Dissociative symptoms and sleep parameters: an all-night polysomnography study in patients with insomnia

AbstractBackgroundDissociative disorders encompass a range of symptoms varying from severe absent-mindedness and memory problems to confusion about one's own identity. Recent studies suggest that these symptoms may be the by-products of a labile sleep–wake cycle.MethodsIn the current study, we explored this issue in patients suffering from insomnia (N=46). We investigated whether these patients have raised levels of dissociative symptoms and whether these are related to objective sleep parameters. Patients stayed for at least one night in a specialized sleep clinic, while sleep EEG data were obtained. In addition, they completed self-report measures on dissociative symptoms, psychological problems, and sleep characteristics.ResultsDissociative symptom levels were elevated in patients suffering from insomnia, and were correlated with unusual sleep experiences and poor sleep quality. Longer REM sleep periods and less time spent awake during the night were predictive of dissociation.ConclusionsThis is the first study to show that insomnia patients have raised dissociative symptom levels and that their dissociative symptoms are related to objective EEG parameters. These findings are important because they may inspire sleep-related treatment methods for dissociative disorders

Fact or Factitious? A Psychobiological Study of Authentic and Simulated Dissociative Identity States

BACKGROUND: Dissociative identity disorder (DID) is a disputed psychiatric disorder. Research findings and clinical observations suggest that DID involves an authentic mental disorder related to factors such as traumatization and disrupted attachment. A competing view indicates that DID is due to fantasy proneness, suggestibility, suggestion, and role-playing. Here we examine whether dissociative identity state-dependent psychobiological features in DID can be induced in high or low fantasy prone individuals by instructed and motivated role-playing, and suggestion. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: DID patients, high fantasy prone and low fantasy prone controls were studied in two different types of identity states (neutral and trauma-related) in an autobiographical memory script-driven (neutral or trauma-related) imagery paradigm. The controls were instructed to enact the two DID identity states. Twenty-nine subjects participated in the study: 11 patients with DID, 10 high fantasy prone DID simulating controls, and 8 low fantasy prone DID simulating controls. Autonomic and subjective reactions were obtained. Differences in psychophysiological and neural activation patterns were found between the DID patients and both high and low fantasy prone controls. That is, the identity states in DID were not convincingly enacted by DID simulating controls. Thus, important differences regarding regional cerebral bloodflow and psychophysiological responses for different types of identity states in patients with DID were upheld after controlling for DID simulation. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: The findings are at odds with the idea that differences among different types of dissociative identity states in DID can be explained by high fantasy proneness, motivated role-enactment, and suggestion. They indicate that DID does not have a sociocultural (e.g., iatrogenic) origin

The Return of the Repressed: The Persistent and Problematic Claims of Long-Forgotten Trauma

Can purely psychological trauma lead to a complete blockage of autobiographical memories? This longstanding question about the existence of repressed memories has been at the heart of one of the most heated debates in modern psychology. These so-called memory wars originated in the 1990s and many scholars have assumed that they are over. We demonstrate that this assumption is incorrect and that the controversial issue of repressed memories is alive and well and may even be on the rise. We review converging research and data from legal cases indicating that the topic of repressed memories remains active in clinical, legal, and academic settings. We show that the belief in repressed memories occurs on a non-trivial-scale (58%) and appears to have increased among clinical psychologists since the 1990s. We also demonstrate that the scientifically controversial concept of dissociative amnesia, which we argue is a substitute term for memory repression, has gained in popularity. Finally, we review work onthe adverse side effects of certain psychotherapeutic techniques, some of which may be linked to the recovery of repressed memories. The memory wars have not vanished: They have continued to endure and contribute to potentially damaging consequences in clinical, legal, and academic contexts

Recovered memories, satanic abuse, Dissociative Identity Disorder and false memories in the UK: a survey of Clinical Psychologists and Hypnotherapists

An online survey was conducted to examine psychological therapists’ experiences of, and beliefs about, cases of recovered memory, satanic / ritualistic abuse, Multiple Personality Disorder / Dissociative Identity Disorder, and false memory. Chartered Clinical Psychologists (n=183) and Hypnotherapists (n=119) responded. In terms of their experiences, Chartered Clinical Psychologists reported seeing more cases of satanic / ritualistic abuse compared to Hypnotherapists who, in turn, reported encountering more cases of childhood sexual abuse recovered for the first time in therapy, and more cases of suspected false memory. Chartered Clinical Psychologists were more likely to rate the essential accuracy of reports of satanic / ritualistic abuse as higher than Hypnotherapists. Belief in the accuracy of satanic / ritualistic abuse and Multiple Personality Disorder / Dissociative Identity Disorder reports correlated negatively with the belief that false memories were possible

Subjective sleep experiences are related to dissociation

We examined the relationship between dissociative experiences as indexed by the Dissociative Experiences Scale (DES; Bernstein & Putnam, 1986) and sleep-related experiences (e.g., nightmares, recurring dreams) as measured by the Iowa Sleep Experience Survey (ISES; Watson, 2001) in an undergraduate sample (N = 94). In addition, we studied the link between dissociative experiences and sleeping pattern as measured by the Morningness-Eveningness Questionnaire (MEQ; Horne & Ostberg, 1976). In keeping with earlier work, we found that heightened levels of dissociation are related to a raised frequency of self-reported sleep disturbances. However, dissociation was not related to individual differences in Morningness-Eveningness Schedule

Dissociative experiences on ice - peritraumatic and trait dissociation during the cold pressor test

The present study investigated the relationship between trait dissociation and peritraumatic dissociation during acute painful stimulation. In a sample of 70 undergraduate students, peritraumatic dissociation was induced by means of a cold pressor test, which basically consists of participants holding an arm in ice water for as long as possible. Results indicate that heightened trait dissociation scores were related to shorter durations that participants could sustain the task. However, trait dissociation was not associated with increases in acute dissociative symptoms (i.e., peritraumatic dissociation). These findings are in sharp contrast to the defensive function ascribed to both types of dissociation and also the commonly held assumption that peritraumatic and trait dissociation are intimately linked

The efficiency of reappraisal and expressive suppression in regulating everyday affective experiences

Item does not contain fulltextA widespread assumption in research and clinical practice is that cognitive reappraisal is a healthy and successful emotion regulation strategy, while expressive suppression is ineffective and has non-favourable consequences (e.g., decreased positive affect, higher physiological arousal). However, little is known about the consequences of reappraisal and expressive suppression for everyday affect. We investigated affective consequences of habitual reappraisal and expressive suppression in undergraduates (n=87), and sampled affect characteristics for 24h. Moreover, we quantified affective recovery from viewing an aversive video fragment. Habitual reappraisal was associated with lowered emotional arousal (but not valence), both in terms of diurnal affect levels and positive and negative responses to the emotional provocation task. This pattern contravenes the popular assumption that reappraisal has generally favourable consequences. Additionally, in contrast to the alleged non-favourable consequences of habitual expressive suppression, the current study failed to find a relation between expressive suppression, diurnal affect levels and affective recovery. This suggests that the detrimental effects of expressive suppression are limited in duration. Collectively, our results emphasise that the everyday consequences of emotion regulation for affect merits systematic research, for instance by using more naturalistic and prolonged interventions

Disruptions in executive functioning and dissociation in undergraduate students.

The concept of dissociation refers to disruptions in attentional control. Attentional control is an executive function. Few studies have addressed the link between dissociation and executive functioning. Our study investigated this relationship in a sample of undergraduate students (N = 185) who completed the Dissociative Experiences Scale and the Random Number Generation Task. We found that minor disruptions in executive functioning were related to a subclass of dissociative experiences, notably dissociative amnesia and the Dissociative Experiences Scale Taxon. However, the two other subscales of the Dissociative Experiences Scale, measuring depersonalization and absorption, were unrelated to executive functioning. Our findings suggest that a failure to inhibit previous responses might contribute to the pathological memory manifestations of dissociation

Depersonalization experiences in undergraduates are related to heightened stress cortisol responses

The relationship between dissociative tendencies, as measured with the Dissociative Experiences Scale and its amnesia, absorption/imaginative involvement, and depersonalization/derealization subscales, and HPA axis functioning was studied in 2 samples of undergraduate students (N = 58 and 67). Acute stress was induced by means of the Trier Social Stress Test. Subjective and physiological stress (i.e., cortisol) responses were measured. Individuals high on the depersonalization/derealization subscale of the Dissociative Experiences Scale exhibited more pronounced cortisol responses, while individuals high on the absorption subscale showed attenuated responses. Interestingly, subjective stress experiences, as indicated by the Tension-Anxiety subscale of the Profile of Mood States, were positively related to trait dissociation. The present findings illustrate how various types of dissociation (i.e., depersonalization/derealization, absorption) are differentially related to cortisol stress responses