Dissociative amnesia is characterized by an inability to recall autobiographical information. This amnesia may be localized (i.e., an event or period of time), selective (i.e., a specific aspect of an event), or generalized (i.e., identity and life history). Dissociative amnesia is fundamentally an inability to recall autobiographical information that is inconsistent with nor mal forgetting. It may or may not involve purposeful travel or bewildered wandering (i.e., fugue). Although some individuals with amnesia promptly notice that they have “lost time” or that they have a gap in their memory, most individuals with dissociative disorders are initially unaware of their amnesias. For them, awareness of amnesia occurs only when personal identity is lost or when circumstances make these individuals aware that autobiographical information is missing (e.g., when they discover evidence of events they cannot recall or when others tell them or ask them about events they cannot recall). Until and unless this hap pens, these individuals have “amnesia for their amnesia.” Amnesia is experienced as an essential feature of dissociative amnesia; individuals may experience localized or selective amnesia most commonly, or generalized amnesia rarely. Dissociative fugue is rare in per sons with dissociative amnesia but common in dissociative identity disorder.