Portrait of this Mental Symptom As Jeopardy Clues
For an insured emergency therapy session:
This mental symptom, which scientists now believe is often found in Complex-PTSD,
is defined as “feeling detached” from self and/or others.
For reorienting a new therapist:
During this, listed in the DSM-VI as a symptom of a disorder of the same name,
sufferers may need a way to anchor back into their corporeality.
For engaging in conversation with friends:
When experiencing this, people often report feeling like their arms and legs aren’t theirs;
like they’re doing daily tasks, such as making coffee, on auto-pilot.
To not hyperventilate in public again:
Often a sign that someone is having a c/PTSD flashback, this series of disarming symptoms
begins without warning and can result in a panic attack.
To finally feel at home in my own bones:
If they can recognize symptoms of this phenomenon before it starts, some reorient their reality
by engaging in grounding exercises, such as meditation or a bath.
Answer: What is dissociation?
Kristin Entler was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis at 6 months old, and first came out as LGBT+ several years after her diabetes diagnosis at 12 years old. She currently serves as Poetry Editor for NELLE and lives with her service-dog-in-training, Azzie, whose name is short for the Greek God of Medicine. Entler can be found in publications such as The Bitter Southerner, storySouth, Gulf Stream Literary Magazine, and Poet Lore among others, as well as on twitter @findmycure.
