Dissociation and Dissociative Disorders Dissociation and Dissociative Disorders Sources Listed At The Bottom Dissociation Dissociation is a mental process which produces a lack of connection in a person's thoughts, memories, feelings, actions, or sense of identity. During the period of time when a person is dissociating, certain information is not associated with other information as it normally would be. Because this process can produce changes in memory, people who frequently dissociate often find their senses of personal history and identity are affected. Dissociation may become automatic responses to anxiety and anticipated anxiety, even in non-abusive situations. Even after the traumatic circumstance is long past, the vestigial pattern of defensive dissociation remains.
Most clinicians believe that dissociation exists on a continuum of severity.
At one end are mild dissociative experiences common to most people, at the other extreme is complex, chronic dissociation. There is a great deal of overlap of symptoms and experiences among the various Dissociative Disorders. Individuals should seek help from qualified mental health providers to answer questions about their own particular circumstances. The sudden inability to recall important personal information too extensive to be explained by ordinary forgetfulness. Sudden unexpected travel away from one's home or place of work, with the assumption of a new identity and the inability to remember one's past.