Hockenbury Discovering Psychology 5th txtbk

The Dissociative Disorders561Dissociative Amnesia and FugueForgetting and WanderingDissociative amnesia refers to the partial or totalinability to recall important information that is notdue to a medical condition, such as an illness, an injury,or a drug. Usually the person develops amnesiafor personal events and information, rather than forgeneral knowledge or skills. That is, the person maynot be able to remember his wife’s name but doesremember how to read and who Martin LutherKing, Jr., was. In most cases, dissociative amnesia isa response to stress, trauma, or an extremely distressing situation, such as combat,marital problems, or physical abuse (McLewin & Muller, 2006).A closely related disorder is dissociative fugue. In dissociative fugue, the personoutwardly appears completely normal. However, the person has extensive amnesiaand is confused about his identity. While in the fugue state, he suddenly and inexplicablytravels away from his home, wandering to other cities or even countries. Insome cases, people in a fugue state adopt a completely new identity.Like dissociative amnesia, dissociative fugues are thought to be associated withtraumatic events or stressful periods (van der Hart & others, 2006). However, it’s unclearas to how a fugue state develops, or why a person experiences a fugue state ratherthan other sorts of symptoms, such as simple anxiety or depression. Interestingly,when the person “awakens” from the fugue state, he may remember his past historybut have amnesia for what occurred during the fugue state (DSM-IV-TR, 2000).Dissociative Fugue: WhenIdentity Goes “Off Line” Justbefore a new school year,twenty-three year old teacherHannah Upp disappeared. Intensivesearch efforts producednothing but then Hannah wasseen at a Manhattan Applestore and, later, at a Starbucks.Hannah was finally rescuedwhen a Staten Island Ferrycrew saw her swimming almosta mile from shore. Hannah hadno memories of the eventsfollowing her disappearance. Althoughpsychologists don’t understand what causesdissociative fugue, a rare condition, stressfulevents are often implicated. “It’s as if awhole set of information about one’s self,our autobiography, goes off line,” saysexpert Richard Loewenstein. Fortunately,dissociative fugue episodes usually do notreoccur.Dissociative Identity DisorderMultiple PersonalitiesAmong the dissociative disorders, none is more fascinating—or controversial—thandissociative identity disorder, formerly known as multiple personality disorder.Dissociative identity disorder (DID) involves extensive memory disruptions forpersonal information along with the presence of two or more distinct identities, or“personalities,” within a single person.Typically, each personality has its own name and is experienced as if it has its ownpersonal history and self-image. These alternate personalities, often called alters or alteregos, may be of widely varying ages and different genders. Alters are not really separatepeople. Rather, they constitute a “system of mind” (Courtois & Ford, 2009). That is,the alters seem to embody different aspects of the individual’s personality that, for somereason, cannot be integrated into theprimary personality. The alternate personalitieshold memories, emotions,and motives that are not admissible tothe individual’s conscious mind.At different times, different alteregos take control of the person’s experience,thoughts, and behavior. Typically,the primary personality is unawareof the existence of the alternatepersonalities. However, the alter egosmay have knowledge of each other’sexistence and share memories (seeKong & others, 2008). Sometimes theexperiences of one alter are accessibleto another alter but not vice versa.“Tell me more about these nine separate anddistinct personalities.”© John Caldwelldissociative experienceA break or disruption in consciousness duringwhich awareness, memory, and personalidentity become separated or divided.dissociative disordersA category of psychological disorders inwhich extreme and frequent disruptions ofawareness, memory, and personal identityimpair the ability to function.dissociative amnesiaA dissociative disorder involving the partialor total inability to recall important personalinformation.dissociative fugue(fyoog) A dissociative disorder involvingsudden and unexpected travel away fromhome, extensive amnesia, and identity confusion.dissociative identity disorder (DID)A dissociative disorder involving extensivememory disruptions along with the presenceof two or more distinct identities, or“personalities”; formerly called multiple personalitydisorder.