Dissociation
by Joe Bolza, Clinical Psychologist (now retired) PADA
Dissociation is a "an altered state of consciousness", that has many variations (including depersonalization and derealization), and can be induced by a number of means.
It can be as simple and pleasant as when induced by meditation, hypnosis or deep relaxation. It can be triggered by staring, or by fluorescent lights. Street drugs such asmarijuana can also act as a trigger. It can also be set off by anxiety and panic states, and of course these versions are not pleasant (mainly because of the feeling attached). When looked at carefully, dissociation seems to be set of by monotony, some drugs, or a sense of danger.
People may describe the part of the experience as "feeling numb in the body", "as if under anaesthetic", "feeling detached", "being out of it", "being out of your own body".
When people induce it voluntarily,(meditation, hypnosis, deep relaxation) it is usually pleasant. When it is involuntary (anxiety, panic, unintentional staring, fluoros), it is likely to be unpleasant, partly because of the accompanying feeling, partly because it is involuntary (therefore seeming loss of control). Because of the latter, many people get frightened by the experience of dissociation itself.
Quite frequently, people who have experienced any of panic attacks, strong panic or highly traumatic situations (especially abuse), find they experience this sort of involuntary dissociation. In these cases, the dissociation is part of the "freeze reflex", and it is an automatic "distancing attempt" when physical retaliation (fight) or physical escape (flight) are not possible. In this sense, the dissociation is part of our basic "problem solving defence systems". So it is normal and natural, an automatic "psychological escape", though easily unpleasant.
When people become frightened of the sensation, this usually intensifies the dissociation, as it adds additional anxiety which is one cause of dissociation. So the trick is to find a way of not being frightened by the sensation (even if the sensations may have been created by some fear in the first place).
Seeing the sensation as normal, an attempt to help, and NOT part of madness is a good start. Playing around with relaxation or meditation also helps get used to the "detached" part of the experience. If the anxiety/dissociation has been set of by a problem, then any possible problem solving is likely to be helpful.
Sometimes reminding yourself that you're safe, and that the sensations are harmless helps. Sometimes noticing that breaking the stare (if one has been staring) makes the sensation retreat is also comforting. Generally we have to be patient with the symptom. It often retreats much slower than we would like!
If the anxiety based dissociation has been set of by past abuse, then there are other techniques which are helpful, but are beyond the scope of this short article.
