Depersonalization in a female adolescent

This paper demonstrates the relationship between the onset and persistent manifestation of the depersonalization phenomenon in a femal adolescent. On the basis of a case report it is postulated that certain external stimuli coinciding with anxiety lead to a physiologically induced altered state of consciousness which defends against the maintenance or repetition of these events. If the state functions effectively, as in the presented case, a symptom pattern develops which resembles very closely that altered state of consciousness. The particular form of the altered state is postulated to depend upon the personality configuration of the individual patient.