Therapy for Dissociative Disorders in Washington State (Telehealth)

Treatment for Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID), Depersonalization/Derealization Disorder, and Trauma-Related Dissociation

Dissociation is a natural survival response that helps to distance us from painful, overwhelming experiences. While effective and ingenious, dissociation can also be confusing and distressing.

Symptoms of Dissociative Disorders

  • you know something painful happened to you in the past, but you can’t quite remember what happened

  • you feel emotionally disconnected from your experiences, as if they happened to someone else

  • you regularly experience internal dialogue: voicing vastly different opinions, providing helpful or annoying feedback, offering comfort in distress, and/or arguing about which course of action to take next

  • you feel like it’s difficult to know who you are, given the differing opinions, feelings, interests, preferences, and desires you experience

  • you experience blackouts or memory issues

  • you get sudden, sometimes inexplicable, emotional shifts

  • you get vivid flashbacks in your mind

  • you had a difficult childhood, marked by feelings of fear or unpredictability

  • you struggle with ongoing thoughts of hurting yourself

  • you use substances to cope with difficult feelings

Therapy for dissociation will be especially important if you feel like you need to hide all of this from your family and friends because you are worried that people won’t believe you, will try to medicate or institutionalize you, or take advantage of you, even in therapy. You find it hard to trust others enough to open up, but you know you need help.