Dissociative Amnesia
How do the Psychiatric world describe it?
DSM5 Definition, according to the National Library of Medicine
"1. The predominant disturbance is one or more episodes of inability to recall important personal information, usually of a traumatic or stressful nature, that is too extensive to be explained by ordinary forgetfulness. 2. The disturbance does not occur exclusively during the course of dissociative identity disorder, dissociative fugue, posttraumatic stress disorder, acute stress disorder, or somatization disorder and is not due to the direct physiologic effects of a substance (e.g., drug abuse or medication) or a neurological or other general medical condition (e.g., amnestic disorder due to head trauma). 3. The symptoms cause clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning".
What is the treatment?
Removing anything that can be the cause of the amnesia and trauma, which may be, for example, the military, and, probably, entering a medical facility is the first first step towards recovery. There is no specific treatment, but some medications can be used to help with the symptoms, such as anxiety and depression. Mental health therapy is also used to regain the lost memories and to deal with the feelings that come with them.
Case Study:
A 19-year-old man was hospitalized on two different occasions for an overdose of aspirin. He claimed that he didn’t remember ingesting any medication, even though the laboratory tests revealed high salicylate levels and that he presented clear signs of intoxication. He got admitted in the psychiatric ward where he explained that he had joined the military on September 11th, moved by a heroic and patriotic feeling, but that his experience was far from what he expected. After more studies, they found out that he had witnessed the assault from one service member to his roommate, who also threatened him. He finally got discharged with an Axis I diagnosis of dissociative amnesia and an Axis II diagnosis of avoidant personality disorder and he left the army.
What are some theories as to why people have this disorder?
Experts agree that the cause behind this disorder is trauma, whether it is from a isolated experience or from a long-term event. Some examples are: - Experiencing any kind of abuse (physical, sexual, emotional...). - Experiencing serious violence witnessing it. - Being the target of sexual violence. - War, as a civilian or as a militar. - Witnessing the death or serious injury of someone else. - Experiencing a live-changing event (such as becoming a refugee).
Some stats about the prevalence of the disorder
Dissociative amnesia is not a common condition, experts estimate that the range oscillates between 0.2% and 7.3%. Furthermore, it is estimated that about 1.8% of the world’s population experiences it each year.
Dissociative Amnesia
It is a mental disorder that causes the brain to block important memories due to a traumatic experience. It is defined in two parts: - Dissociative: a defense mechanism used by the brain to keep one or more of the following to work with the others: memory, consciousness, identity, emotions, perception, motor ability and behavior. In the case of this disorder, is the memory the blocked one. - Amnesia: the incapacity to remember information and memories, which can be crucial for your life, such as your identity, job, family...
There are some remarkable differences between organic memory loss (the one caused by the age) and the dissociative memory loss that can help to difine better this disorder:
Furthermore, there are different ttypes of dissociative Amnesia in which we can classify this disorder:
What behaviors do individuals with this disorder display?
- Lack of awareness: people with dissociative Amnesia do not realize the gaps in their memory until they are mising part of their identity. - Flashbacks: they usually occur during the recuperation of the memory. They are also really traumatic visions that can't often be taken appart from reality. - Confusion or disorientation: patients usuallt struggle in undertanding the enviroment and situations around them, and, in the most severe cases, their own identity. - Relationship and trust issues: people with this disorder usually struggle to have and maintain relationships of all kinds. - Travel or wandering (dissociative fugue): which is the name given to when someone travels during a period they are unable to remember.
Sources
Leong, S., Waits, W., & Diebold, C. (2006). Dissociative Amnesia and DSM-IV-TR Cluster C Personality Traits. Psychiatry (Edgmont), 3(1), 51. Retrieved From: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2990548/ Cleveland Clinic. (2023, September 18). Dissociative amnesia. Cleveland Clinic. Retrieved From: https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/9789-dissociative-amnesia
Dissociative Amnesia
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Transcript
Dissociative Amnesia
How do the Psychiatric world describe it?
DSM5 Definition, according to the National Library of Medicine
"1. The predominant disturbance is one or more episodes of inability to recall important personal information, usually of a traumatic or stressful nature, that is too extensive to be explained by ordinary forgetfulness. 2. The disturbance does not occur exclusively during the course of dissociative identity disorder, dissociative fugue, posttraumatic stress disorder, acute stress disorder, or somatization disorder and is not due to the direct physiologic effects of a substance (e.g., drug abuse or medication) or a neurological or other general medical condition (e.g., amnestic disorder due to head trauma). 3. The symptoms cause clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning".
What is the treatment?
Removing anything that can be the cause of the amnesia and trauma, which may be, for example, the military, and, probably, entering a medical facility is the first first step towards recovery. There is no specific treatment, but some medications can be used to help with the symptoms, such as anxiety and depression. Mental health therapy is also used to regain the lost memories and to deal with the feelings that come with them.
Case Study:
A 19-year-old man was hospitalized on two different occasions for an overdose of aspirin. He claimed that he didn’t remember ingesting any medication, even though the laboratory tests revealed high salicylate levels and that he presented clear signs of intoxication. He got admitted in the psychiatric ward where he explained that he had joined the military on September 11th, moved by a heroic and patriotic feeling, but that his experience was far from what he expected. After more studies, they found out that he had witnessed the assault from one service member to his roommate, who also threatened him. He finally got discharged with an Axis I diagnosis of dissociative amnesia and an Axis II diagnosis of avoidant personality disorder and he left the army.
What are some theories as to why people have this disorder?
Experts agree that the cause behind this disorder is trauma, whether it is from a isolated experience or from a long-term event. Some examples are: - Experiencing any kind of abuse (physical, sexual, emotional...). - Experiencing serious violence witnessing it. - Being the target of sexual violence. - War, as a civilian or as a militar. - Witnessing the death or serious injury of someone else. - Experiencing a live-changing event (such as becoming a refugee).
Some stats about the prevalence of the disorder
Dissociative amnesia is not a common condition, experts estimate that the range oscillates between 0.2% and 7.3%. Furthermore, it is estimated that about 1.8% of the world’s population experiences it each year.
Dissociative Amnesia
It is a mental disorder that causes the brain to block important memories due to a traumatic experience. It is defined in two parts: - Dissociative: a defense mechanism used by the brain to keep one or more of the following to work with the others: memory, consciousness, identity, emotions, perception, motor ability and behavior. In the case of this disorder, is the memory the blocked one. - Amnesia: the incapacity to remember information and memories, which can be crucial for your life, such as your identity, job, family...
There are some remarkable differences between organic memory loss (the one caused by the age) and the dissociative memory loss that can help to difine better this disorder:
Furthermore, there are different ttypes of dissociative Amnesia in which we can classify this disorder:
What behaviors do individuals with this disorder display?
- Lack of awareness: people with dissociative Amnesia do not realize the gaps in their memory until they are mising part of their identity. - Flashbacks: they usually occur during the recuperation of the memory. They are also really traumatic visions that can't often be taken appart from reality. - Confusion or disorientation: patients usuallt struggle in undertanding the enviroment and situations around them, and, in the most severe cases, their own identity. - Relationship and trust issues: people with this disorder usually struggle to have and maintain relationships of all kinds. - Travel or wandering (dissociative fugue): which is the name given to when someone travels during a period they are unable to remember.
Sources
Leong, S., Waits, W., & Diebold, C. (2006). Dissociative Amnesia and DSM-IV-TR Cluster C Personality Traits. Psychiatry (Edgmont), 3(1), 51. Retrieved From: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2990548/ Cleveland Clinic. (2023, September 18). Dissociative amnesia. Cleveland Clinic. Retrieved From: https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/9789-dissociative-amnesia