Your very right!!! It is the means to survive and to dis-associate yourself from the trauma at the time. Each person deals with trauma in different ways and apparently this dis-association is very common.
I suppose in my case I fantisise out my trauma which I can control in a safe environment. My power (representing anger and frustration) is taken away and replaced with powerlessness causing or forcing me to bring out emotions that have been hidden and locked away for so long and bring me a release of peacefullness. And now that my husband is helping I now feel agreater sense of love afterwards. I hope that what I'm trying to say here is understud correctly as I do find it hard sometimes to explain myself.