Dissociative Disorders

Definition

Mental disorders that involve experiencing a disconnection and lack of continuity between thoughts, memories, surroundings, actions and identity.

Related terms

Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID):

A disorder characterized by the presence of two or more distinct personality states that recurrently take control of behavior.

Depersonalization-Derealization Disorder: A type of dissociative disorder that consists of persistent or recurrent episodes of depersonalization (feeling detached or disconnected from oneself) and/or derealization (experiencing the world as unreal, dreamlike, distant, or distorted).

Dissociative Amnesia:

A type of dissociative disorder that involves inability to recall important personal information that would not typically be lost with ordinary forgetting. It is usually caused by trauma or stress.