but detachment will do much of the same things as denial. It will protect you from pain.
So does drinking booze or sleeping. Similarities between things does not equate them as being the same thing, however.
It will help you not face problems because you will not internalize them.
No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. You can be totally detached and still face and work on problems, you just don't permit the problems to impact you to knee jerk yourself. It's about the taking a step back and handling yourself better in the face of things, it's not about ignoring those things.
It lets you avoid negative consequences because you just choose not to react to them.
No, I believe that you can very well see the negatives while detached. Again, one works through the problems while being detached, so the reason you choose not to react constitutes a healthy purpose when detaching, an unhealthy purpose though when in denial, where you won't work on the problem because it's disturbing that the problem exists, which is because one's attached.
I am fully aware of my situation. I know there is an affair. I know our marriage is in deep trouble. I know I need to work on myself. Do those things mean I am NOT in denial? I am denying the negative feelings that could come from those realizations but is that the same as denial?
Denial is stage of the grieving process, so if you're in the grieving process, there will be times denial may manifest. It's not a linear process, so denial may be revisited from time to time. Denial takes several different forms of manifestation. Seeing problems and putting blinders on is one manifestation, for example. Thinking, "How could she do this?" is another manifestation of denial.
So, the question really becomes, how does the knowledge of your circumstances affect you emotionally? That's where detachment comes in.
