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Learn more about amnesia
Amnesia is a significant impairment of memory that goes beyond ordinary forgetting. It can affect the ability to recall past events (retrograde amnesia), form new memories (anterograde amnesia), or both. Causes range from neurological conditions, including brain injury, stroke, and dementia, to psychological ones, where memory disruption is linked to trauma or extreme stress. The type most relevant to psychological therapy is dissociative amnesia, recognised in the DSM-5, in which memory gaps arise as a response to overwhelming experience rather than physical damage to the brain.
Dissociative and psychogenic amnesia present differently from ordinary forgetting and from neurological memory loss.
Common signs
- Gaps in autobiographical memory that cannot be explained by normal forgetting
- Inability to recall specific periods, events, or personal information, often linked to stressful or traumatic experiences
- A sense of confusion about identity or personal history
- Feeling detached from memories when they do return, as though they belong to someone else
- Episodes of dissociative fugue: unexplained travel or behaviour with no memory of the period afterwards
Other common experiences
- Anxiety, depression, or distress related to the memory gaps
- Difficulty trusting one's own perceptions or sense of continuity
- Symptoms that worsen under stress
For dissociative and psychogenic amnesia, treatment focuses on building stability and safety before carefully approaching the underlying experiences. Pushing for memory recovery before the person is ready can cause harm.
- Clinical psychology Clinical psychologists can assess the nature and extent of memory difficulties and design a structured therapeutic approach suited to dissociative presentations.
- Psychiatry A psychiatrist can assess for co-occurring conditions, rule out neurological factors, and, where appropriate, support medication management alongside psychological treatment.
- Psychotherapy Psychotherapeutic work, especially trauma-informed approaches, helps address the underlying experiences that may have triggered dissociative amnesia at a pace that maintains safety.
- Counselling Counselling can provide a stable, supportive relationship during a disorienting period, helping with the emotional impact of memory loss even before deeper therapeutic work begins.
It's Complicated is a therapist-founded mental health platform connecting clients with verified practitioners across Europe and globally, in over 60 languages. We work with over 2,500 vetted therapists, with in-person availability in Berlin, Amsterdam, Barcelona, Lisbon, Vienna, and other major cities, alongside online sessions worldwide. It's Complicated is free to use, and you pay your chosen therapist directly at rates they set.
Finding a therapist with experience in dissociative conditions requires more than a general search. Our matching service is built to remove that friction. You complete a short survey, our psychologists combine data-driven insights with human judgement to identify the right therapists for your situation, and you choose from a shortlist of strong candidates. You can also browse our directory directly if you'd prefer to choose yourself.
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