Studies show that a combination of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI), a specific kind of antidepressant medication, and lamotrigine, an anticonvulsant and mood stabilizer, is an effective treatment for
Antidepressants like selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) such as escitalopram (Lexapro) and paroxetine (Paxil) or serotonin norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs) like duloxetine (Cymbalta) and venlafaxine (Effexor); may reduce the anxiety and apprehension involved in dissociation.
Medication. There are no drugs licensed to treat dissociation specifically. Your doctor might offer you psychiatric medication to treat other problems you may experience alongside dissociation. These problems may include depression, anxiety and panic attacks, suicidal feelings, hearing voices and OCD.
Although there are no medications that specifically treat dissociative disorders, your doctor may prescribe antidepressants, anti-anxiety medications or antipsychotic drugs to help control the mental health symptoms associated with dissociative disorders.
Treatment typically involves psychotherapy. Therapy can help people gain control over the dissociative process and symptoms. The goal of therapy is to help integrate the different elements of identity. Therapy may be intense and difficult as it involves remembering and coping with past traumatic experiences.
Brand names: Zoloft
Sertraline has an average rating of 6.1 out of 10 from a total of 7 reviews for the off-label treatment of Dissociative Identity Disorder. 57% of reviewers reported a positive experience, while 43% reported a negative experience.
Treatment for dissociation related to anxiety usually will involve psychotherapy (such as cognitive behavioral therapy or dialectical behavior therapy). 3 Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) is another therapy that is sometimes used.
Dissociation might be a way to cope with very stressful experiences. You might experience dissociation as a symptom of a mental health problem, for example post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder or borderline personality disorder.
Antidepressants can cause a number of dissociative experiences including: Amnesia. Déjà vu. Depersonalization.
Dissociative disorder clients typically spend many years in treatment. Many are hospitalized repeatedly over time.
Article at a Glance: Depersonalization-derealization disorder is typically treated with individual therapy and sometimes medication too. SSRIs and antipsychotic medications do not cure this condition but can reduce distressing symptoms.
Medication: There isn't a medicine for depersonalization disorder. But treating depression or anxiety can help. Your provider may prescribe antidepressant or anti-anxiety medications such as desipramine (Norpramin®).
Dissociation may persist because it is a way of not having negative feelings in the moment, but it is never a cure. Too much dissociating can slow or prevent recovery from the impact of trauma or PTSD.
There are no medications specifically approved to treat depersonalization-derealization disorder. However, medications may be used to treat specific symptoms or to treat depression and anxiety that are often associated with the disorder.
Dissociation is a symptom of anxiety, because when a person begins to have intense worries or fears, they may begin to dissociate, or disconnect from these thoughts to cope.
Times of stress can temporarily worsen symptoms, making them more obvious. Treatment for dissociative disorders may include talk therapy (psychotherapy) and medication. Although treating dissociative disorders can be difficult, many people learn new ways of coping and lead healthy, productive lives.
Our findings suggest a dissociation of effects of acute escitalopram on cognitive functions, possibly mediated by differential modulation of brain serotonin levels in distinct functional neural circuits.
Dissociation Symptoms
Memory loss surrounding specific events, interactions, or experiences. A sense of detachment from your emotions (aka emotional numbness) and identity. Feeling as if the world is unreal; out-of-body experiences. Mental health problems such as depression, anxiety, and thoughts of suicide.
Dissociation during times of stress is one of the main symptoms of BPD. It's also associated with acute stress disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), both of which can co-occur with BPD. It's important to note that not everyone with BPD experiences dissociation.
Dissociation is a mental process where a person disconnects from their thoughts, feelings, memories or sense of identity. Dissociative disorders include dissociative amnesia, depersonalisation disorder and dissociative identity disorder.
Eye contact is broken, the conversation comes to an abrupt halt, and clients can look frightened, “spacey,” or emotionally shut down. Clients often report feeling disconnected from the environment as well as their body sensations and can no longer accurately gauge the passage of time.
Dissociation – feeling detached from yourself, like in a dreamlike state, feeling weird or off-kilter, and like everything is surreal – is a common anxiety disorder symptom experienced by many people who are anxious.