Dissociation is a disconnection between a person's memories, feelings, behaviors, perceptions, and/or sense of self. It exists on a spectrum that ranges from mild, everyday experiences to disorders that interfere with daily functioning.
Long or persistent dissociative episodes can be a symptom of a larger mental health problem, such as a dissociative disorder.
There are 3 types of dissociative disorders:
1. Dissociative amnesia
2. Depersonalization-derealization disorder
3. Dissociative identity disorder (DID)
ZONING OUT/CHECKING OUT
Dissociation exists on a spectrum that ranges from mild, everyday experiences to disorders that interfere with daily functioning. Zoning out, or checking out, would be an example of 'normal' dissociation.
Common examples of everyday dissociation include:
- Daydreaming
- Highway hypnosis (i.e. "How did I get home?", "I drove home automatically.")
- Getting "lost" in a book or movie
DISSOCIATIVE AMNESIA
Dissociative amnesia is a condition in which a person cannot remember important information about their life. This memory loss may be limited to certain specific areas (thematic), or may include much of the person's life history and/or identity (general).
Dissociative amnesia may be:
Localized - Involves being unable to recall a specific event(s) or a specific period of time. These gaps in memory are usually related to trauma or stress.
- Selective - Involves forgetting only some of the events during a certain period of time, or only part of a traumatic event.
- Generalized - Individuals forget their identity and life history (e.g. who they are, where they went, to whom they spoke, and what they did, said, thought, experienced, and felt).
DEPERSONALIZATION & DEREALIZATION
Depersonalization-derealization disorder is a dissociative disorder characterized by persistent or recurring episodes of depersonalization, derealization, or both.
Depersonalization: Feeling disconnected from your body or thoughts. You may feel that you're an outside observer of your thoughts, feelings, body, or parts of your body (i.e. as if you were floating in the air above yourself).
Derealization: Feeling disconnected from the world. People and objects around you may seem unreal like you're living in a movie or a dream.
DISSOCIATIVE IDENTITY DISORDER
Dissociative identity disorder (previously referred to as multiple personality disorder) is a severe form of dissociation associated with overwhelming experiences, traumatic events, and/or abuse that occurred in childhood.
Symptoms of dissociative identity disorder include:
- The existence of two or more distinct identities (or "personality states"). The distinct identities are accompanied by changes in behavior, memory,, and thinking.
- Ongoing gaps in memory (amnesia) about everyday events, personal information, and/or past traumatic events.
Have you ever had a dissociative experience? Feel free to share in the comments 💜
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