Dissociative Disorder May Result from Trauma—How to Tell If You’re Experiencing It

Dissociative disorders are a group of mental health conditions that affect a person’s memory, identity, perceptions, and sense of self. People with a dissociative disorder may experience feelings of detachment from the present moment or have trouble remembering periods of their lives. 

Researchers believe that dissociative disorders are usually a mechanism to help a person cope with trauma. Possible symptoms include problems with memory, thoughts, and feelings and difficulty connecting to themselves or their reality.

While a dissociation episode is more common, a dissociative disorder is a rare and chronic (long-term) condition. Psychotherapy can help alleviate symptoms and improve quality of life. 

There are three main types of dissociative disorders—each of which causes different symptoms. The three types include:

Dissociative identity disorder: Severe form of disconnection between a person’s thoughts, feelings, memories, and actions, often leading to two or more distinct personality states
Dissociative amnesia: An inability to remember information related to one’s traumatic or stressful experiences
Depersonalization-derealization disorder: A feeling of detachment from one’s mind or body, similar to having an “out of body” experience

There are several possible symptoms of dissociative disorders, and they vary by the type of disorder you might have. 

Dissociative Identity Disorder

The symptoms of dissociative identity disorder vary by the severity of your condition. Most people have experienced mild symptoms of dissociation such as daydreaming, zoning out, or “highway hypnosis” (which occurs when your mind goes on autopilot while you’re driving).

Symptoms of dissociative identity disorder are more severe and may include:

Two or more distinct identities with changes in behaviors, memory, and thinkingGaps in memory about everyday events or personal informationProblems functioning in social situations and work

Depersonalization-Derealization Disorder

Depersonalization-derealization disorder can cause detachment from your body—as if you’re looking at yourself from the outside. You may feel detached from your surroundings and feel like the people and things around you aren’t real. 

Symptoms of this condition usually begin in young people around the age of 16. Less than 20% of people with depersonalization-derealization disorder develop symptoms after age 20.

Dissociative Amnesia

People with dissociative amnesia have trouble recalling information about their lives, usually in relation to previous traumatic or stressful events. There are three types of dissociative amnesia, each of which has different symptoms:

Localized: An inability to remember an event or specific time period (the most common type)Selective: Trouble remembering a specific aspect of an event Generalized: A complete loss of identity and life history (very rare)

Dissociative disorders occur when a person experiences problems with their memory, thinking, or sense of self. In most cases, dissociative disorders are associated with traumatic, abusive, or overwhelming experiences, especially in childhood. Traumatic events like accidents, disasters, abuse, or crime can all increase the risk of this condition.

Researchers believe that dissociation episodes can help a person tolerate the intense emotions that come with trauma, as a mental escape can make traumatic experiences more bearable. 

Risk Factors

While anyone can develop a dissociative disorder, people who have experienced trauma are at an increased risk of a dissociative disorder. This may include:

History of physical, emotional, or sexual abuse in childhood 
Repetitive, overwhelming trauma, abuse, or neglect 
Experiences in combat or war
Living through a natural disaster

Dissociative disorders are rare and only about 1.5% of people around the world have been diagnosed with the condition. Because this disorder is rare, your healthcare provider will work with you to first rule out more common causes of dissociation symptoms. Other mental health conditions that can mimic symptoms of dissociative disorders include:

Borderline personality disorder: Characterized by difficulty managing emotions and impulsivity
Histrionic personality disorder: Characterized by excessively dramatic and attention-seeking behaviors
Schizophrenia: Often causes delusions, hallucinations, and disorganized speech or behavior
Schizoaffective disorders: A combination of schizophrenia symptoms and mood disorder symptoms (e.g., depression, mania)

However, other medical conditions may cause memory or thinking problems that your healthcare provider will also want to rule out. These conditions include:

If your healthcare provider rules out the above conditions and hasn’t been able to make a proper diagnosis, they will start testing you for a dissociative disorder. During the diagnostic process, your healthcare provider may work with a mental health professional (such as a psychologist or psychiatrist). They will likely ask several questions about your symptoms and may request that you fill out the following questionnaires:

Dissociative experiences scale: A 28-item self-report about dissociative disorder symptomsDissociation questionnaire: 63 questions to measure your identity confusionDifficulties in emotion regulation scale (DERS): 36 questions about challenges with work, impulsivity, and emotional regulation 

There are three goals of treatment for dissociative disorders: ensure your safety, create stability in your life, and confront past traumas (usually through therapy). To help improve your symptoms and reduce the episodes of dissociation you’re experiencing, your healthcare team will often recommend certain therapies. These may include:

Dissociative disorders are usually associated with repeated childhood trauma. The trauma may be related to emotional, physical, or sexual abuse, as well as neglect. This condition often occurs as a way to cope with severe traumatic experiences. That said, it’s not always possible to prevent symptoms of dissociative disorders if you’ve already been exposed to the trauma, especially if you have no control over the abusive or harmful situations.

However, experts believe that people who receive treatment in the form of therapy after experiencing trauma may be less likely to develop a dissociative disorder. 

People with dissociative disorders may also be at an increased risk of developing other mental health conditions, especially conditions that are also related to trauma. These conditions may include:

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
Acute stress disorder (symptoms resemble those of PTSD but begin less than one month after a traumatic event and last less than one month)
Depression
Self-harm or suicide

Dissociative disorders are a chronic (long-term) condition, and treatment is a lifelong process. While the symptoms of dissociative disorders can be distressing and frightening, therapy can help you manage them. Engaging in psychotherapy can help give you a sense of control over your symptoms and diagnosis.

Managing a mental health condition can be difficult and affect several areas of your life. That said, your healthcare team will encourage you to enlist support from your primary care provider, psychologist or therapist, trauma counselor, and supportive family and friends. With treatment and a good support system, living well with this condition is possible.