Dissociation: From Zoning Out to Depersonalization

Comments · 74

• AS

  @askkatianything · 1 month ago · pinned

  To see if specialized trauma therapy with Rebound could be the right next step for you, head to <a href="https://hellorebound.com/askkatianything">https://hellorebound.com/askkatianything</a> where you can check your insurance, book a free call with one of their care specialists, and find out more!

  1

• SA

  @samikl5895 · 1 month ago (edited)

  The best way I can describe DID is like driving a big van. Someone is driving and has control (fronting), somebody might be in the passenger seat (co-fronting), and then the rest of the alters are in the back seats. Some far back so I don’t really hear or feel them, and some a bit closer. Everyone can switch seats at any given moment, but normally when something is triggering.<br><br>I think a big misconception with DID is that you won’t have any memory if you switch between alters. I have quite a good communication system. All of my alters are okay with the others seeing and hearing, and we also journal to communicate. And yes, the handwriting between alters are completely different. It’s pretty wild, but so interesting. <br><br>We also hear alters thoughts distinctly from one another, but some only hold body memories. <br><br>Living with DID is quite a unique experience, but there definitely are gifts of dissociation.<br><br>Thank you for this video Kati🩷 It is so wonderful to feel seen and represented. You are such a light. When I was first diagnosed with DID, your dissociation video was the first I watched!

  13

• CH

  @ChannelMath · 1 month ago (edited)

  I have a problem in therapy where suddenly I get this nice pleasant feeling, then I realize I haven&apos;t been paying attention. Not sure if it&apos;s dissociation, but my therapist thinks I did a lot of that as a kid, and that&apos;s why I don&apos;t recall my childhood. <br>It&apos;s disconcerting when you don&apos;t recall your childhood, because it&apos;s kind of like you don&apos;t know who you are, what you like, or how you feel about things

  4

• ST

  @strat2forme · 1 month ago

  55 years old...just got diagnosed with DID. Absolutely thankful for two great doctors and want to integrate and finally be me....

  4

• BR

  @brittanywilcox7377 · 1 month ago

  Hey Kati, I&apos;ve been both psychotic and also have DID. you can absolutely pass reality testing during psychosis. I know bc I held down a full time high pressure job during the pandemic while in psychosis.<br><br>On the other hand, with DID, I can regress to a younger state and feel or think that I am back at that age and time.<br><br>I hope this helps!

  2

• SE

  @SeaforgedArtifacts · 2 weeks ago

  Before realizing we had DID we genuinely walked through the world with a sense that we were not a real person. After learning we were a system and learning to be separate but equal as headmates, we each feel real and valid in and of ourselves. Many real people, one timeshared body.

• CH

  @ChannelMath · 1 month ago

  When I&apos;m really depressed I can get derealization. I feels like a relief, like a drug experience.

  1

• CO

  @ConnyWeirdWorld · 1 month ago

  <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNguGTYpCWI&amp;t=75">1:15</a> Love this question as well. One time I ended up driving to my therapists office instead of the place where I actually had to go 🙈 It wasn&apos;t even in the same direction. When I realised, I drove back to the actual place I had to go. That felt weird.<br><br>I can&apos;t remember if I told my therapist during our next session about this and what she said.<br>I forgot so much of our talks. This was my first therapist that ended in 2015 so it&apos;s been a while. But in general I hate that I forget so much. Sometimes I wish there were audio tapes 🙈 <br><br>A few years later my Somatic Experiencing therapist (she was a physiotherapist, not a psychotherapist but she had SE qualification and she was awesome) said that I do have short dissociations. But in &quot;regular&quot; therapy with a new therapists (psychotherapist with CBT &amp; EMDR) that I saw at the same time (both knew and supported that I did both) that topic never came up - as far as I remember.<br><br>When my friend (who unfortunately passed away 😢) accompanied me to a doctor&apos;s appointment in the hospital in 2018, after I already had many negative (I&apos;d say traumatic) exoeriences, she described a moment that I would define as dissociation. I didn&apos;t talk with or answer the doctor anymore, I didn&apos;t move at all (even though I was very nervous before) and my eyes were full of fear. Later when I slowly got out if it, I replied to the doctor&apos;s questions but kinda like robot answers (monotone, short, e.g. yes/no). She felt like I wasn&apos;t really there and without her the appointment would have ended. We both think the doctor did not notice this at all. He probably just thought she has nothing more to say. Instead what he said reminded me of a horrific/traumatic experience at a different hospital.<br><br>I love that my friend was so observant. We didn&apos;t know each other long and in contrast to the other so-called friends whom I knew longer, she was actually there 💚 I miss her.<br><br>In my daily life I don&apos;t think this happens so I never brought it up in therapy myself. I mean if she does trauma therapy she must know after all those years and also she probably has more severe cases with real dissociations and not just these &quot;mini dissociations&quot; that I had. Also we haven&apos;t seen each other in person since Covid started and now via video it&apos;s different and harder to talk. I don&apos;t know if its weird to ask about this. It kinda feels like I want another diagnosis which I definitely don&apos;t want.<br><br>So I&apos;m looking forward to watching this video and learning more about it myself.

  1

• JE

  @JenJams1 · 3 weeks ago

  I know I have this 😥 I constantly do maladaptive daydreaming too.

  1

• VA

  @vanessa1275_pdx · 1 month ago

  I like to use movie references. Depersonalization - feels like that scene in Get Out where she sends the main character to the &quot;sunken place.&quot; Derealization - many report it feels like The Truman Show where Truman is real, but everyone else is fake and playing a character.

  1

• HE

  @HeidiBrinkerhoff · 1 month ago

  DID always makes me think about the show, &quot;United States of Tara.&quot; It&apos;s hilarious and heartwarming all at the same time and seems pretty realistic in terms of the impact it can have on a family. Toni Collette is amazing in the role. I&apos;m not sure how realistic it was depicting the switching between alters, but it was impressive how well she did it.

  1

• LE

  @leialuminous · 1 month ago

  As much as this answers so many questions, I&apos;m understating why diagnoses can take years if not decades to get accurate. Especially when there&apos;s overlap. The DSM-5 is struggling to read itself 😅 Thank you as always for the well-educated information.

  2