. There are instanves in which Christ speaks to this-- he says that there are certain types of possession that cannot be healed by casting out demons-- bc there were no demons. Now, with that said. This is my belief-- God used His awesomeness to create all things-- human beings being the most complex and intricate. He created our brains. He created our personalities. Psalm 139 is my favorite. I encourage you to open your Bible and read through it. Anyway, God knew that life would not be easy for us. Before he created each of us, He knew the circumstances we would encounter. Whatever happened to you when you were a child that caused the DID, He knew would happed to you. This does not mean that He caused it to happen. As you know, all good things are from God. All bad things are from satan. The moment sin entered the world through Adam and Eve, bad things began happening. Although God did not cause the abuse to occur, He did allow it. This does not make God evil and does not mean that He does not love you. I am a firm believer that all things happen for a reason. It God allowed this terrible act to happen, it was for your benefit. Look at the story of Job. It is this happening that has made you who you are and allows you to reach out to others. Anyway-- DID-- DID is a coping mechanism. It is the way you chose to process the abuse or whatever happened. God gave us brains to use. I think that God saw that you could not deal and he allowed ur personaility to split. I know that each alter is distinctly different from the other. They can have their own past and appearance, etc. However, the important thing to remember is that each alter is a part of you. Each one is a fraction of the whole. You are all one-- just segregated for now. The goal is to integrate those parts back into one. It is very common to have alters that are the exact opposite of one another-- u may have an alter that professes hate for God. Remember, this "hate" is a part of you and is a part of how you feel. In order to resolve such an issue, one must do some deep exploration as to why one would feel this way. Why would you, as a whole, hate the One that you actually love so much? Usually this derives from anger with God--- perhaps u blame Him for soemthing that has happened to you. Resolve that and the hate and anger toward Him will fade. Regardless of the other parts of you-- of what they think or say-- hold tight to your faith. Do not let go of that love for God. That is what will see you through. God is a constant. His love never fails. He will not abandon you. He will not forsake you. You need the stability of His love. There will be times when parts of you defile His word and do things that you think u would never do bc they go agianst the Word of God. Repent. Always go back to God. God sees your sincerity. He sees the genuineness of your love. As many times as you come back to Him is as many times as He will accept you. Read your Bible and pray. Those are the most important. Keep His word in your heart. You all share the same heart. The other alters will come around eventually. Just dont give up. Continue to keep Him at the center of your life. I would definately encourage you to get involved in the church-- regardless of how often you can attend. I suggest finding a Church of Christ in your area. They have preachers and elders who are very accepting and would be open to working with you. Also, having the fellowship of fellow believers would definately benefit you. I suggest finding a smaller church and being open with the congregation about your diagnosis and your confusion. Christian Counseling is actually a profession. Seek out a Christian Counselor who can guide you through this process. Utilize the computer or contact ur local 2-1-1. they can make a referral for you. I feel like Ive typed a book already. This topic is something that I am very passionate about--Christianity and DID. My heart really goes out to you. I can empathizew ith your struggle. Please feel free to friend me or contact me at anytime. Id love to be as much help as possible. God bless and hang in there.--- and go read Psalm 139. :-)

Hi,
i am a Christian (have been for 25 years) and have been diagnosed with DID for the last 9 years.

Interestingly enough, the first clues that i was DID actually came in prayer for me. I had been asking God for help with my healing from sa, and after asking for help from the memory blocks for the 1000th time, i heard Him say, "Don't ask me that again". i was taken aback...i was like, if God knows everything, then he could just fill me in, and then i could get better. but He had other plans. I was obedient to the command i got, but i was frustrated by it too. then a couple weeks later, i heard him say, "I didnt say you couldn't know, just to stop asking me. Don't ask me" (as if i was trying to turn to the back of an algebra book for the shortcut to the answers...)" start asking her". the only problem was, i had no clue as to who "her" was. turns out it was the first alter i met. it was months later when i was journaling, and i looked into one of the flashback pictures that had always been in my mind, there are 3 of me in it, one up on the ceiling looking down on the rest of it, one walking out of the shower through a doorway, and one sitting on the end of a bed all three are me. so i looked down from above, and i called out to the little girl (about 5) on the bed, and i said, "hello, i'm up here" and to my surprise, it's like the picture came to life, and i had a conversation with the little girl on the bed, she told me all kinds of things i didnt know, she told me about the girl in the doorway, and expressed her anger at me for leaving them there to face all of that alone while i had been "fine" all of those years.

i walked into my Christian therapist's office the next week, handed him my journal and said, "what am i supposed to do with that????" completely freaked out! i had been experiencing a lot of dizziness and ear ringing over the last few months since i started seeing him, times i'd feel "different" but just would get quiet and not speak.

he told me i should just be "open and interested", never mentioned DID, and acted as if everything was perfectly fine.

a few weeks later, he asked me if the girl in the picture had a name. i thought to myself, of course it's the same as mine, but i asked, and it turned out to be different than mine. that frightened me.

we went from there to using that journaling process in t., and then eventually his being able to speak to the parts himself there. it was hard for me to let it happen, because i was so afraid of the whole thing. it did make a lot of sense though, and once my husband was told about it, he confirmed it. he's a Christian too, and doesn't have any problem with it.

Basically, we have 1 soul. the fragments are part of one ME, and I have trusted Jesus. Inside, I have a house...it's an image of where all the parts are...Jesus is in the house too. THe little ones who are scared are one by one finding their way to Him and He accepts and loves them. He has shown us every step in the therapy process along the way, and has been truly guiding it--telling me things before the t. mentions them.

I accepted Christ and gave my whole life to him, there are parts of me who have said they don't know Him, but that doesn't negate my salvation. Jesus says that His sheep know his voice, and that He does not lose any of those that the Father gave to Him. I hear his voice, I know i belong to him, and I've chosen him, so i bring myself to him, try to introduce the parts who don't know him to him, but give them a choice to get to know him. The verse about being one even as Jesus is one with the Father is the picture he has given me of what the parts of me will eventually be inside of me...and that right now, it's kind of like the trinity is, with parts of a whole, distinct, but One. If anyone knows, loves, and nderstands the parts inside, it is GOd. I believe he allowed the division to happen as a way to protect me from the horror of what we went through. He knows how the pieces go back together and what the path will be to make that happen. it's not been a quick road, but it has built my faith and taught me to listen to him. i've needed to , beucause i am so often in denial about it and want to say this can't be. but it all fits together so perfectly.

i hope something i said helps.

emma--it's nice to share this with another believer.

Just a note, the book Life After MPD, by Debra Lighthart was written by a Christian woman who is also a pscyhotherapist. She had DID and wrote this about her journey healing from DID (getting to the point of integration)...

She actually lives near me, and I called her after reading her book. She invited me over to her home that day, and she talked with me for like 2 hours as I had been struggling with accepting the diagnosis of DID.

Just thought it might be a helpful read given the topic of your post.

sincerely,
emma

just wanted to quickly thank the last couple of you who replied......I am sorry I am not up to writing a better response, bc I do truly appreciate all that you both wrote......it really helps a lot

I have just been crashing like crazy lately from my other illnesses and cannot stay online long or even really think clearly enough to write a good reply now