Everyone dissociates: We have many episodes of zoning out, tuning out, or numbing out during every day. Much of that dissociation is normal and some even helps us be more productive. But do you know what dissociation looks like on you? Our culture conditions us to separate ourselves from sensory and emotional experience, to eat foods that numb our awareness, to multitask, and to skate along the surface of life, doing things, but not really being present for the feeling and sensory experience of them. If you work in a helping capacity, this matters, not just for the richness of your own life, but also for your ability to be a calm, grounded presence for those you serve.

In this episode, Deborah and Tracy interview Dr. Chris Carver, psychotherapist, counselor educator, musician, and podcast host about all the forms of dissociation we experience and how to know when our “trancing out” is helpful or unhelpful.

Find out more about Chris Carver here:

https://www.couragetobecounseling.com

Find out more about dissociation here:

https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/?tab=wm&ogbl#inbox/FMfcgzGqQSPzJjTSKMwsDJXVPplBVfMN?projector=1&messagePartId=0.1.1

https://artomalley.com/articles/six-stages-of-the-shutdown-dissociation-continuum-associated-with-complex-trauma/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6296396/