#72 Disassociation & Focus

The Focus Cast

Through therapy, Bryan finally learns the name for how he's been feeling for decades. Disassociation. Dissociative disorders are mental disorders that involve experiencing a disconnection and lack of continuity between thoughts, memories, surroundings, actions and identity.
00:39 Music Intro
03:20 How Disassociation Can Feel
12:15 Potential Causes
16:56 Types of Disassociation
25:50 What Can We Do?
36:59 Music Outro
DO YOU FEEL THIS WAY?

• Memory loss (amnesia) of certain time periods, events, people and personal information
• A sense of being detached from yourself and your emotions
• A perception of the people and things around you as distorted and unreal
• A blurred sense of identity
• Significant stress or problems in your relationships, work or other important areas of your life
• Inability to cope well with emotional or professional stress
• Mental health problems, such as depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts and behaviors

According to an article from the May Clinic, these are symptoms of dissociative disorders.

DISSOCIATION DISORDER

• DEFINITION: Dissociative disorders are mental disorders that involve experiencing a disconnection and lack of continuity between thoughts, memories, surroundings, actions and identity.
• POTENTIAL CAUSE: Dissociative disorders usually develop as a reaction to trauma and help keep difficult memories at bay.

TYPES OF DISSOCIATION

• Dissociative amnesia. The main symptom is memory loss that's more severe than normal forgetfulness and that can't be explained by a medical condition.
• Dissociative identity disorder. Formerly known as multiple personality disorder, this disorder is characterized by "switching" to alternate identities. You may feel the presence of two or more people talking or living inside your head.
• Depersonalization-derealization disorder. This involves an ongoing or episodic sense of detachment or being outside yourself — observing your actions, feelings, thoughts and self from a distance as though watching a movie.

QUOTES:

• "I have a form of dissociative disorder that makes the world seem like it's not real, as if things aren't taking place. It's hard to explain, but you feel untethered," said Counting Crows lead singer in Men's Health, going on to explain, "It's hard to care when everything feels as if it's taking place in your imagination."

OPEN CONVO

• Why are we talking about this bro?
• What is your goal?
• What can you do?
  • Encourage ongoing therapy
  • Be patient
  • Don’t play games with the identities
  • Try to understand triggers
  • Practice good mental hygiene together
  • Help with memory gaps