Dissociative disorders are a range of conditions that can cause physical and psychological problems.

Some dissociative disorders are very short-lived, perhaps following a traumatic life event, and resolve on their own over a matter of weeks or months. Others can last much longer.

Someone with a dissociative disorder may have problems with:

• movement
• sensation
• seizures
• periods of memory loss

They may also feel uncertain about who they are and have many different identities.

Dissociation is a way the mind copes with too much stress. People who dissociate may feel disconnected from themselves and the world around them.

Periods of dissociation can last for a relatively short time (hours or days) or for much longer (weeks or months). It can sometimes last for years, but usually if a person has other dissociative disorders.

Many people with a dissociative disorder have had a traumatic event during childhood. They may dissociate and avoid dealing with it as a way of coping with it.

For further information about symptoms and treatment, please visit the NHS website that this page has been taken from: