Dissociation in Mental Health Recovery: What Is It? What's It Like?

Today in mental health recovery, I'm experiencing dissociation. What is dissociation? Well, for me, I feel oddly disconnected from my body, and like I'm floating through a dream in my real life. I am experiencing dissociation now, and rather than waiting until I feel better, I've decided to make a post in the moment to really show you what it's like.

What Is Dissociation in Mental Health Recovery?

Dissociation in mental health recovery is a phenomenon where your consciousness is no longer focused on the world around you. Instead, your mind detaches from your body in some way. Dissociation can take many different forms in different people, or even in the same person. (See more here: "What Is Dissociation? Definition, Causes, Symptoms, Treatment.")

In my own life, I've experienced dissociation in the form of maladaptive daydreaming, zoning out, and out-of-body experiences. One common, mild form of dissociation is that phenomenon where you are driving home from work and before you know it, you find yourself pulling into the driveway without any real memory of the act of driving home.

Dissociation in mental health recovery as a symptom of mental illness is typically either more severe or more frequent than that particular example, but even if you are in recovery from your mental illness, you may still experience dissociation. I have been recovering from my depression and anxiety for many years and I feel like I'm currently in a good place; but today I'm still experiencing dissociation that is sometimes minorly distracting and at other times majorly disruptive.

Why Does Dissociation in Mental Health Recovery Happen?

Dissociation is often a way of coping with a distressing environment when you feel powerless to change the distressing factors, and with a global pandemic going on right now, it makes sense that my brain might turn to dissociation to cope.

If you're interested to see what dissociation looks like on camera, check out the video below. Do you experience dissociation in mental health recovery? How do you deal with it? Share your experience in the comments.