I found this site about AS and a part of it is talking about AS and dissociation.
I thought I'd post some of text from the site...
I see myself in some of this... but I also know that my dissociation comes from certain traumatic experiences in my life. I dissociate in a different way than I would have done if it only had been caused by AS.

"ALTERED STATES


There are many different types of altered states. They can be light or deep; voluntary or involuntary; physical, emotional, mental or intuitive in origin; beneficial or counterproductive; and include any state of mind from being hyper-aware, hyper-focused or inspired to totally zoned out.


It is not easy for others to tell the difference – or even if a person is in an altered state or not. One clue is that if someone is reading, writing, painting, meditating, listening to music, dancing, watching a film, playing or working with something and does not look up and make eye contact when you walk into the room, that person may be in one altered state or another.


Besides occurring spontaneously, different types of altered states may be induced by flickering light (e.g. from TV & computer monitors, fluorescent lights), electromagnetic stimulation of the brain, music, repetitive movements (e.g. rocking back-&-forth), drugs, air-born chemicals, pain, shock, fear, sex, stress, sensory overload, allergic reaction, fatigue, precipitation, deep concentration, meditation, prayer, contemplation and hypnosis.


SPACING OUT


Spacing out is something very common to autistic and intuitive people. There may be many types, degrees and causes for it.


“I have experienced several types of what might be called altered states of consciousness. Some of them might be related to epilepsy. (I now believe I had epilepsy as a teen, but tested negative because of poor testing available at the time.) Some of them might be dissociation. Some might be called a trance state. Some are spiritual/metaphysical. Some or all of them might be related. It seems too much of a coincidence that I have experienced all of them. None of these were triggered by the use of drugs, alcohol, herbs or any mind altering substance.


“1. Partial brain shutdown: I am only partially aware of what is going on. For example, I could tell that a person next to me is making word sounds, but not what the person is saying. I am taking in things but not able to process at all. I can continue very simple repetitive movements but cannot talk or doing anything requiring any thought. Pretty scary. I don't get these anymore, but they were common in high school.


“2. Brain shutdown, mental vacation, spaced out: My mind just shuts down except for vital functions like breathing. (I remain standing or sitting or what ever position I was in.) I do nothing but stare blankly. Time passes and I have no memory of it passing. In my teen years, in my room I would often have instances where I realized I had been staring at the wall or a blank sheet for a half hour to an hour. They are less serious now, thought it tends to happened a couple times a month in the shower. It is easily broken by my husband yelling at me that I will be late for work though the bathroom door.


“3. Daydreaming: Sometimes I will become so lost in my own thoughts or a pleasant day dream that I tune out the outside world. I am not sure if this is properly called an altered state or not.


“4. Open, receptive, trance: I am not interacting at all with the outside world or physical world. During this time I am in tune with the either the inner world (my subconsious thought, inner self, etc.) or the spirit world. During this time I am open to visions, feelings, etc. I can currently do this at will now, though usually I will opt for #5 instead.


“5. Open, receptive, light trance, both worlds: This is like number 4 except that I am able to interact with both the physical and non-physical world at the same time with no more distraction than I would have with a normal conversation. I believe this is my current default state and I can enter into it at will. I think there may be a little bit of a continuum between 4 and 5.


“6. Disconnected: My body feels like it is not firmly connected to my mind/spirit/soul. I feel like I am watching my life rather than actively living it. Emotions and physical sensations may be blunted or numb. Interaction with the world is not impaired.


“7. Bliss: A sense of deep peace, calmness, serenity. This is usually triggered by repetitive movement (crochet or other craft) or music with an hypnotic or psychedelic quality. Having to concentrate on something else breaks the bliss. Normally I am not thinking anything at all, just experiencing feelings and sensations, though sometimes my mind can wander around during this time and maintain the state of bliss. I am thinking this is perhaps the state of Nirvana some seek to obtain though meditation. I also feel like perhaps it is similar to what some people may experience on drugs.”

- Ilah, adult probable Aspie from USA

· Some individuals seem more susceptible to falling into a light trance. Some of us are in a state of permanent contemplation and function well in that state, when left in peace.


“I will zone out when thinking or contemplating, withdraw into myself during parties, and develop tunnel vision and extreme distance during times of stress. I believe all these things are Aspie traits, although I suppose trauma victims will fall into one of these mental retreats too. the difference is that for people who have suffered trauma, such withdrawing might be an emergency mechanism, whereas I have degrees of it constantly.”

- Tom, adult Aspie from USA


· In other instances the trance or altered state is so deep that it makes any activity or social interaction impossible and little development would take place if the person was left in it for too long (according to autistic consultant Iris Johansson who herself had the tendency to space out as often as possible when she was a child). However, even unwanted trance states one needs to come out of slowly and gently. Anything harsh and abrupt is a no-no!


· Sometimes medical conditions, e.g. allergies, can induce brain fog that is totally involuntary.


BENIGN DISSOCIATION


Not every type of dissociation is negative or caused by trauma. Some of us appear to use milder forms of it as a strategy to get by in this stressful world. It might actually be a good and useful strategy if one is as sensitive as many of us are and so easily get overwhelmed. If we didn’t have this ability, we might otherwise go nuts from emotional or sensory overload.


“I am also finding myself detaching more - like going into my own world more - but still with a foot in the door of reality - like just functioning at the bare necessity - but I kind of find the detaching helpful and am used to it anyway.”

- Julie, adult Aspie from England


“This is my most common symptom [of stress]. I actually develop a sort of tunnel vision and begin to feel as though my body is a vessel which I reside inside of. The more I am stressed, the deeper I live in it until it seems as though everyone and everything is more like a movie I watch on TV than anything real.”

- Tom, adult Aspie from USA


“Yes, me too. I think I've developed a rather useful response to stress which rarely makes me reach high levels of frustration. As people start to put more and more conflicting demands on me I simply detach more and more. When I do this I am also able to hyperfocus on the important points instead of all the irrelevant stimuli the environment feeds you with. That's why I think I work most efficiently under stress but still never comes anywhere near being burnt out.”

- Leif, adult Aspie from Sweden


“I understand that this is called dissociation. As far as I understand many people on the autism spectrum are able to dissociate. I know I live the biggest part of my days in dissociation; it is a 'tool' for me to live my life and I like it.


“There seem to be many assumptions/concepts like the one that 'one should suffer before being allowed to feel fine'. I used to believe these ideas, but I have left most of them behind me during my life when I could see for myself that many of those assumptions are just not true to me. I think that learning how to deal with pain is one of life's challenges and where one is supposed to be 'creative'.


“Of course it is good to notice painful situations, because it helps one to change strategy or concepts, or whatever. It is a sign to do things in a different way. But if you have found a way to handle painful situations (f.e. dissociation) and you really handle that (knowing how to change not being dissociated when reality needs you to be 'present') I think it is a great tool to avoid unnecessary stress.”

- Lida, adult Aspie from the Netherlands


“I have a theory about dissociation. I think some people are ‘natural dissociators’ who can dissociate even if they have not suffered from a traumatic event or abuse. These people are able to use dissociation to cope with normal stresses or even boring things. One drawback to this might be dissociating unintentionally. Because people who have had traumatic experiences sometimes show this trait, psychologists over generalize and assume anyone who dissociates has had a traumatic experience. And if you try to tell them otherwise that might claim you repressed it or are in denial.”

- Ilah, adult probable Aspie from USA



BUBBLE


Some of us feel as if living in a bubble, which we do not necessarily wish to come out of.


I’ve always felt as if I was protected by some sort of bubble which somewhat protects me from the rest of the world. When one is as sensitive as I am, such a protective bubble is very useful indeed! It also keeps me feeling generally relaxed and hyperfocused on the here and now.

- Inger, site-author


“At home I have everything arranged the way I want it and keep noise to a minimum. When alone, I do not answer the phone unless I am expecting a call and ignore the doorbell. I have the curtains drawn to keep out sunlight and prefer to keep the windows closed to keep out noise from the outside world. I tend to record TV programs so I can fast forward through commercials, which I consider jarring and rude. I listen to the radio very seldom because what's played is to cater for a wide audience and I only like a few songs, thus I am more inclined to spend a day recording the few songs I like off the radio and listen to the tape over and over again until I get bored with it. All to keep my bubble intact.”

- Tom, adult Aspie from USA


“I have a big ’personal bubble’ and just knowing there are people closer than 500 m makes it impossible for me to fully relax, even in my sleep.”

- Matilda, adult Aspie from Sweden

Poor SENSE OF TIME


Those with an intuitive personality type and right brain hemisphere often have a very poor sense of time in general, and even more so when focusing on something. It is also a typical effect of trance, dissociation, meditation, hyperfocus & creativity – the deeper the trance and the more intense the hyperfocus, the less one’s awareness of time and the faster time appears to fly by.


“Time in itself doesn't mean anything to me. When I have to estimate how much time I have spend on doing some task, I don't have any idea if I didn't just marked the starting and finishing hour. I also don't know how to take a break from work for example.”

- Lida, adult Aspie from the Netherlands


“My sense of time is very different from most people I know. For the most part it affects me very little. By that I mean I do my own thing when I want to without worrying about the clock. The only time I really worry about the clock is if there is a specific program coming on that I want to watch or if I have an appointment.

”Now, I generally know what day it is, the main exceptions being if my usual routine is very disrupted somehow. I also know the month, but not always the exact date without looking at a calender. For the most part that doesn't worry me, except as stated, if there is a program I want to watch or I have an appointment.

”That said, I am also very punctual. If I say I will be somewhere at a certain time, I will be there then and probably will be early on top of that. If I say I will call at a certain time I will, though again maybe a few minutes early. It really annoys me when people say they will be along or call at a certain time and don't. I don't like having to put my activities on hold to wait for them to finally show.”

- William, adult Aspie from USA


“I certainly am not aware of what is going on around me when I become totally focused and emersed in what I am doing. When in this state it is rather painful for someone to drag me out of it - it's like being asleep whilst been awake, sort of like a dream state and I'm enjoying the dream and don't want to wake up :-)”

- Julie, adult Aspie from England



HYPERFOCUS


Being able to hyper-focus is a special gift that can be very useful. If only other people realised and respected the need to be left alone when in the special state of mind most suitable for each activity. Meltdowns at interruptions is a sign of how extremely important it is to be left alone until one is finished with whatever one is doing. Most of us really put our Souls into everything we do, and need to finish one activity before starting another. It’s a very effective way of working that usually yields high quality output.


“When I start a job I like to stick to it until it is done. I also like to get things done right away. If a project or whatever comes up, my preference is to get right on it and finish it. Preference might be a mild word for it though as it is often more of a compulsion, like there is this big charge of energy built up by the idea and the only way to release it is to get it done.”

-William, adult Aspie from USA


“I cant take breaks and then return to things. I must complete a project from start to finish.”

- Martka, adolescent Aspie/HFA from Scotland

Just by saying a single word, entering the room or moving around, others may inadvertently cause brutal interruption a very important activity, a highly pleasurable experience, a crucial moment of inner peace, a rare state of inspiration or a particularly fascinating thread of thought, which may then be lost forever. The reaction will usually be in perfect proportion to the pain and confusion which the loss of that delicate state might cause.


“Interrupting me when I am perseverating is easily one of the most anger-inducing things someone can do to me. Tap me on the shoulder when I am in that state and it's like being rudely jarred out of a dream.”

- Tom, adult Aspie from USA


“When I was a child the whole family sat in front of the TV and everything was peace and quiet, a nice regular night. Them mom suddenly said ‘No, this film is too awful for you. You cannot see it,’ and dad changed the channel.


“I had a meltdown and started kicking and hitting on dad and they were very surprised and carried me into the bedroom and tried to calm me down, but to no avail. I was completely hysterical, wiggling like a fish in dad’s arms. They almost laughed at the situation and understood nothing. My tantrum lasted for probably an hour and they sat with me in bed until I eventually fell asleep from exhaustion.


“The thing was not that I wanted to see the film. I probably didn’t understand it anyway. The thing was that everything had been so calm at first. Everyone sat quietly and the TV was beaming and sounding a certain way. Then, without warning, they started talking in firm voices and got up and what was happening on the TV disappeared.


“They were mean, idiots, ruthless torturers… Everything had been so nice, why did they have to ruin everything? It was warm and cosy and safe in the sofa. No one talked, everyone was quiet, the TV was beaming.


“Then it felt as if someone without prior warning suddenly kicked one out of the sofa and said ‘You can’t be here! You’re stupid! You’re little!’”

- Micke S., adult Aspie from Sweden


CREATIVITY


There only thing that is worse than being interrupted during a hyperfocus is being interrupted during a creative hyperfocus. Non-creative people probably can’t begin to imagine what a fragile and delicate state of mind that is! Especially when one is creating something completely new, be it by writing, painting, composing etc. That is one of the most blissful but at the same time most vulnerable states one can be in.


To be interrupted at such a time is an agony that can’t be described in words, not only because it completely throws one off physically, but also because of the loss of flow that may have the effect that whatever one was working on may never be completed. What could be more painful than that?


‘DO NOT DISTURB!’


So, if you have a creative or hyperfocusing person in the family, please make some kind of practical arrangement where the person can put a ‘do-not-disturb’ sign on the door and feel 100% safe that s/he will be left alone and noise kept down to a minimum in the rest of the house. If the silent bit feels like too much of an infringement on the liberties of other family members, consider putting up a sound proof shed or caravan in the back yard or something. (See also Needs.) Thanks for your understanding and consideration! You will be much appreciated for it - and see less meltdowns all around!"

http://www.creative-minds.info/index...eredStates.htm Inger Lorelei

[wanttoheal]

This is very interesting and informative, thanks daynnight! There seems to be some overlapping for sure. Thanks for sharing it with us.

Oh... you managed to read this loooooooooooong post!!! Cool! Thank you!

Yes, it's interesting to see the things that are similar. I do believe having aspergers might have made it easier for me to develop another part of me or in another word- an alter. I'm thinking about how genetic factors combined with traumatizing events and environment... probably "created" who I am today.

((((((((((( wanttoheal )))))))))))

[wanttoheal]

I have to admit- I came back twice to get through it all. I had to take a break in between lol. What you are saying makes sense. I'm glad you are able to start figuring things out. We are indeed the sum of our experiences.

(((((((((((daynnight))))))))))

<font color="purple">Hey now, that'spretty cool. I don't have AS (and if I was then it would be too mild to really bother me or other people anyways) but being a very intuitive person, I have a tendancey to do almost ALL types of dissociation fairly regularly. I have a feeling though this isn't going to be a good thing for school, just blanking out in the middle of a lecture or something </font>

[Fuzzybear]

((((((((((((((( Nina )))))))))))))))

Thank you for reading and taking interest in the text.

I hope school works out just fine for you! Pssst... I think it will!

(((((((((( Fuzzy )))))))))))

Thanks for your support, my friend!

[hurtsme]

A very good read...


hugs,

/m

thanks for reading, M!

((((((((((((( hurtsme )))))))))))))))

[hurtsme]

(((((((((((((((daynnight)))))))))))))))))

Just a quick subject change, kudo's on your new avatar's ...

In your free time, send me the link to where you make them, or mmmmmmh, you could make me two cool ones,,,

Yours truly,

/m