Thoughtful Thursday: Dissociation
What is dissociation
- Dissociation can vary in duration. It can be relatively short-lived (hours or days) or longer-lasting (weeks or months).
- Dissociation is a natural, adaptive response to extreme stress or trauma. It is a way of psychologically distancing from extremely painful experiences and can help people to survive circumstances that would otherwise be overwhelming or intolerable.
- Dissociation is a common experience for people with personality disorders since it is very common for people with personality disorders to have had traumatic experiences. For example, studies have found that around 75% to 80% of people with borderline personality disorder report experiencing dissociation in response to stressful events.
- Dissociation has a biological explanation. When there is a strong sense of danger in response to a traumatic experience, our body responds in a way that reduces blood flow to areas in the front of the brain that help us to process what is happening, understand where we are in space and time, feel connected to our bodies, and use language and speech.
- In cases of long-lasting trauma, dissociation can become an automatic response that continues after a traumatic situation has ended as the brain continues to send signals indicating a sense of danger.
Types of dissociation
Dissociation can manifest in a number of different ways:
- Dissociative amnesia: having gaps in your life where you can't remember things that happened or pieces of information about yourself and your life
- Dissociative fugue: losing your sense of personal identity which leads to suddenly and unexpectedly traveling to different places outside of your usual place of daily activities
- Derealization: feeling as though the world around you is unreal, foggy, lifeless, or visually distorted
- Depersonalization: feeling as though you're looking at yourself from the outside; feeling disconnected from your body or emotions or as though you're unsure of the boundaries between yourself and other people
- Identity alteration: feeling your identity shift and change; can include speaking in a different voice, using a different name, acting like a different person, or feeling as though you're losing control of your identity to something else
- Identity confusion: having trouble defining what kind of person you are, or feeling as though there are multiple different people inside of you
Self-care for dissociation
Here are some ideas for things you can do if you are experiencing dissociation:
- Keep a journal: this can help with understanding and remembering parts of your experience and becoming aware of different parts of your identity
- Visualization: you can use your imagination to create internal states or environments that feel safe and peaceful; you might also be able to imagine a place where different identity states can meet and talk together
- Grounding techniques: these can help keep you connected to the present and create some distance from intrusive feelings, thoughts, memories, or flashbacks. Examples include breathing slowly, listening to sounds, walking barefoot, wrapping yourself in a blanket, touching something, or sniffing something with a strong smell.
- Practical strategies: there might be certain things that help to cope with dissociation in daily life. Examples include wearing a watch with the date/time, keeping a list of people with their contact information, or writing notes to yourself.
- Create a crisis plan: while you are feeling well, it might be helpful to plan out in advance what you will do or what others can do when you are not feeling well.
- Connect with other people: this can include sharing with people who have had similar experiences or just reading about other people's experiences to get new ideas.
- Engage in general self-care: since dissociation is sometimes a response to stress, general physical things that help reduce stress like getting enough sleep, eating well, and exercising can be helpful.
- Share information with others: if others around you have trouble understanding your experiences, you can find and share resources with them that might help them to better empathize with what it's like to experience dissociation
Questions
If you experience dissociation, what do you find helpful for coping with it?
Feel free to share any other thoughts or comments.
Sources:
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/dissociation
https://dictionary.apa.org/dissociative-fugue
https://www.goodtherapy.org/blog/the-brain-in-defense-mode-how-dissociation-helps-us-survive-0429155
https://www.verywellmind.com/dissociation-in-borderline-personality-disorder-425482
@QuietMagic
Great post, you're a great writer!
Yes, I've experienced dissociation a lot, although nothing longterm. Sometimes it's just a matter of surviving it, letting it pass, even if it's terrifying. My first step is usually just to make sure I'm safe, that I won't get hurt. Sometimes I try grounding exercises as well, cold water on my hands, 54321, finding my pulse, stuff like that.
@QuietMagic
I think... I might be kind of stuck like this sometimes.
I remember I've found keeping journals useful sometimes. Reading things I thought at an earlier time seem to remind me of who I am or help my life seem more coherent.
Although it seems a lot as though while I'm writing, I don't feel like I'm making sense, and it's only when I come back and read it months later that I... I guess, feel like I can really empathize with that perspective I had when I wrote it.
@RiverSnake
Hello! Thanks for sharing that tip of keeping a journal and your experience with it. If I'm understanding, reading it while you're in a dissociative state helps you to remember things about yourself and feel like things make sense.
That sounds really great what you're describing of reading back through old writing and feeling like you're able to connect with the way you felt/thought at the time.
@QuietMagic
Hello, I am glad I found this forum. The information is very very helpful.
If you experience dissociation, what do you find helpful for coping with it? I sometimes use ice in my hand or put my hand in cold water. or looking around the room and naming things with a certain color.
Feel free to share any other thoughts or comments.
Very informative. I don't get a warning when I dissociate and I actually blank out. I only know I've dissociated when I come out of it, not knowing how long I've been out of it. I relate to identity confusion as I feel fragmented. It's been *** having borderline personality disorder having little understanding of it.