How Does Trauma Relate to DID?
(Summary) Trauma and Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) are deeply connected. While trauma is often minimized in everyday conversation, true trauma overwhelms the nervous system with helplessness and terror. DID develops when repeated trauma happens in early childhood—before the brain is fully developed—and when no supportive relationships are available to help a child cope. This post explores what trauma is, why it affects children differently than adults, and why DID is always rooted in relational trauma.
I’ve been making videos and talking about trauma for months now and it has occurred to me that perhaps I should talk about what trauma is. In our culture, trauma is often trivialized, with people joking that something is traumatic or belittling the experiences that others find traumatic.
Trauma Is Individual and Relative
Trauma is relative. What is a traumatic event to one person is not to another. So trauma is individual. Trauma occurs when a person’s nervous system is completely overwhelmed and unable to cope with an event. Two components of trauma are experiences of helplessness and terror or life threat. Since we are all different, we can begin to see how some events are traumatic to some people but not others.
Relationships Can Prevent PTSD
Researchers have found that one factor that makes the difference between people who develop PTSD after a potentially traumatic event and people who do not develop PTSD, is relationships. People who get emotional support from friends, families, or other caring and supportive people such as a therapist, tend to not develop PTSD.
Children Have Fewer Ways to Cope with Trauma
Dissociative Identity Disorder is a condition of complex trauma. If it develops, it develops in early childhood. Children have fewer ways of coping with events that could be overwhelming. For one thing, their brains are far from fully developed. And they have limited options for protecting themselves or from fleeing from dangerous situations. So what might not be experienced as trauma by an adult can be traumatic to a child. That is, children more easily experience things so terrifying and causing feelings of helplessness that they are overwhelmed and unable to cope with the event.
DID Is Relational Trauma
DID is also a condition resulting from relational trauma. That is, traumas that are the result of the actions of people in the person’s life. And remember that we know that having people who can help us process traumatic events can be the difference between developing PTSD or not. Well, when you are experiencing abuse or severe neglect from the people in your life, they clearly aren’t going to be there to help you process it. The support, or lack of, makes the difference in our ability to make an overwhelming event on that can be processed so that it is no longer overwhelming.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is trauma?
Trauma occurs when an event overwhelms the nervous system, creating helplessness and terror. It’s individual—what is traumatic for one person may not be for another.
Why are children more vulnerable to trauma than adults?
Children have brains still under development and fewer options for coping, protecting themselves, or escaping danger. Events that might not overwhelm an adult can be traumatic for a child.
How do relationships affect trauma recovery?
Supportive relationships—family, friends, therapists—help people process overwhelming events. Lack of support greatly increases the risk of PTSD or other trauma-related disorders.
What is relational trauma?
Relational trauma comes from harm caused by caregivers or trusted people, such as abuse or neglect. In DID, trauma nearly always takes this relational form.
How does trauma lead to DID?
DID develops from repeated, overwhelming trauma in early childhood when a child’s brain is still developing. Without safe relationships to help process experiences, the child dissociates and develops separate parts as a survival strategy.
Can trauma cause DID in adulthood?
No. DID only develops in early childhood, usually before age 6–9. Trauma in adulthood can cause PTSD or other disorders, but not DID. DID may not be noticed until adulthood, however.