Multiplicity

I had perhaps the oddest experience of my life. I'm a little skeptical of some of the diagnoses in the field of psychiatry (mind you, I believe that there are real psychiatric conditions that are organically rooted, however I believe some "diagnoses" are simply behaviors that some people adopt as a coping mechanism). One of them being, Dissociative Identity Disorder (or more commonly known as multiple personality disorder). Now all of us, at times, act like we have multiple personalities (you should see me some days when I'm super hyper :P) but for the first time I think I met someone who may have it.
My attending and I were examining a patient and all of a sudden she starts addressing herself by her name, and telling "her" what to do and how to behave (as if she were talking to someone else). While she is doing this, her facial expressions, her body language, etc. all changed...it's like I was looking at someone else. And when you tried to address her by her name, she just ignored you as if you weren't talking to her.
I must say, that had to be one of the oddest experiences of my life...and both my attending and I were freaked out.
If there is something in her brain, that allows it do so completely dissociate itself so as to adopt a new personality, then that just truly speaks volumes to how remarkable our brain is. Our personality, who we are, is the core of our being...and for one person to really be two (or more) people, is truly remarkable. This person had no idea that she had just switched on us like that. This "other" person speaks to us differently, has a different perspective, experiences life differently. I wonder if she is aware that she does this.
Left a chill up my spine that I can't seem to get rid of. As much as mankind has advanced with its understanding of how the world and all that is in it works, there is even more that we do not know or understand.