by Hess

Soulbonds, alters, headmates, people, colleagues, where does it end? And which ones should I use?
When people get themselves involved in the wild world of plurality, they're bound to come across a lot of confusing terms to describe the members of plural groups. Different kinds of groups use different kinds of words, and this little guide is all about those terms. It's completely biased! It's ranty! But it had better be informative!

Alter
Let me say right now that I *hate* this one. If there's any one of these terms that gets us wound up, it is 'alter'. It is short for the psychiatric term 'alternate personality' -- an 'alter' is assumed to be just an 'alternate personality' of the 'host'. That makes it look as though the 'alter' is a character. WE ARE NOT ALTERS. There is no host or main person, so how can we be alternate to them? It's most commonly used in the DID/MPD community, and should not be used to describe members of groups that don't fit that paradigm. But then again, there are a lot of DID groups that don't even like the word 'alter'. I'd just recommend using this word with EXTREME caution, and not using it EVER for members of this system. I'm not an alter. If you think I am, you're wrong.  Not to mention that it's short for 'alternate personality'. People have personalities. Personalities can't think for themselves. (That's probably the POINT, since they don't think that people in systems exist except the 'host', but you know what I'm talking about.)
Also see: Personality

Alternate personality
see Alter, Personality

Aspect
see Alter, Ego state, Personality and Fragment

Body-mate
see Headmate

Brainmate
see Headmate

Character
A character doesn't think for himself unless he's a soulbond. Call me a 'character' and I'll kick your arse. The fact that I can write for myself says that I'm not just a character. We used to call ourselves characters, though, like some other groups called themselves alters. That's our guilty little having-just-come-out vice. It's like eating McDonald's before you discover what good food tastes like. (Sushi, anyone?)

Ego state
Yet ANOTHER psychiatric term that ASSUMES that there ARE NO OTHER SENTIENT ENTITIES in plural groups. How is someone an ego state if he or she thinks for himself? Unless a group has a main person who seems to change states without someone else ever actually showing up and thinking for himself, ego state is just as bad as personality and alter. Not for us!
Also see: Alter, Personality

Fictive
see Soulbond

Fragment
Some groups have fragments - they're not full people, but just scraps of memory or something. Don't use the word fragments unless you know they're fragments.

Headmate
Not a bad term in and of itself, but it's not really good for groups that experience their own subjective worlds. It's best for groups where there isn't a subjective space, and that's how it's most commonly used, too. I've also noticed soulbonds using it. It doesn't work for our group, but if you call us 'headmates', it won't have the same effect on us as calling us 'alters' or 'characters'.

Headvoice
see Headmate, Soulbond

Inhabitant
It's a pretty good term, and it's rather flexible. It can refer to members of a gateway system or a non-gateway system, and it can refer to DID-paradigm groups and non-DID groups. If you're new to plurality and aren't quite ready to use the word 'people' to describe the ones you share space with, then inhabitants is a good one. (God, I wish the psychiatrists would promote this one instead of 'alters' and 'personalities'.)

Inside people
see Insider, Person

Insider
Similar to 'headmates'. If you see yourselves as living 'inside' the brain or body, this term is fine for you. We're neutral towards it. We don't use it ourselves, being a gateway system, but we're not going to run you out of town. (Now, if we catch you calling us alters or personalities...)

Multiples
People don't HAVE multiples; they ARE multiples or multiple systems.

Muse
see Soulbond

Part
see Fragment and Personality

Person/People (or 'colleagues' or other terms that would be applied to people who are not in systems)
In my opinion, PEOPLE is the best word for fully conscious members of multiple systems. It recognises that they're SEPARATE and THINK FOR THEMSELVES!

Personality
The red-headed stepchild of 'person'. People have personalities, but personalities don't think for themselves. Don't call people in multiple systems personalities. That's just as bad, or even worse than, 'alters'. I have a personality. I am not a personality. It's a common pratfall though. Everyone does it, because of the 'MPD' name. The word 'personality' would be better for groups who are more median and see themselves as having several aspects or parts, rather than having fully sentient people in there.
Also see: Alter, Ego state

Personality state
see Alter, Personality, Ego state

Plurals
Like 'multiples', 'plurals' refers to the systems, not the individual members. Plurals are groups - they are not filled with plurals, unless they're systems within systems.
Also see: Multiples

Soulbond
Originally, people used the word 'soulbond' to define characters from media or original fiction who spoke to a 'host' as a creative muse for writing. Later, the definition of soulbonding expanded to include people from media who spoke to the host, but also came forward and talked to people outside the system, just as other members of multiple groups do. Not a bad term at all, for people who identified it. Some of us found out about our stories (but may have been fronting for earlier than that) through fiction written by the group. A lot of us could be considered soulbonds, but since no-one bonded us and a lot of these 'soulbonds' have been fronting since before those stories were written, we don't use that term to describe anyone here.

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