Clinically reviewed by Bülent Ada, BSc.(Psychol.)(Hons.), MAPS · Updated April 2025

You’re in a meeting but you’re not really there. You drive home and can’t remember the route. You look in the mirror and feel strangely disconnected from the face looking back. You are reading this sentence and suddenly lose the thread entirely.

These experiences exist on a spectrum. At one end: the ordinary, unremarkable dissociation that all humans experience — daydreaming, highway hypnosis, zoning out. At the other: more significant disruptions in identity, memory, or the sense of being real that can significantly impair daily life and signal underlying trauma or distress.

Understanding dissociation — what it actually is, why it happens, and what helps — is increasingly important, given how widely the term is used (and sometimes misused) on social media and in everyday conversation.

What Is Dissociation?

Dissociation refers to a disruption in the normal integration of consciousness, memory, identity, emotion, perception, behaviour, and sense of self. In simpler terms: it is a disconnection — from your thoughts, feelings, surroundings, or sense of who you are.

Dissociation is not a diagnosis in itself. It is a phenomenon that occurs on a spectrum and in a range of contexts.

The Spectrum of Dissociation

Mild / Everyday Dissociation

This is universal human experience. Reading a book and being fully absorbed such that you don’t hear your name called. Arriving somewhere and not being able to recall the journey. Staring out a window and losing track of time.

These experiences are normal and, in most circumstances, entirely benign.

Moderate Dissociation

More significant dissociation might involve:

• Daydreaming or “spacing out” that is difficult to control and happens at inconvenient times
• Emotional numbing — feeling cut off from emotions that should be present
• Memory gaps — periods of time that are difficult to account for
• Feeling like you are watching yourself from a distance — as though observing your own behaviour rather than experiencing it directly

These experiences, when they are distressing or impairing functioning, warrant exploration with a professional.

Depersonalisation and Derealisation

Depersonalisation is the experience of feeling detached from your own mind or body — as though you are an outside observer of your own thoughts, feelings, sensations, or actions. People sometimes describe feeling like a robot, like they are watching a film of their own life, or like they have “disappeared.”

Derealisation is the experience of feeling that your surroundings are unreal, dreamlike, distant, or distorted — that the world around you is somehow “off” in a way that is difficult to articulate.

Both depersonalisation and derealisation can occur together (Depersonalisation/Derealisation Disorder, DSM-5-TR) or as part of another condition (anxiety disorder, PTSD, depression). They can be brief and episodic, or chronic and pervasive. When persistent, they cause significant distress and impairment.

Dissociative Amnesia

Gaps in autobiographical memory that cannot be explained by ordinary forgetting — including, in extreme cases, fugue states (periods of travel or purposeful activity with no conscious awareness or subsequent memory). This is relatively rare and is typically associated with severe trauma.

Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID)

DID (formerly known as multiple personality disorder) involves the presence of two or more distinct personality states or identities that recurrently take control of a person’s behaviour and are accompanied by significant amnesia. DID is relatively rare, often misunderstood, and consistently associated with severe and chronic childhood trauma.

Why Does Dissociation Happen?

Dissociation as a survival response

The most important thing to understand about dissociation is that it is fundamentally a protective mechanism. When an experience is too overwhelming to be processed consciously, the mind creates distance from it. Dissociation says: “This is too much right now — let’s put some of this somewhere else.”

In acute trauma — an accident, an assault, a medical emergency — mild to moderate dissociation is extremely common. The sense of “this isn’t real” or “this is happening to someone else” can allow a person to function through an experience that might otherwise be completely overwhelming.

Connection to trauma and the Window of Tolerance

The concept of the Window of Tolerance (see our article: The Window of Tolerance: Understanding Your Nervous System’s Optimal Zone) is helpful here. When we are within our window of tolerance, we can process experiences and regulate our emotions effectively. When we are pushed outside it — either into hyperarousal (fight/flight panic) or hypoarousal (freeze/collapse) — dissociation often occurs.

People who have experienced repeated or prolonged trauma may have a narrower window of tolerance and may dissociate more readily as a result.

Other triggers

Dissociation can also be triggered by:

• Severe sleep deprivation
• Substance use (cannabis is a particularly common trigger for depersonalisation/derealisation)
• Panic attacks (depersonalisation is a common panic symptom)
• Extreme anxiety
• Certain medications
• Medical conditions (temporal lobe epilepsy, migraines, and others can cause dissociative phenomena)

Grounding Techniques for Mild Dissociation

When dissociation occurs, grounding techniques can help bring attention back to the present moment and to the body.

5-4-3-2-1: Name 5 things you can see, 4 you can hear, 3 you can touch, 2 you can smell, 1 you can taste. Engages the senses and anchors attention to the present.

Cold water: Hold your hands under cold running water, or hold an ice cube (briefly). Temperature and sensation interrupt dissociative states.

Feet on the floor: Feel the sensation of your feet making contact with the ground. Notice the pressure, the texture of your socks or the floor. Slow your breath.

Name where you are: Say aloud (or internally) where you are, the date, your name, and a few things around you.

These techniques address the symptom in the moment but do not address the underlying causes.

When to Seek Professional Support

Dissociation that is distressing, impairing, frequent, or difficult to manage warrants professional assessment. A GP or psychologist can:

• Assess the nature and frequency of your dissociative experiences
• Rule out medical causes where relevant
• Identify any underlying conditions (PTSD, anxiety, depression, trauma history) that may be contributing
• Develop a therapeutic plan

How Therapy Addresses Dissociation

Stabilisation first

For dissociation associated with trauma, effective therapy follows a phased approach. The first priority is stabilisation — building the capacity to tolerate and regulate difficult experiences before processing the underlying traumatic material directly. Grounding techniques, window of tolerance work, and psychoeducation are central to this phase.

EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing)

EMDR is one of the most researched trauma treatments and is specifically designed to process traumatic memories in a way that reduces their emotional charge and their capacity to trigger dissociation. It is recognised by the World Health Organisation as an evidence-based treatment for trauma.

Trauma-Focused CBT

CBT adapted for trauma addresses the cognitive and behavioural patterns that maintain post-traumatic symptoms, including dissociation. It involves gradual, supported exposure to traumatic material within a framework that builds coping skills.

Parts-Based Approaches

For more complex dissociation, approaches that work with different “parts” of the self — including Internal Family Systems (IFS) and structural dissociation approaches — can be valuable. These models understand dissociation as a separation of different aspects of personality and work toward integration and internal cooperation rather than conflict.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is dissociation?

Dissociation is a disruption in the normal integration of consciousness, memory, identity, emotion, perception and sense of self; in simpler terms, a disconnection from your thoughts, feelings, surroundings or sense of who you are. It is not a diagnosis in itself but a phenomenon that occurs on a spectrum, ranging from everyday zoning out to more significant disruptions that impair daily life.

Is dissociation always a sign of trauma?

No. Mild, everyday dissociation, such as daydreaming, highway hypnosis or losing track of time, is universal and usually benign. More significant or persistent dissociation can be linked to trauma, but it can also be triggered by severe sleep deprivation, substance use (cannabis is a common trigger), panic attacks, extreme anxiety, certain medications, or some medical conditions. Distressing dissociation warrants professional assessment.

What is the difference between depersonalisation and derealisation?

Depersonalisation is feeling detached from your own mind or body, as though observing yourself from the outside or watching a film of your own life. Derealisation is feeling that your surroundings are unreal, dreamlike, distant or distorted. They can occur together or as part of another condition such as anxiety, PTSD or depression, and when persistent cause significant distress.

How can I ground myself during dissociation?

Grounding techniques bring attention back to the present. The 5-4-3-2-1 method involves naming things you can see, hear, touch, smell and taste. Cold water on the hands, feeling your feet on the floor, and saying aloud where you are and the date can also help. These address the moment but do not resolve underlying causes, which is why professional support matters.

How is dissociation treated?

For trauma-related dissociation, therapy typically follows a phased approach, beginning with stabilisation to build capacity to tolerate and regulate difficult experiences before processing traumatic material. EMDR is a well-researched trauma treatment, and trauma-focused CBT addresses patterns that maintain symptoms. For more complex dissociation, parts-based approaches such as Internal Family Systems work toward internal integration and cooperation rather than conflict.

Related reading

• Trauma support services
• EMDR therapy
• The window of tolerance explained

About the author: Bülent Ada is the Principal Psychologist and Founding Director of Mind Health Associates in Parramatta, Sydney. With over 20 years of clinical experience, Bülent works with individuals experiencing trauma, PTSD, dissociation, and complex presentations. Learn more about Bülent.

This article is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional mental health advice. If you are experiencing significant dissociation, please seek assessment from a qualified health professional.

Ready to take the next step? Mind Health Associates offers trauma-informed psychological support in Parramatta and via telehealth. Contact us to enquire about appointments.