<p>I am attempting to find the term that describes a bizarre and terrifying experience I recently had.  As background: I was the subject of a severe violent assaulted at age 12, now 30 years ago. I have very little recollection of the event, just bits and pieces.  I still have recurring nightmares of this event that my husband finally videotaped because I <em>never</em> remember them.  They show me in extreme distress, and it is very difficult for him to wake me from them.</p>

<p>I recently had a prolonged (hours-long) night-time episode in which I was in and out of awareness.  I am still unable to remember large pieces of that episode.  But apparently I became so violent that my husband began to restrain me to prevent me from injuring myself.  I have periods of remembering him sitting on me and holding me down, and not understanding why, but feeling like I was in grave danger and that he was trying to hurt or even kill me.  But I don't remember anything between those moments of awareness.</p>

<p>What are clinical terms that describe this sort of drifting in and out of what we assume was a prolonged traumatic flashback?</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-03-24T19:05:36.523Z
Welcome to Psychology.SE I am sorry that you are going through this, but questions such as these cannot be answered here without an extensive consultation which only a qualified therapist or doctor can conduct. If you are seeking therapy for the trauma, then please speak to them about this and they will be able to help you better. If you are not seeing a therapist you can speak to your doctor for referral, or there are also licensed therapists who take self-referrals. I wish you well.
Chris Rogers
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-03-24T19:07:30.233Z
@ChrisRogers if you think this warrants closure, please vote-to-close. I'm inclined to do so, but applying the mod hammer w/o clear community support is not OK. I'd rather have at least one vote from the communty in (preferably >2)
AliceD
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-03-24T19:33:58.290Z
I voted after posting the comment @AliceD
Chris Rogers
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-03-24T23:50:39.053Z
Question asks for *terminology*, not diagnosis or therapy.  If this is off-topic then it's time to update the [guidelines](https://psychology.stackexchange.com/help/on-topic).
feetwet
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-03-25T08:19:25.137Z
@feetwet - that's a good idea. Thanks for the feedback.
AliceD
<terminology><clinical-psychology><ptsd>
Is this dissociation, depersonalization, or is there a better term?
Alley
# Is this dissociation, depersonalization, or is there a better term?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2019-03-24)

I am attempting to find the term that describes a bizarre and terrifying experience I recently had. As background: I was the subject of a severe violent assaulted at age 12, now 30 years ago. I have very little recollection of the event, just bits and pieces. I still have recurring nightmares of this event that my husband finally videotaped because I *never* remember them. They show me in extreme distress, and it is very difficult for him to wake me from them.

I recently had a prolonged (hours-long) night-time episode in which I was in and out of awareness. I am still unable to remember large pieces of that episode. But apparently I became so violent that my husband began to restrain me to prevent me from injuring myself. I have periods of remembering him sitting on me and holding me down, and not understanding why, but feeling like I was in grave danger and that he was trying to hurt or even kill me. But I don't remember anything between those moments of awareness.

What are clinical terms that describe this sort of drifting in and out of what we assume was a prolonged traumatic flashback?

**Tags:** terminology, clinical-psychology, ptsd

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: Welcome to Psychology.SE I am sorry that you are going through this, but questions such as these cannot be answered here without an extensive consultation which only a qualified therapist or doctor can conduct. If you are seeking therapy for the trauma, then please speak to them about this and they will be able to help you better. If you are not seeing a therapist you can speak to your doctor for referral, or there are also licensed therapists who take self-referrals. I wish you well.  
> **username_2**: @ChrisRogers if you think this warrants closure, please vote-to-close. I'm inclined to do so, but applying the mod hammer w/o clear community support is not OK. I'd rather have at least one vote from the communty in (preferably >2)  
> **username_1**: I voted after posting the comment @username_2  
> **username_3**: Question asks for *terminology*, not diagnosis or therapy.  If this is off-topic then it's time to update the [guidelines](https://psychology.stackexchange.com/help/on-topic).  
> **username_2**: @username_3 - that's a good idea. Thanks for the feedback.  

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## 0 answers

