Systems
Thanks for reading! I hope this was helpful to all you singlets who (thankfully) want to learn more about systems instead of sh#tting on us for something that you don't understand.
Sincerely, The Storm System
What Is a System?
A system is a group of people (or non-humans, we vibe) living in the same body. For simplicity's sake, we'll call them "members" here. DO NOT CALL SYSTEM MEMBERS "Alters" WITHOUT PERMISSION. ("alters" is a term that is usually used for DID/OSDD systems and can be dehumanizing towards system members.)
These members all are individuals. They have different preferences, different attitudes, different personalities, different sexualities and genders and pronouns. They are separate people.
It's important to remember that members aren't the same person as the host or core.
All these members share a brain and body with the host or core (whether the system prefers to use host or core when talking about the person the body "belongs to" or the "original" depends on the system).
Members get the opportunity to "front", or take control of the body. This can happen on its own, or be intentional.
Why Do Systems Form?
Systems form often (but not always) because of heavy/repeated trauma during childhood or early teen years. What happens during that is the child will dissociate involuntarily as a way to distance themself from what's happening. A very common cause of systems forming is childhood abuse.
The child's brain will dissociate as a defense wall in order to make the trauma have less effect on the child. Unfortunately, when this takes place, it causes the personality of the child to change frequently and split, which results in the formation of a system.
Another reason that systems may form is from other circumstances, such as extreme stress or rapid and drastic personality changes for whatever reason that may be behind it, such as moving towns or schools often and having to change the way you act or present yourself to fit the social standard. Systems can even form from heavy emotional instability.
Most systems will form as a way to help the core cope with something- other times it's simply a stress support.
Another reason systems may form is because of neurological conditions and developmental disabilities.
There's no definitive guidelines as to what types of systems are valid and whether one system formation cause is more valid than the other.
Please don't go around fakeclaiming systems.
What Types of Systems Are There?
There are a million bajillion types of systems out there, depending on where you look. The most common/well known types of systems are:
Traumagenic - Systems that formed from traumaEndogenic - Systems that didn't form from trauma but for another reasonMixed-Origin (or Multigenic) - Systems that have more than one originQuoigenic - Systems questioning their originsNeurogenic - Systems that formed because of pre-existing conditionsThoughtforms/Tulpas - System members that are intentionally created.
Please do take note that some of the terms you will find online (maybe including some of these, idk) are coined by questionable people/systems and to be careful which terms you promote. Do research before using terms, please <3
What Types of Members Are There?
There are a bunch of different types of members and there are most likely a thousand more that I'm not aware of, to be honest, but here are the system roles that I do know.
Protector - A member that protects members of the system or the body. There are several different types of protectors.Persecutor - A member that hurts members of the system or the body. Persecutors will sometimes (but not always) lash out at people outside the system.Perpetrator - A member that is somewhere in between Persecutor and Protector, and either is mean towards some people and fun towards others or has violent ways of protecting the system.Introject (Factive) - A factive is a member that is based or modelled off a person from the outside world.Introject (Fictive) - A fictive is a member that is based off a fictional character from a game, TV show, book, movie, or any other type of media.(Please remember that Introjects are not their source. They are real people with real emotions. Please ask before discussing sources in front of Introjects. All Introjects have different views on their source, please be respectful.)
Little - A member that is a child. (Ages where a member no longer qualifies as a child varies between systems.)Middle - A member that isn't an adult but isn't a little anymore. (Ages where a member first starts qualifying or stops qualifying as a Middle varies between systems.)Gatekeeper - A member that helps regulate certain things within the system, such as the front or certain memories.Caretaker - A member that takes care of younger members of the system and/or the system's body.Trauma Holder - A member that holds the traumatic memories so that the rest of the system doesn't have to.Somntive/Somnitive/Dreamlet: A term used to describe a member that appeared while you were asleep, showing up in your dreams first (Either a spiritual member slipping into your dream, a psychological member first appearing in a dream, or a dream character sticking around after you wake up) (We also know someone who uses the term "Somnogenic dreamlets")
There are probably a thousand million more terms that I don't know about, so I encourage all readers to do research.
Some systems coin terms that aren't listed here already, so I'll try to update as soon as we find new ones that sound cool!
How Can I Be Respectful Towards Systems?
Well, first of all, treat members as individuals. Don't assume they all share memories, don't assume they use the same pronouns as the host/core, and for f#cks sake, respect their identity and triggers. Members sometimes have exomemories (memories of their existence before they formed in the system), and some of those exomemories involve trauma.
Do not call an system member an "alter" or "headmate" without permission. Ask the system what their preference is on what they'd like to be referred to as.
If you're around a system and they start dissociating, don't try to "snap them out of it" unless they ask you. A HUGE thing with this sort of thing is consent. DO NOT trigger a member to the front unless you have permission. DO NOT touch someone from the system without their permission. CONSENT. IS. IMPORTANT.
Do not, under any circumstances, ask "who's the real one?". It's incredibly disrespectful. All members are real and valid, and asking that can not only invalidate the system as a whole but irritate specific system members. By asking that, you have a one-way ticket to someone's sh#t list.
Most of all, respect them like you'd respect a normal person. It's not their fault they share a body with someone else. Don't treat them like a less valid being because they share a body with other people.
If anything, a system is just several friends for the price of one.
How to React to a Switch?
1- Introduce yourself. Exchange names if you haven’t met the member before. If you have, greet them like you would greet someone re-entering a room. Don’t forget to ask about their pronouns and preferences (hugging, general touch, etc).
2- Explain the situation. It helps to recap what’s going on after a switch so the member knows what’s going on and can adjust to their surroundings faster. (Example: "We're going to Dunkin soon, but we're at the park right now.")
3- Ask if they are caught up with whatever conversation or event was happening before the switch. If not, recap the events for them. If they are, continue on as normal.
Try and treat it as though someone new entered the room. Treat them like a normal person and try to accommodate them- if they don't feel like talking, don't push it. Don't infantize or treat them like a child.
Once you're exposed to it, it'll get easier. Just be like how you would with any person- after all, they are people.