The death of the self in posttraumatic experience

Bibliographic Data

ID21591774
AuthorsJake Dorothy (0000-0002-7829-8498, University of York, corresponding author), E Hughes (0000-0001-8294-1733, University of York)
Year2025
Volume38
Issue1
Pages168-188
Publication date2025-01-02
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenuePhilosophical Psychology (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0951-5089 • E-ISSN: 1465-394X
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/09515089.2023.2294776
OpenAlexW4390052929
LanguageEN
Citations received4
References cited23

Survivors of trauma commonly report feeling as though a part of themselves has died.This article provides a theoretical interpretation of this phenomenon, drawing on Waldenfels' notion of the split self.We argue that trauma gives rise to an explicit tension between the lived and corporeal body which is so profoundly distressing that it can be experienced by survivors as the death of part of oneself.We explore the ways in which this is manifest in the posttraumatic phenomena of dissociation; indescribability; and the fragmentation and repetition of time.Acknowledging that the traumatic loss of part of oneself involves significant grief, we then consider whether the bereavement literature might be helpfully applied.We focus specifically upon the continuing bonds model, which emphasizes an ongoing and meaningful relationship with the deceased through an active process of memorializing.In considering how this might be appropriated to the death of the self in trauma, we suggest that the development of an intrapersonal relationship between parts lost and living might, over time, offer a unique way in which to adapt to loss and approach the future

Distressing · Feeling · Grief · Interpersonal communication · Intrapersonal communication · Psychoanalysis · Psychotherapist · Self · Shame · Grief, Bereavement, and Mental Health · Memory, Trauma, and Commemoration · Psychology · Psychotherapy Techniques and Applications · Social Psychology