Addressing Trauma-Induced Dissociated Self-States

Dissociation involves detachment from reality, self, others, and one’s emotions, alongside disruption in integration of behaviors, thoughts, consciousness, feelings, memories, and/or identity. Severe trauma commonly triggers dissociative states by producing memory impairments, intolerable emotions, and bodily distress. Links between dissociation and trauma may go unrecognized when connections were never formed, and dissociation can function as a defense that blocks access to distressing memories, fantasies, feelings, and bodily experiences. Trauma can fragment identity into aspects outside awareness, and developmental caregiver experiences shape internal models of self and others that include self-assessments, emotions, and expected responses. During dissociation, one representational mode is unaware of another, impairing integration and affecting thoughts, emotions, behaviors, and relationships, even when less severe than dissociative identity disorder.

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