This is somewhat of a difficult topic for me to discuss on Era. I haven't really talked about it before outside of staff, although it's not exactly a secret as many of my friends outside of Era know. I'm putting this in the member's only section to offer some semblance of privacy. Some people might have caught on to the fact that I updated my pronouns on Era to include they/them. This was both out of respect for a genderfluid non-binary headmate, and also because we have no objections to they/them being used plurally.
As we're still watching the series, please use spoiler tags for anything past the first two episodes. It's fine if people discuss it, but we'd like to see as much unspoiled as we can. One particular headmate is really into this, and I'd like it if she didn't get spoiled by accident.
We were diagnosed with DDNOS 1b, or what is known as Dissociative Disorder Not Otherwise Specified, when we were young. Nowadays, it's called Other Specified Dissociative Disorder or OSDD. It's similar to to Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) in many ways, but we do not have significant amnesia between the different headmates. Just emotional amnesia with clearly defined headmates. We've managed this most of our lives, and we've reached a point (after trying a variety of things in therapy, including integration) where we live a largely normal life. The five of us function like a family of sorts, and while we do have issues here and there, we're long since past the point where any of us really consider ourselves "disordered" because of it.
Anyone who has experienced DID/OSDD, or knows someone who has, knows that media portrayals of DID/OSDD are fantastically inaccurate. A lot of them have an "evil" alter", or a "serial killer alter" contrasting a "good alter" or "normal alter." Fronting, or who is in control, is portrayed inconsistently if there's any logic in it at all. Splitting or dissociation is sometimes portrayed rapidly, or just as inconsistent as fronting is. Amnesia is shown as a total black out, often with extreme losses of time. Rarely is emotional amnesia ever shown, or partial amnesia. Coping strategies are often never mentioned accurately. The concept of creating a functional system is non-existent. Often no mention of headspaces, or not showing any communication attempts between the various headmates. And sometimes the whole portrayal is just straight up fantasy supernatural or Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde nonsense.
We had heard Moon Knight revolves around a protagonist with DID, and that they apparently went out of their way to portray it a bit more accurately than your usual TV show or movie. After watch the first two episodes, I definitely appreciate what effort has gone into them at least. There are some inaccuracies, such as Steven making it to be as old as he is and not checking the time (and date) more often after clear bouts of amnesia. Plus the depiction of fronting and amnesia in the first episode was a bit extreme. It didn't really helped that our eyes are sensitive and it bothered us a bit.
But Oscar Isaac does a fantastic job showing a more realistic portrayal despite the fantasy elements of the show. Steven and Marc appear to have an actual headspace, or an inner world represented by the reflections in mirrors and such. The two actively communicate as well, which is something you almost never really see with DID/OSDD portrayals. We had a good laugh in the second episode when they briefly discussed how Steven's suit looks, because that kind of dialogue and communication was a good portrayal. The differences in voice and body language were appreciated too, as that's something others have noted in real life with us.
There actually appears to be some semblance of roles in the system too - Marc has elements of a system protector. It's more fantasy and extreme then what you'd seen in reality, but the end of the first episode summed it up pretty well. "You're not going to die. Let me save us." That's something an actual system protector might say if the person fronting felt they were in danger.
We're going to keep watching tomorrow when we have time. I've heard the portrayal goes a bit further, and does some interesting elements with it. So I hope it continues to be a more accurate representation then what you usually see. I'd be curious to see the opinions of others regarding the portrayal, especially if you have any experiences with DID/OSDD/Plurality.
Also, you're welcome to ask me questions about our system or DID/OSDD too if you like. I don't mind answering them, because I'd rather people ask then jump to conclusions or assumptions.
EDIT: Oh, I didn't think about it, but we've never read the Moon Knight comics. This is our first time being exposed to the characters. I'm guessing the portrayal isn't as good in those as it is in this series? I'd be curious to hear more about the comics too.
