Key points

Dissociation due to trauma is an evolutionarily driven cognitive neurological protective response.

Everyone experiences some, largely mild, dissociative states, many of which are benign.

Dissociation is adaptive, but its effects can be maladaptive.

In my last post, Trauma's Negative Impact on Working Memory , I delved into variations in memory processing that are prevalent with trauma. This post builds on the concept by considering trauma and dissociative states.

What is dissociation?

The DSM-V (APA, 2013) defines dissociation as "...a disruption of and/or discontinuity in the normal integration of consciousness, memory, identity , emotion , perception, body representation, motor control, and behavior."

Although a technically correct description, I find that it

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