Disassociation

Disassociation is something that reoccurs in my life. It’s hard to see when it’s happening, and there’s so many reasons why it happens. Some of my favorite reasons: I am overwhelmed with tasks during school so I let go of my friends, I am not happy so I leave my friends and colleagues on read, I know I can leave so I do. That last one is something that seems to happen a lot, I was talking to a former relationship, and she said if I was sad, she wouldn’t expect me to talk to my friends for a day or two, and she could find me in the climbing gym focusing on some route that would be gone within a month.

Mayo Clinic says “Disconnection and lack of continuity between thoughts, memories, surroundings, actions, and identity.”, I think this is an accurate representation of what happens but it overcomplicates the meaning in my opinion. I believe a better way to describe it is a lack of connections between me and others for a certain period of time, of course that might just be me.

I think climbing and overall outdoors activities are a great way to disassociate, generally when you can focus on just one thing it makes it easier. I also believe that freesoloing is one of the best ways of disassociation because you’re only thinking of the climbing itself, as a means of life and death. While that may be a whole other topic it stays relevant because having to focus on life and death instead of other matters lets you leave your thoughts behind for a time, I partially believe this is why we as climbers do what we do, to get away.

This is all to say disassociation at least in the short term is not a bad thing, I mean depending on the time it may ruin some relationships, but if talking was the only thing holding it together- it was a pretty shallow relationship in my opinion.

Anyways with love, see you in the next one,

Vaughn Cable