Exploring Different Types of Dissociative Disorders

Dissociative disorders can affect a person’s identity, thoughts, emotions, feelings, mental status, and memory. A dissociative disorder is often related to early childhood trauma. Depending on what is getting affected, dissociative disorders can be divided into four main types. Let’s learn in detail about the four types of dissociative disorders.

What are Dissociative Disorders?

The word “dissociation” means to be disconnected from others, from the world around you or from yourself. Dissociative disorders are mental health conditions that involve feelings of being detached from reality, being outside of your own body or experiencing memory loss.

Dissociative disorders typically develop after short-term or long-term trauma.

Types of Dissociative Disorders

1. Dissociative Identity Disorder

Those who suffer from dissociative identity disorder (DID) have multiple identities. These identities, also known as alters, control their behaviour at different times. Each of these alters have different memories, traits, personalities, history, occupation, likes, and dislikes. This form of dissociative identity disorder was previously known as multiple personality disorder. The main symptoms of DID are as follows:

• Intense dissociation from one’s original identity and having multiple identities

• Changes in behaviour depending on which identity they are relating to at that moment

• Losing memory of identities and feeling dissociated from actual time

• Facing difficulties at the workplace, in relationships, and friendships

• Harbouring suicidal thoughts

• Self-harm

• In severe cases, homicidal and other criminal tendencies

2. Depersonalisation Disorder

When someone feels out of place in his/her own body, the person may have developed depersonalisation disorder. In this condition, when people look in the mirror, they often feel a sense of detachment. The main symptoms of depersonalisation disorder are as follows:

• The feeling of not belonging to their own body

• Looking in the mirror and not identifying their own self

• No connection with their body and mind

• Not connecting with their everyday experiences

• Numbness of thoughts and emotions

• Running their daily life on autopilot

3. Derealisation Disorder

This is similar to depersonalisation disorder; however, the difference is that here, the person is not able to relate to his/her environment, people, and things. The main symptoms are as follows:

• They feel detached from their experiences as if watching a movie from afar

• Things around them seem two-dimensional

• The things and people around them appear hazy and unreal

• Everything appears distant

4. Dissociative Amnesia Disorder

A person cannot remember important information, events, and incidents of his/her life. Such individuals forget specific aspects and the history of their lives. The symptoms are as follows:

• Memory lapses

• A memory gap specific to a past traumatic event

• Inability to recall certain details