polyphonic-brains

[polyphonic-brains]

Update (6/25/24).

Hey guys. This blog has been inactive for a long time. I just wanted to say that I'm okay.

The other person who was here (went by Stuart) is kind of dormant now. It's been that way for about a year. I haven't been very active in any plural communities, because I'm kind of by myself now.

I find that some of his traits are blending into my own, and it's really weird. I think it's made me a better person. I've never felt passionate about art before this, and I'm finding a deeper passion for music, especially rock music. Unsurprisingly.

I appear differently in my mind, and I go by a different name now (Victor). It's subject to change. It's mostly to myself, since nobody IRL really knows that I'm here. I just kind of let them think that I faded away.

I think we both grew out of the fictional identities. That's not to say that those identities inherently need to be grown out of, but that's what happened here. I still find that I relate to the character in some ways, but I don't see him as myself, nor do I want to. I am my own thing, with some surface level similarities.

I've been using his/our main blog. I've changed it up a bit to be more like myself. I won't share it, but if you know what it is already, that's fine. I don't really know why, but I just didn't want to make a new blog. And now there's no point in doing that, because I've already changed it.

So, am I plural? Kind of, yes. But not in experience, currently.

As for this blog,

I'm leaving it up. I think some good information was shared here. The origins survey was really enlightening, and I'd love to see if actual research reflects what we found in our little project.

We were going to do another one regarding differences in the experiences of traumagenic and endogenic plurals as a follow up to the DES Scores. We got results, but those were never published. I might actually look over those results and publish them here. Maybe.

A part of me worries I'd be "playing doctor". It might be better to wait for the actual people with degrees to do it.

If you've read all this, thanks. I wish the best for you and your folks in your head, if you have any.

[polyphonic-brains]

Important Update!

Hey everyone. It's been a while. Turns out I was mistaken about the nature of my plurality. There's not much I really want to say about this. There is a lot, and I'd rather keep to myself about this. I've realized some things about myself during this process.

I will be leaving up this blog for anyone who wants any of the resources on it. Thank you all for supporting me and this blog. I greatly appreciate it!!

[polyphonic-brains]

You don’t need a system name, you don’t need a system aesthetic, you don’t need a collective identity. You don’t need to put your whole system– or any aspect of it– online in order to be a system.

You can just exist, you don’t need to make every aspect of your system public. You’re still a system even without a system name or collective pronouns or a system blog.

[polyphonic-brains]

The reason trauma isn’t in the DSM criteria isn’t because they can’t prove it with 100% accuracy that it’s the only cause - if that were the case, theoretically, trauma could not be listed for any of the criteria. Saying that it’s unethical to test is a pretty big flaw.

However, I will once again say that the fact that the majority of DID systems not remembering their trauma is absolutely a major barrier for if trauma were in the criteria. If trauma were part of the criteria, I would not be diagnosed with DID at the moment, which would make my therapy cost anywhere from 120 to 160 a visit.

[polyphonic-brains]

A Common Misconception

Having DID or OSDD does not mean that you can't be happy, stable, or high functioning. DID and OSDD may cause some difficulty in life, but that doesn't mean that you must be struggling all the time to be disordered.

You can be happy and be still be disordered.

You can live a fulfilling life and still be disordered.

There is nothing wrong with being disordered.

[polyphonic-brains]

i have never met an unpsychotic person who knows what it actually means to “not encourage the delusion” …not a single one

[polyphonic-brains]

Welcome

We are The Phoenixes, a small plural collective of two. This is our informational blog about plurality. This blog will be more formal than our personal blog, which is @thephoenixes.

We will be posting original content in the form of essays and guides, along with surveys to help create a better understanding of plurality and the plural community.

Most of our original content can also be found on our website:

(We hope to someday purchase our own domain, but the Google site works for now.)

We do not have a DNI, but we will do our best to respect those who have them.

For those wondering about our stances on discourse:

We are open-minded, and we will likely change our opinions as we learn new information.

We do not have always strong or solid opinions on everything, and we do not expect that from everyone else. We will admit when our knowledge on a subject is not sufficient for the discussion.

We are endogenic, but we thought we were traumagenic for a long time. One of us used to be strongly anti-endo.

We would like to be the middle ground between sides.

[polyphonic-brains]

How To Name Your Collective

By Stuart Phoenix

Note: When I say “you” throughout this, I mean you plural.

After a long time, we’ve finally figured out a name for ourselves. We will be going by The Phoenixes collectively. We chose this name because of its symbolic meaning. The Phoenix represents death and rebirth, which is something we connect with both metaphorically and literally. We also wanted something related to birds, because our connection to birds is one of the things we have in common. 

I want to share what we’ve learned during this process. Here are some things that will hopefully guide you through choosing a name for yourselves. 

Do We Need a Collective Name? 

Naming your collective is very common in the plural community. It provides a way of identifying yourselves amongst others, and can also provide a sense of collective identity. However, you do not need a special collective name. You can just use your body’s name, if that is what you’d prefer.

How Do We Choose a Name? 

There is no right or wrong way to choose a name. What matters is that you all can agree upon it and tolerate it. 

Be Patient, Don’t Force It

I spent a long time trying to research words we could use. I got somewhat stressed about this. I made a Google doc and wrote down words I found online that we liked, but nothing I had found really worked for us. Despite my hours of searching, the name just came to us. I’ve also heard similar stories where a system searches for a name to no avail, and then it simply falls into their lap one day. The point of this isn’t to not search for a word. You may search for words online and find something that clicks. The point is not to force it. Also, be open to it coming to you when you aren't expecting it.  

Experiment If You Need To

You may need to try the name on for a bit. I’d say that once you try it on, give it at least a few days before you see if you like it or not. We have a thing where trying on new names (like usernames or nicknames) will feel weird until we get used to it, no matter how much we actually like the name. I imagine that this is common. 

Be Aware Of Change

Keep in mind that some things about you may change. Your headcount may change. Your interests may change. It is okay to change the name later if it no longer resonates or is true to you, but you may want to play it safe and choose a name that you are less likely to grow out of. 

We have changed our name a few times, and every time it has changed it has gotten closer to being a better reflection of ourselves. 

Make It Meaningful

Consider choosing a name that has meaning to you. The meaning should ideally have a positive association. At best, it should make you happy. At worst, you should feel neutral about it. Though, if you're like how I used to be and always feel like the names you come up with are bad or off in some way, this may be different. My advice in this situation is to try not to worry about finding the perfect name. 

I would recommend avoiding anything that has a negative association or implies brokenness. It may be how you feel, but it may make you feel worse to refer to yourselves as something upsetting. If you are a survivor and your plurality comes from that, consider a name relating to strength or victory instead of something about being broken or shattered. 

Your name doesn’t have to be super meaningful. You can also choose something because you think it’s funny. The most important thing is that you all feel comfortable with it. If it makes you smile, it probably isn’t a bad choice. Just make sure it isn’t self (or selves) deprecating. 

Things You Have In Common

Is there anything that you have in common? Consider basing your name around that. Is there a song, movie, or book you all like? Do you all like to draw? Or maybe you’re into video games? Perhaps you’re fans of animals and wildlife? You could make a list of what you have in common and work off of that.

Format

Your collective name does not need to be conventional. You don’t have to follow the popular formats. You can even come up with your own if you want. You should do what makes you all the happiest. 

Here are some unconventional formats: 

Your body’s name+&. This would look like “John&” or “John Doe&”. This is an older one that was more popular during the earlier days of the online multiple community. If you are trans and have not gotten your name legally changed, you obviously don’t have to use your body’s name. You could come up with a new, gender-affirming name to use collectively. 

Your body’s name+s. This would be like “The Johns” or "The John Does". 

The (Inset Name Here)s. This is a bit like a team name. This is the format we chose. We also use it as our last name. You don’t have to do that, unless you want to. 

House of (Insert Name Here). This is another older one. Individuals would usually sign off as (Member name) of (House name). So if the collective was called "House of Roses", an individual would sign off as "Jane of Roses". Though, this could probably be done by anyone who wants to, regardless of what format you choose. You also don't have to use house, you could come up with a different word if you'd like. 

Team (Insert Name Here). This is probably something that has already been done, but I don't recall seeing it anywhere. It feels fun and lighthearted.

Using Alternatives to System/Collective. There are many words you can use instead of system or collective. Some examples include flock, squad, troop, crew, pack, etc. If you want some inspiration, consider looking at what groups of different animals are called. This could give you some fun and unique options. For example, a group of ravens is called a conspiracy. 

Be In Agreement

It is best that everyone that you are aware of agrees on the name, or at least tolerates it. Allow the other headmates to make suggestions and consider what they have to say. 

How you handle everything is up to you, both as an individual and as a collective. Make sure that everyone feels heard.

[polyphonic-brains]

Our survey is still open!

Our survey, Differences In The Internal Experiences of Traumagenic and Endogenic Plurals, is still open for responses! If you have not already submitted a response, we would appreciate you doing so.

The survey is an attempt to gauge the differences in the internal experiences of traumagenic and endogenic plurals. The focus of the survey will primarily be on dissociative or distressing experiences associated with plurality, but will not pathologize plurality itself. The survey is a follow-up to our previous survey where we measured the average DES scores for various origins.

You may still take the survey even if you don't identify your origins as traumagenic or endogenic! That is just where our focus will be.

This survey is also open to anyone who wishes to participate, regardless of your syscourse stance.

[polyphonic-brains]

Dissociation is a cause for amnesia.

Losing memory partially or completely is amnesia.

Losing memory on how you felt partially or completely is amnesia.

Losing memory in general, even with how you felt, is inheretly a difficulty in a variety of situations.

[polyphonic-brains]

Shout out to systems who try to educate themselves about systems unlike their own. It’s difficult, and there’s a lot to sift through, but reading and understanding what you’re seeing in these system spaces is incredibly important.

Shout out to nondisordered systems who research CDDs. Shout out to nondisordered systems who ask CDD systems about their lives in a gentle way. Shout out to Endogenic systems who seek to understand Traumagenic origins.

Shout out to CDD systems who research nondisordered plurality. Shout out to CDD systems who ask nondisordered plurals about their lives in a gentle way. Shout out to Traumagenic systems who seek to understand Endogenic origins.

[polyphonic-brains]

this is not wasted time. time spent healing and growing and letting yourself feel all the things is never wasted.

[polyphonic-brains]

New Article: Discovering That Our Plurality Is Endogenic

It’s better that we go ahead and say it. We will answer respectful questions about it. Please don't comment before reading.

[polyphonic-brains]

Hey all, I’m Sorry to have to remake this.

My spouse and I are disabled native people who are struggling at the moment.

We currently need assistance. Our Amazon wishlist is here.

Donations can also be made here:

Venmo: KajiW

CashApp: $kajiw

[polyphonic-brains]

Our survey is still open!

We would appreciate it if those who have not yet taken the survey submit a response. The whole thing shouldn't take very long to complete.

You may participate even if you don't identify your origins as traumagenic or endogenic.

Anyone is welcome to take this regardless of syscourse stance.

[polyphonic-brains]

Differences In The Internal Experiences of Traumagenic and Endogenic Plurals

Here is our follow-up survey for the System Origins and DES Scores survey. We decided to dig a little deeper into the differences in the internal workings of traumagenic and endogenic plurals instead of just looking at DES scores.

You can still take this if you do not identify your plurality as traumagenic or endogenic. That is just where our focus will be.

This survey cannot prove or disprove endogenics, but we think that it may help with understanding what is going on.

Please participate and share this if you are interested.

[polyphonic-brains]

Research Opportunity

There is a research opportunity at https://did-research.org/participate for those who are 18+ body age. You need to be professionally diagnosed with DID, OSDD-1, dissociative PTSD, or C-PTSD and have a therapist who is willing to participate alongside.

Please read the specifics in the link above for their other requirements, timeline and description of what the study will look like.

From the website:

`If you are a patient and would like to participate in the study, we encourage you to forward this along to your therapist and talk about whether this study may be a good fit for you.`

Copy pasted this from a Discord announcement and posting it on main. Feel free to add on or correct!