Let's start from the beginning...
To understand dissociation, let’s start by examining the human brain a little. As we grow and develop we are learning to connect our experiences with our sense of self – allowing us to have a clear perception of who we are as a person. Humans are born with the natural ability to integrate our life experiences and develop that sense of who we are. As a result, our sense of self is a key part of our personality and it tends to be consistent across our different life roles. We are able to have memories of the past and even think of the future while being able to keep ourselves in the present.
Dissociation Defined
Dissociation begins to develop when a particular experience is too threatening and overwhelming.
If you ever find yourself saying, “well a part of me wants to do X… but another part would like to do X instead”, these are different parts of self at conflict with each other. We all have parts of self and at times the different parts of self-can become disconnected and become confused as to what parts of self own an experience, particularly a traumatic experience and which one does not.
The Impact of Dissociation
As a result, dissociation begins affecting our sense of self, and the degree to which this affects us can range from feeling stressed to becoming seriously ill.
Many times people do not realize that they are struggling with identity or sense of self and go to therapy for issues related to depression, anxiety or sleep problems.
The Solution
An important factor in treating dissociation is to identify the symptoms of dissociation and develop an understanding of how past experiences may be contributing to the current distress (Boon, Steele, & Hart, 2011).
The information provided above is not a substitute for therapeutic advice. Please make a consultation with a licensed psychotherapist for further information.
Citations:
Boon, S., Steele, K., & Hart, O. V. (2011). Coping with trauma-related dissociation: Skills training for patients and therapists. New York, NY: W.W. Norton.