A Spiritual Perspective on Trauma-Related Dissociation
- Krystal Ying, LMFT, LPCC, LPC
- Sep 30
- 6 min read
From a spiritual viewpoint, does a part of you (your spirit) leave your physical body when faced with immense stress or trauma? This post explores dissociation - and how neurobiology, psychology, spirituality, metaphysics, and ancient wisdom might intersect.
What is Dissociation?
Dissociation can be described as an experience of disconnecting from reality, the self/body, or the present moment. It occurs on a spectrum and to varying degrees: it can be a survival response to a life threat, an escape when suffering from chronic illness and emotional pain, a habitual reaction when triggered, or even a welcome distraction when bored.
This post offers a spiritual perspective on trauma-related dissociation based on my studies, lived experience, professional work with my beloved clients, and personal spiritual journey. Rather than "just" being the brain's built-in survival mechanism, could dissociation also be the spirit's way of self-protection via leaving the body? If you are open to it, let's dive in some more.
This post will not capture the complex scope of dissociation, but in a nutshell, dissociation is being in an altered state in which one severs or disconnects from their reality.
It can be fleeting or can last for prolonged periods (with or without one knowing they've left reality) . It is an instinctual survival response to trauma or persistent stressors that kicks in by shutting down the nervous system to escape an otherwise inescapable threat.
For example, if you were hiking in the woods and a bear ran after you and you had no way of escaping, your nervous system would likely shut down (collapse/fawn) to increase survival rate. A bear might not want to mess with you anymore because you look dead.
We mammals have this ancient "nervous system hack" - it is an ingenious, automatic strategy to preserve life. It happens without us thinking to implement it, which is why freezing or being immobile is normal when terrified, such as after experiencing an attack or life threat.
However, when the traumatic event is over and if the brain has not integrated the memory, you can be stuck in survival mode, responding to triggers or perceived threats even when the need to dissociate has long passed.
Dissociation as a Spiritual Response to Trauma
What if leaving the body is not only a built-in survival mechanism, but also a spiritual response in the wake of incredibly stressful, terrifying, or overwhelming experiences?
I believe that when you dissociate and sever from reality/self after trauma, a part of you - your spirit, soul, true essence, true self, or whatever you want to call it - temporarily departs in an act of self-protection and preservation.
Your true essence that exists beyond your physical body, the part of you that is left untouched by trauma, persists and exists no matter the harm done. [Read my post about connecting with your true self here.] At times of immense overwhelm, I believe, your spirit disconnects from your physical body until it is deemed safe to return. The harm and trauma happen to the physical self, but your true essence always remains untouched.
In my studies on neurobiology, psychology, metaphysics, ancient and traditional rituals, and near-death experiences (NDE), the overlap is clear.
People across the globe share similar, countless accounts of experiences leaving and observing their own body from above or afar.
Dissociative states have been documented in many cultures throughout the world in the forms of meditation, chanting, healing ceremonies, hypnotic drumming, plant medicine (e.g. ayahuasca, psilocybin) , and after extreme stress or threats to life as with a NDE (Pham et al., 2021; Kennedy 2025; Andersen et al., 2021).
A near-death experience (NDE) usually occurs at the edge of death or dying, as well as during distressing life events that are not life-threatening. People commonly report feeling sensations of leaving the body, floating above it, or observing the environment (Kennedy 2025).
There are also reports of perception shifts beyond everyday human reality: "perceptions of an unearthly world, like an afterlife...perception of a bright light...perception of being in a different time" (Bianco & Palmieri 2017).
Your physical container that is the body is yours. However, for those who have suffered harm, such as sexual abuse, the body was violated, leaving the survivor feeling robbed of their home. As a result, it is as though the spirit needs guidance and support returning to the body - your physical home - after experiencing trauma.
As poet and spoken word artist Rupi Kaur (2016) recites in her poem "I'm Taking My Body Back":
When you broke into my home, it never felt like mine again...It makes you feel robbed like you don’t even own your body.
When harmed or needing to dissociate, whether from sexual trauma, domestic violence, oppression, or something else so terrifying or persistent, it is understandable to leave the "home" of the body. How can one be expected to stay "home" when the body is wrought with reminders of trauma, and has become so foreign and hostile of a place?
Healing from such intense wounds and traumas is a unique, nonlinear journey. Healing involves understanding and tending to the wounded parts of you that had to leave. It is feeling the pain and grieving what was lost or taken.
Healing means welcoming back home those scared and exiled parts of you; offering an open palm out to your spirit; inviting yourself back to reconvene, reconnect, rebuild and reclaim together.
Bringing your spirit home to the physical body is an act of strength, courage, power, and resistance to the violence and trauma that happened outside of your control.
As Rupi Kaur (2016) continues in her poem:
This home is what I came into this world with; was the first home, will be the last home. You can’t take it. There is no space for you, no welcome mat, no extra bedrooms. I’m opening all the windows, airing it out, putting roses in a vase in the middle of that kitchen table...
Healing is Spiritual
Trauma profoundly impacts all facets of life. It is the second wound to a person: as the first one is the event itself, the second wound is the aftermath. This not only alters the psyche and nervous system, but also the spirit. Therefore, healing happens on a mind-body-spirit level.
When It Is Time to Return Home
There eventually comes a time when life begins to shift and turn a corner after possibly the worst period of life.
Whether this (oftentimes) subtle shift begins to occur with the support of a friend or loved ones, participating in therapy or a support group, reading self-help books, joining an exercise class, or immersing in a new (or old) hobby, there comes a time when collapse begins to transform into an expanding strength. Small achievements start to snowball (in a good way) until you find yourself ready to face the pain and take your life back.
Healing from trauma, such as sexual violence, can feel like being resuscitated back to life, your spirit returning to its rightful body and owner - you. This takes time, patience, support, and hard work.
Engaging in therapy through an integrative approach that includes tending to the mind-body-spirit is one pathway towards recovering from harm and pain. Somatic therapy can bring lasting change, as it includes the body and spirit in the healing process. It is possible to call home those parts of you that left, and for you to feel whole and together again.
When the spirit begins to return home to the body, you are able to feel connected to yourself (all parts of you), experience internal unity rather than fragmentation, and reclaim your life in which you are the captain of your ship and vessel.
If you feel called to reclaim your mind, body, spirit and welcome back the lost parts of self, please know that you can reach out to me for support - whether to work together or ask for referrals to other therapists who also work from an integrative approach.
Many blessings and love on your unique path.
References
TED. (2016. September 2). I'm taking my body back. | Rupi Kaur [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RlToQQfSlLA.
Kennedy, Adrienne (2025). Near-death experience (NDE). Ebsco. https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/psychology/near-death-experience-nde.
Bianco, S., Sambin, M., & Palmieri, A. (2017). Meaning making after a near-death experience: The relevance of intrapsychic and interpersonal dynamics. Death Studies, 41(9), 562–573. https://doi.org/10.1080/07481187.2017.1310768
Pham, T. V., Kaiser, B. N., Koirala, R., Maharjan, S. M., Upadhaya, N., Franz, L., & Kohrt, B. A. (2021). Traditional Healers and Mental Health in Nepal: A Scoping Review. Culture, Medicine & Psychiatry, 45(1), 97–140. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11013-020-09676-4
Andersen, K. A. A., Carhart, H. R., Nutt, D. J., & Erritzoe, D. (2021). Therapeutic effects of classic serotonergic psychedelics: A systematic review of modern‐era clinical studies. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica, 143(2), 101–118. https://doi.org/10.1111/acps.13249
