What is Dissociation?
Dissociation is A mental process that causes A lack of connection in A person’s thoughts, memory and sense of identity. Dissociation seems to fall on A continuum of severity. Mild dissociation would be like daydreaming, getting “lost” in A book, or when you are driving down A familiar stretch of road and realize that you do not remember the last several miles. A severe and more chronic form of dissociation is seen in the disorder dissociative Identity Disorder, once called Multiple Personality Disorder, and other dissociative Disorders.
How Common is Dissociation?
Transient and mild dissociative experiences are common. Almost 1/3rd of people say they occasionally feel as though they are watching themselves in A movie, and 4% say they feel that way as much as 1/3rd of the time. The incidence of these experiences is highest in youth and steadily declines after the age of 20.
7% of the population may have suffered from A dissociative disorder at some time. But these disorders are difficult to identify and may go undiagnosed for many years.
Other Forms of Dissociation
Other dissociative disorders include “psychogenic amnesia” (the inability to recall personally significant memories), “psychogenic fugue” (memory loss characteristic of amnesia, loss of one’s identity, and fleeing from one’s home environment), and “multiple personality” (the person has two or more distinct personalities that alternate with one another. This is also known as “dissociative Identity Disorder” or “Multiple Personality Disorder”).
Treatment
When dissociative experiences are the central, chronic, and overwhelming problem, treatment usually demands long-term individual psychotherapy. People with these disorders often have good reasons to mistrust authority as well as A lifelong habit of keeping secrets from themselves and others. A working alliance must be established with an often demoralized and suspicious person who believes the world is unjust or that he/she is an evil person.
Other Resources
The Center for Mental Health Services leads federal efforts to promote the prevention and treatment of mental disorders. Congress created CMHS to bring new hope to adults who have serious mental illness and children with serious emotional disturbances.
The Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS):
- Strengthens the Nation’s mental health system by helping states improve and increase the quality and range of their treatment, rehabilitation, and support
- Makes it easier for people to access mental health programs
- Encourages A range of programs such as systems of care to respond to the increasing number of mental, emotional, and behavioral problems among America’s children
- Supports outreach and case management programs for the thousands of Americans who are homeless and the improvement of these services
- Ensures that scientifically-established findings and practice-based knowledge are applied in preventing and treating mental disorders
Contact Information
Center for Mental Health Services
5600 Fishers Lane
Rockville, MD 20857
240-276-1310
Contact SAMHSA
Sidran Institute
200 E. Joppa Road, Suite 207
Towson, MD 21286
Phone Number: 410-825-8888
Toll-Free Number: 888-825-8249
Fax Number: 4110-337-0747
Email Address: help@Sidran.org
Website URL: www.Sidran.org
