Dissociation - What is it?

Dissociation is one of the two main factors that psychologists believe are a part of D.I.D. (the other part being trauma - we will discuss this next time). However, dissociation is not only an interesting part of Dissociative Identity Disorder, but also of our every day behavior. It's a very important concept to understand about D.I.D.. Dissociation happens to all of us, multiple times a day. If you've ever been driving in your car in a familiar place and arrived at your location without remembering how you got there, that's dissociation (also known as "Highway Hypnosis). To put it simply, dissociation is when your mind wanders off into "never land" while your motor skills and body remain functioning normally. Most of us do it unintentionally and don't even realize we're doing it.

The Spectrum of Dissociation

I found myself talking to a friend the other day, nodding my head and responding to what he said, but after the conversation ended, I had no recollection of what he said other than a few random words I had picked up. I had a dissociative moment, as we all do. Psychologists have also said that dissociation is a way for our brains to release energy. If you've ever been in class and you start to day-dream, your brain may be getting restless and needing to release energy; it's often completely unintentional! Dissociation actually occurs in many disorders, including PTSD, Panic Disorder and many anxiety disorders.

Basically, our brain has a "maximum capacity" of information that it can handle (internally and externally). If the brain reaches this maximum level, it begins to dissociate to release energy and relieve our stress until we settle back at a normal level. You will find that you dissociate more when you are low on sleep or after a stressful situation; times when your brain is on maximum alert and needs a break. It's the equivalent of your computer going into "stand-by mode": everything is still there, its just conserving energy until you need it again!

Isn't it amazing how our brains can literally remove us from a situation whenever we are stressed/overwhelmed/tired? Our own minds are truly unbelievable.

While there is a normal, healthy side to dissociation, there is also a dangerous side to it. While dissociation can be used for our brains to take a break, it can also activate during traumatic situations. Psychologist and Dr. D.J. Seigel even called dissociation a "survival mechanism in traumatic situations". When the brain becomes too stressed out or overwhelmed, it simply removes itself from the situation, and will regain functioning when the situation is over. Some of you may start to see how trauma and dissociation work together, but we will get into the correlation more next time!

Now that we know how dissociation works, it's easy to see how it can apply to D.I.D.. Some psychologists claim that the dissociative behavior in D.I.D. is so bad that it causes the brain to split into unique personality states. Whether or not that actually happens, I've yet to discover. I'll keep digging.