Dissociative Disorders

​Dissociative disorders are conditions that involve involuntary escape from reality and are often associated with disruptions/ breakdowns of memory, awareness, identity, or perception.

There are different types of dissociative disorders, including:

• Dissociative identity disorder – Disruption of identity, resulting in two or more distinct personality states.
• Dissociative amnesia – An inability to recall important autobiographical information, usually of a traumatic nature
• Depersonalisation/Derealisation disorder – Experiences of unreality and detachment with respect to one's thoughts, feelings, sensations, body, or actions (depersonalisation) or surroundings (derealisation).

​In general, symptoms of dissociative disorders include:

• Significant memory loss of specific times, people, and events (dissociative amnesia)
• Out-of-body experiences
• A sense of detachment from one's emotions (depersonalisation/ derealisation disorder)
• A lack of sense of self-identity

• Cognitive behavioural therapy to develop skills to better manage stressful situations and symptoms
• Stress reduction and distraction techniques
• Physiotherapy or occupational therapy to help to improve one's ability to function (for conversion disorder)