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You’re Brain Is Lying To You About Who You Are
Do you trust what your brain is telling you about yourself?
In 2015, two researchers, Strasburger and Waldvogel presented the case of a patient who had been previously diagnosed with cortical blindness. What was peculiar about this case was that the blindness would only appear in certain personality states. Was this person faking?
The researchers discovered something crazy. Using brain imaging technology, they found that visual activity in his brain would fluctuate depending on different personality states. In blind states, it would go entirely blank. In others, there was clear visual activity. In other words, this person would alter between being blind or not depending on their personality.
This is a case of dissociative identity disorder, or DID, a legitimate diagnosis in the DSM — V. DID is characterized by a severe disruption to the sense of self and mind, amnesia, depersonalization and derealization. And, above all, DID is marked by the ability to have several personalities in one body. These personalities could differ based on language, age, gender or any number of dimensions. I mean, what could possibly cause this? And is it even real?
