However, clinician’s assistance in sharing information among patient’s different identities can be a complicated problem. First question which comes to our mind is whether a clinician can disclose what he learns from an identity to another; in other words, whether we should keep each identity’s information confidential.
Intentional or inadvertent communication among identities often occurs naturally without the therapist’s assistance. One of the popular ways in which other identity reveals itself is entries in diaries in unfamiliar handwritings. In my clinical cases, there are many other ways that they began realizing other identity’s presence. One female DID patient learned that there can be someone else inside of her when she found that her picture stand of her parents was shattered with a derogatory remarks written on the frame, which should have done overnight. As she is living alone and there is no trace for anyone intruding into her house, there is no other way than to interpret that way. Another DID case learned about the presence of an identity as she found in her possession a pack of cigarette of a brand name that she would never buy. If identities are revealing themselves to each other in these accidental ways, there might not be a problem if a clinician promotes some of that process.
However, exchange of information initiated by a clinician as the third party can still be a problem. Each identity has its own sense of privacy. Some identities might get offended if clinician disclose their shameful past histories to other identities. This type of violation of confidentiality could really impair their therapeutic relationship.
If I make a concluding statement regarding clinician’s participation in inter-identity communication, it would be therapeutic, but should be done with most care. Clinicians should take it a rule to ask permission from each contacted identity for communicating gained information to other identities.
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