How To Stop Dissociating: 15 Really Helpful Tips

Dissociation involves a disruption in how someone experiences their thoughts, memories, feelings, actions, or sense of self. It can feel like the world around you is unreal while you’re detached from your body and emotions. 

In this article, we’ll explain how to overcome dissociation at the moment, explore long-term strategies to reduce such events, and find out what experiences and mental health conditions may lead to them.

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Grounding techniques to get out of dissociation and stay present in the moment

Someone who dissociates may forget things, lose track of time, or have trouble recognizing familiar people or places. Grounding techniques help bring them back to the present and offer a sense of safety or steadiness. Save the most effective strategies.

1. Name five textures you can feel

Look around and touch different surfaces. These can be wood, metal, fabric, your skin, or the texture of clothing. You can also describe your feelings out loud to prevent your mind from drifting away and reconnect to your real senses.

2. Describe your location in detail

Imagine you’re on a live podcast or a book hero. It can sound like, “I’m sitting on the office chair in the big room. The walls are beige, and there’s a big window. I see a laptop, a cup of coffee, and a notebook on my desk.” It allows you to get back to the present moment.

3. Use temperature shifts

A quick shift from hot and cold and vice versa can re-engage your senses. For instance, if you’re at work, you can splash cold water on your face and then drink hot tea. At home, you can take a contrast shower.

4. Practice body scan meditation

You can quickly calm down in stressful situations by concentrating on your body. It allows you to shift focus from overwhelming thoughts and anchor yourself in the present moment. To do it:

• Sit or lie down comfortably.
• Close your eyes.
• Focus on your feet. Consider whether they feel cold, tense, in pain, or relaxed.
• Move up and concentrate on each part of your body step by step.
• When you finish, take some time to feel your whole body. Then open your eyes.

If you find it difficult to focus on sensations, try the breathing exercises on the Breeze app. They are even simpler because the voice guides you through the whole process, and there’s no need to remember the steps.

Try Breeze

5. Engage in a simple movement

Physical activity may make you focus on your own body. For instance, you can: 

• Stretch your legs and back.
• Take a walk.
• Dance to a favorite song.
• Do a few easy yoga poses.

6. Smell safe, grounding scents

It may be helpful to have some essential oils at home and use them once you experience the symptoms of dissociation. Also, you can create a list of so-called “calming smells” that make you feel safe. For instance, these may be lavender, vanilla, fresh citrus, peppermint, etc. Choose anything that brings comfort.

7. Do something that requires excessive attention

When feeling disconnected, choose an activity that engages your mind. It’s better to do something with your hands, like gardening, cooking, or knitting.

Nevertheless, you can also try mental activities that get you completely involved. Try doing maths problems, learning a few words in a new language, take a challenging work task, or play a logic-based game.

8. Carry a grounding object

It can be something small like a coin, a piece of jewelry, or a smooth stone. When you feel that dissociation is overwhelming, squeeze the thing to notice pain in your fingers. This allows you to get back to reality even if you’re in an important meeting.

9. Do a clock plus memory exercise

Look at your phone screen or a phone and say something like, “It’s 2:44 p.m. I started this task at 1:30 p.m., then made some tea to feel refreshed and continued working.” You can say anything you did early on just to remember the sequence of the events and become aware of the time passing by.

10. Outline familiar shapes from memory

Think about one thing you know pretty well (like your favorite jacket). Then close your eyes and think about the shape, the feel of the material, and its form. You can also bring back moments when you wore it and remember the emotions you’ve experienced. 

Ways to reduce dissociative episodes and take care of your mental health

Research suggests that psychological trauma, stress such as severe and chronic childhood emotional abuse or neglect, has been critically implicated in the development of dissociation. [1] Even more, high levels of stress might also sometimes cause it. [2]

As such, to reduce cases when you experience dissociation, it’s better to find healthy coping tools and learn to handle chronic trauma symptoms if you live with one. Below, we provide the most effective tips to begin with. 

11. Build consistent routines

Knowing that you have some things to do daily may bring a sense of stability. For example, you can plan a morning routine and feel calmer knowing you’ll grab coffee at 10 a.m. in that cafe across the street. 

Also, you can plan some daily anchors. For instance, you might schedule a short walk after lunch, a 10-minute mindfulness or breathing exercise in the afternoon, or a set bedtime ritual like reading.

12. Ensure you get enough sleep

Sleep deprivation can cause dissociation even among people who didn’t experience traumatic events. [3] Thus, follow some simple rules to lower stress and avoid the negative influence on mental health.

• Maintain a consistent sleeping schedule. Going to bed and waking up at the same time daily allows you to regulate your body’s circadian rhythm and feel better.

• Avoid blue lights before bed. They suppress the release of melatonin and negatively influence sleep quality, so it’s better to spend the last hour before sleep without looking at screens.

• Don’t drink a lot of stimulating beverages. Coffee, alcohol, and energy drinks can delay deep sleep and reduce REM sleep. So, avoiding them at least 4-6 hours before bedtime is better.

13. Make your house more grounding-friendly to handle the dissociative process

You can start feeling disconnected wherever you are. Still, if it’s possible to make your house more supportive, it’s better to surround yourself with things to overcome stress, anxiety, and dissociation. Try the following:

• Place soft textures in every room. These can be cozy blankets, pillows, or plush rugs to calm your thoughts, feelings, and senses.

• Use comforting scents. Choose something like lavender, chamomile, or citrus oils that you can smell anytime when dissociation starts.

• Add sensory anchors. You can put a pack of chewing gum on your table to feel the taste whenever needed, keep some ice cubes in the freezer to bring yourself back to reality, or place stress balls nearby to engage touch.

14. Create your support team

Experiencing memory loss or panic attacks can be the outcomes of dissociation. If you have symptoms that interfere with your daily life, you can talk to a friend, a family member, or someone who can help you. Ask them to:

• Check in with you regularly through messages or calls.
• Remind you of grounding techniques if you start to drift away.
• Stay with you in safe spaces when episodes feel overwhelming.
• Come and support you if needed.

This way, you ensure that your life and health will be safe, as there will be a person who can take care of you when you need it.

15. Start working with a mental health professional

If your dissociation is a regular experience, it may be necessary to get in touch with a mental health specialist. Seek professional support to overcome the underlying issue, find out whether you live with any medical conditions, and treat dissociative disorders or any other related mental health challenges. In the next sections, we’ll look at dissociative disorders, the main types you should know about, and how they can be treated.

3 types of dissociative disorders

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) defines 3 types of disorders related to dissociation. They might develop after experiencing traumatic events like natural disasters, military combat, being a victim of a crime, childhood trauma, etc.

Please note that dissociation doesn’t always mean someone has a disorder. Some people experience it briefly, while dissociative disorders involve persistent symptoms.

Dissociative amnesia

This mental health condition involves difficulty recalling important autobiographical information, often related to trauma. Such people feel detached from past experiences that are connected to trauma. Dissociative amnesia can also cause repeated dissociative episodes that can lead to: 

• Gaps in memory
• A sense of detachment
• Feeling disconnected, etc.

Depersonalization-derealization disorder

A person with this disorder feels cut off from their thoughts, body, and overall world and can believe that everything around them is unreal. These emotions may lead to anxiety and difficulty concentrating. Memory usually stays normal, but feeling detached all the time can affect work, relationships, and daily life.

Dissociative identity disorder (DID)

Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID), previously called multiple personality disorder, happens when a person has two or more distinct identities, each with its own thoughts, feelings, and behavior. When switching between personalities, people with dissociative identity disorder tend to experience memory gaps and may not remember what happened while another identity was present.

How are dissociative disorders treated?

Grounding techniques provided above might not be enough for people who have overcome traumatic events. Treatment for dissociative disorders depends on their symptoms and might include:

• Psychotherapy (talk therapy) to handle the symptoms of trauma and develop new skills to cope with it. Common approaches of talk therapy include trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), and integration therapy for DID.

• Medication. While there are no specific medications for dissociative disorders, a mental health professional can prescribe antidepressants or anti-anxiety medications.

Sources

1. Krause-Utz A, Frost R, Winter D, Elzinga BM. “Dissociation and Alterations in Brain Function and Structure: Implications for Borderline Personality Disorder.” Curr Psychiatry Rep. 2017
2. De Wachter D, Lange A, Vanderlinden J, Pouw J, Strubbe E. “The influence of current stress on dissociative experiences: an exploratory study in a non-clinical population.” J Trauma Dissociation. 2006
3. Selvi Y, Kiliç S, Aydin A, Güzel Özdemir P. “The Effects of Sleep Deprivation on Dissociation and Profiles of Mood, and Its Association with Biochemical Changes.” Noro Psikiyatr Ars. 2015