Regression and dissociation in the therapy room

Freewilled · Oct 18, 2013, 06:43 AM

I'm just wondering how common it is to regress and/or dissociate during therapy sessions...does pretty much everyone who goes to therapy experience this at some point? Is it normal to act younger than you are??

And with dissociation...does everyone get "spacey" and zone out?

Any feedback would be much appreciated!

Oct 18, 2013, 06:59 AM

It depends on what trauma a person has gone through. The age if the person at time of trauma and the length of time of traumatic experience.

We can only regress to the age of our emotional age at time of trauma.
Regression is an attempt to repair. Depth of dissociation depends on how much the person had to split.
Some just 'go away' for a few seconds, others like myself, completely numb out to protect against further splitting.

tinyrabbit · Oct 18, 2013, 07:05 AM

If you've experienced trauma, it's definitely normal.

Freewilled · Oct 18, 2013, 07:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tinyrabbit

If you've experienced trauma, it's definitely normal.

Would people who have not experienced any trauma do this though?

3velniai · Oct 18, 2013, 08:44 AM

I don't know about how is it with people who haven't experienced trauma, but I'd like to say that trauma can be quite a subjective term. I was stubbornly claiming that I haven't experienced any traumas for a quite a long time. Ts opinion was the opposite (she said it was more than one). I now admit T was right, as usual.

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healed84 · Oct 18, 2013, 08:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Freewilled

Would people who have not experienced any trauma do this though?

Yes, everybody disassociates at some point. I think it means something more if you do it often, for longer periods of time, have trauma in your history.

stopdog · 09:06 AM

From what I have read, it is not unusual to dissociate.

doyoutrustme · Oct 18, 2013, 08:47 AM

Sometimes, but its pretty rare. I feel to self conscious to space out.

Littlemeinside · Oct 18, 2013, 09:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Freewilled

Would people who have not experienced any trauma do this though?

I would really like to know that too...

I think dossiciation can happend at any time. I am not sure about regression in therapy? Some say how old you act there, if you regress, is the age ( s) trauma happend.

Oct 18, 2013, 09:17 AM

I don't generally regress although it has happened a couple of times over the years. But I used to dissociate constantly. It has gotten much better over time as I have done more talking and healing to the point that it rarely happens anymore. But yes, it is fairly common in those who have undergone severe trauma in childhood.

Nerak67 · Oct 18, 2013, 10:19 AM

I regress all the time. I don't really feel like I had trauma but my t says I was emotionally neglected and she sometimes refers to trauma.

Oct 18, 2013, 10:27 AM

I think people associate dissociation with 'obvious' traumas. But destruction of a child's soul is just as traumatic, but not as obvious.

healed84 · Oct 18, 2013, 04:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by _Mouse

I think people associate dissociation with 'obvious' traumas. But destruction of a child's soul is just as traumatic, but not as obvious.

I don't think anyone is trying to define what trauma is in this thread. I was just suggesting that if there is a history of trauma plus significant disassociating then there would be something there worth talking or thinking about.

Oct 18, 2013, 04:28 PM

Huh? I was suggesting that if someone had experienced dissociation but didn't think they'd experienced trauma, sometimes the trauma isn't obvious.
Your rely has lost me lol

purplemystery · Oct 18, 2013, 04:46 PM

I have never experienced trauma, and I do tend to dissociate in sessions. It's like I forget I'm having a conversation sometimes. I am in deep thought and in my own world that I don't necessarily share.

But like _Mouse said, I have definitely experienced less obvious trauma.

Victoria'smom · Oct 18, 2013, 05:03 PM

No trauma here and I zone out all the time usually when I have to think of a response to a question.

Freewilled · Oct 18, 2013, 05:17 PM

Hmmm...I guess I ask because I worry that I'm making a big deal out of nothing. I mean, last night during T I really felt like I regressed back to a much younger age and I dissociated more than usual. I feel like it is leading to potential trauma but I don't really think I've been traumatized. I had some neglect I guess - but no physical abuse. I don't know about much else as I don't have a lot of cohesive memories... (Well I guess some emotional abuse /: )

I always worry I'm making things up or making something out of nothing. I really really don't want to give my T the impression that things were bad when maybe they really weren't and I should get over it and move on already. I mean, everyone has bad things happen to them so what makes me so special?

Idk - I'm sorry if I offend anyone or anything. Just for me, I wonder if my stuff is just no big deal and maybe everyone dissociates and regresses sometimes in session....

ultramar · Oct 18, 2013, 10:00 PM

Dissociation is often written/talked about in the context of trauma, however my understanding is that, for some people, dissociation is a coping mechanism for all kinds of stress --it doesn't have to be due to trauma. I've read that dissociation is a common trait of BPD -again, as a way to deal with difficult or overwhelming emotions, not necessarily only those related to trauma. It can become a kind of 'habit' as other coping mechanisms can become.

I have a hard time grasping regressing to the exact age a trauma occurred --I just feel like it's a lot 'messier' than that, not such a 1:1 correlation.

I don't space out. But I often have a hard time accessing the emotions related to very unpleasant material --my therapist has told me this is a form of dissociation.

ultramar · Oct 18, 2013, 10:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Freewilled

Hmmm...I guess I ask because I worry that I'm making a big deal out of nothing. I mean, last night during T I really felt like I regressed back to a much younger age and I dissociated more than usual. I feel like it is leading to potential trauma but I don't really think I've been traumatized. I had some neglect I guess - but no physical abuse. I don't know about much else as I don't have a lot of cohesive memories... (Well I guess some emotional abuse /: )

I always worry I'm making things up or making something out of nothing. I really really don't want to give my T the impression that things were bad when maybe they really weren't and I should get over it and move on already. I mean, everyone has bad things happen to them so what makes me so special?

Idk - I'm sorry if I offend anyone or anything. Just for me, I wonder if my stuff is just no big deal and maybe everyone dissociates and regresses sometimes in session....

No need to label as 'trauma' or minimize or maximize. Everyone's experience is different. There are all kinds of reasons (including what's going on in the relationship with the therapist, how vulnerable you feel, other things going in your life) why someone might regress and/or dissociate. Best to keep an open mind and not judge what did or didn't happen, just explore it and whatever happens in therapy, the important thing is that it's therapeutic/helpful to you --not the material itself, necessarily.

velcro003 · Oct 18, 2013, 10:11 PM

I don't think I ever dissociated/regressed in session. I am not sure what 'regression' really looks like, though.

My T is convinced I have some dissociation because I generally am pretty emotionally numb, and have like zero body awareness when it comes to feelings. I tend to disagree, so we agree to disagree for now

boredporcupine · Oct 18, 2013, 10:27 PM

Quote:

I always worry I'm making things up or making something out of nothing. I really really don't want to give my T the impression that things were bad when maybe they really weren't and I should get over it and move on already. I mean, everyone has bad things happen to them so what makes me so special?

It doesn't make you special that bad things happened to you. Pretty much everyone has had various "little t" traumas which have affected them, even if they don't qualify for any kind of trauma-related diagnosis. I was in the same boat...I used to dissociate in session, and I also thought I was going to sound like I was making things seem worse than they were. It turns out that although I never experienced life-threatening type trauma, I did experience some emotional abuse which had contributed to my mild dissociative symptoms.

I would say what is more special than whatever happened to a person is how much motivation they have to recover, grow, and attain their full potential as a person. When I look around at the world I see so many emotionally damaged people limping through life, and so few with the desire to work through whatever is holding them back.

Freewilled · Oct 19, 2013, 06:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by boredporcupine

It doesn't make you special that bad things happened to you. Pretty much everyone has had various "little t" traumas which have affected them, even if they don't qualify for any kind of trauma-related diagnosis. I was in the same boat...I used to dissociate in session, and I also thought I was going to sound like I was making things seem worse than they were. It turns out that although I never experienced life-threatening type trauma, I did experience some emotional abuse which had contributed to my mild dissociative symptoms.

I would say what is more special than whatever happened to a person is how much motivation they have to recover, grow, and attain their full potential as a person. When I look around at the world I see so many emotionally damaged people limping through life, and so few with the desire to work through whatever is holding them back.

Wow...I really needed to hear this, thanks

I wish I could stop minimizing my experience and look at the whole thing like I'm going to T to maximize my full potential. I was minimized a lot in my life and its almost like I'm doing it to myself now /: or doing it before my T has a chance to do it to me....

Raging Quiet · Oct 19, 2013, 04:30 PM

What usually triggers you in a session to dissociate?

Freewilled · Oct 19, 2013, 04:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Raging Quiet

What usually triggers you in a session to dissociate?

I'm not really sure...it's usually just a question my T will ask. Nothing specific that I can point to ... He will ask me a benign question and my mind will drift and he will ask me what I'm thinking or where I'm at and then I will get kind of floaty...and like far away. I will stare at something... Sometimes its worse where I can't really hear him or remember what is going on and sometimes it's more manageable. Last time it happened at the end of the session, afterwards I felt faint and thought I might get sick. Idk

Oct 19, 2013, 09:42 PM

I dissociated once in T's office when she was still in town, she said my name really loudly and brought me back. I don't remember what we were talking about that time. Then it happened a 2nd time after she'd moved and we were doing phone sessions, she had just said that she wondered if it would be helpful for me to work with a male therapist and I just went bye-bye. She said my name a couple times but it wasn't hearing my name that brought me back, it was hearing the alarm in her voice. I hated that I scared her. That was really weird. I didn't like it one bit either time.

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Regression and dissociation in the therapy room

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