Derealization

[jayj404]

Due to many people saying that derealization is one of their worst symptoms, I've decided to make a thread about it. Derealization is the feeling of being "detached from every thing". It is a very vague term. It differs from person to person. It is not an actual disorder, but a symptom one. The most common one is anxiety. Some medicines can cause this, although they only really last as long as you take the pill. There are two different types of derealization; chronic and passive. Chronic will last longer and will stick with you until you fully get rid of it. Passive will simply fade away when your anxiety fades away. Like I said, derealization differs from person to person. Mine was the sensation that I wasn't me. I would look in the mirror, and the person I saw was a different person in my mind. I knew that was me, but it seemed like I was a whole different thing in my mind. I would talk out loud and my voice would sound weird. I also have strange thoughts that pass through my mind. "what if i'm in a dream?" "What if im in a coma?" "what if im dead?". I will often loon at things, and they seem strange. Sometimes my room seems bigger than it is, sometimes it seems smaller. I would look at people and ask myself "are they like me?" and "Do I feel and see things like them?". Derealization is often confused for depression, although they are a mischievous pair. Please reply to the thread telling what your derealization is like, or any questions you have with it.

[lee2]

Well I never been told I have dr..but I get the looking in mirror and saying is this really he..etc...and then I panic and feel like I deff going crazy...if I am thinking life that...I Think dr makes u feel like yir crazy

[jayj404]

Yea I feel that way. Some advise I have for you is not to ignore it. Face what is panicking you. Eventually, you'll realize there is nothing to be afraid of and you'll return to normal. I made the mistake of ignoring it. I definitely feel different than I did before it, but i'm used to it. I feel like I might be stuck with it forever.

[Olive Yew]

When i'm Dr'ed, I feel like i'm watching things through a 3D movie. I still recognize me and feel like me but when i look down at myself, the body I SEE doesn't feel like the body my brain controls. If it's really bad, i can even be disjointed from my emotions and I wont even have many thoughts except for pondering my fate (a real "cheery" subject as of recent -.-). Sometimes it makes me feel really dizzy and actually impairs my vision so like... If i'm driving it feels like the road in front of me is racing away from me instead of me driving towards it. (Makes Driving a nightmare).

Things I do to fix it: Splash cold water on my face, become really absorbed in something like a movie, book, a conversation (talking is typically the most successful because it makes me focus on reality and not a screen or fantasy world in my brain. It also helps people to seem more real. Usually the topic has to be ABOUT how i feel to start off with. Telling someone how i feel is almost always an instant relief. Then after my brain is satisfied that someone knows and they wont let me die, then I can talk about other stuff like school, work, weekend plans, ect.). Playing with pets helps. Their unpredictability and natural ease with living seems to sorta wake up my brain. Stay off computers and TV's after you've managed to pull your brain back to the present. If you do something that cuts you off from reality again, it's gonna make your brain slide back into derealisation. Stretching, yoga, and tea can help. Chamomile tea is not only spectacularly delicious but also VERY calming. I love it. But really the best thing to do in Dp/Dr (depersonalization/derealization) mode is TALK to people. It's the realist thing you can do.....

Oh and I guess for those of you who have significant others... Loving on them helps a TON too. Cuz that not only releases feel good chemicals in the brain but it also forces you to have human interaction in a way that's both physical, emotional, and mental. I've had great success with this.... sometimes it's the only thing that can knock me out of it. :P

[jayj404]

"I feel like i'm watching I'm watching thing through a 3D movie." You couldn't have stated it more perfectly.

[raggamuffin]

It's the same with any symptom. Ignore it. You worry or fight it, what happens? You make it worse. Therefore accept all this is anxiety. Let your body heal tiself; which it will do. It's giving you symptoms because of all this stress you've put on it. So what do you do when a body warns you of stress with a symptom? You pile more stress ontop of it. Is it any wonder your symptoms last days/weeks/months on end?

Let the pains and symptoms come and go as they please. Keep busy and stay positive. Don't assume death is around the door because of your sensations. because it isn't true.

Ed

[tailspin]

Due to many people saying that derealization is one of their worst symptoms, I've decided to make a thread about it. Derealization is the feeling of being "detached from every thing". It is a very vague term. It differs from person to person. It is not an actual disorder, but a symptom one. The most common one is anxiety. Some medicines can cause this, although they only really last as long as you take the pill. There are two different types of derealization; chronic and passive. Chronic will last longer and will stick with you until you fully get rid of it. Passive will simply fade away when your anxiety fades away. Like I said, derealization differs from person to person. Mine was the sensation that I wasn't me. I would look in the mirror, and the person I saw was a different person in my mind. I knew that was me, but it seemed like I was a whole different thing in my mind. I would talk out loud and my voice would sound weird. I also have strange thoughts that pass through my mind. "what if i'm in a dream?" "What if im in a coma?" "what if im dead?". I will often loon at things, and they seem strange. Sometimes my room seems bigger than it is, sometimes it seems smaller. I would look at people and ask myself "are they like me?" and "Do I feel and see things like them?". Derealization is often confused for depression, although they are a mischievous pair. Please reply to the thread telling what your derealization is like, or any questions you have with it.

Thanks for explaining more about derealization. It's not a term that I fully understand. I don't think I have it in the classic sense, but one thing I do really notice about myself more and more is that I often feel as though I am in some kind of semi-trance (for want of a better analogy). It's hard to describe, but it's as if I'm living in my own little bubble and I'm on auto-pilot much of the time, definitely not fully alive. The days and weeks and months go by and I wonder where the time went. And then, every so often, I'll be kind of jolted awake. It's literally like I fully wake up and I see there's a whole wide world out there and I feel more able to interact with it. But then I slip back into this semi-trance again.

Could that be a form of derealization too?

[Olive Yew]

Thanks for explaining more about derealization. It's not a term that I fully understand. I don't think I have it in the classic sense, but one thing I do really notice about myself more and more is that I often feel as though I am in some kind of semi-trance (for want of a better analogy). It's hard to describe, but it's as if I'm living in my own little bubble and I'm on auto-pilot much of the time, definitely not fully alive. The days and weeks and months go by and I wonder where the time went. And then, every so often, I'll be kind of jolted awake. It's literally like I fully wake up and I see there's a whole wide world out there and I feel more able to interact with it. But then I slip back into this semi-trance again. Could that be a form of derealization too?

Yeah that's derealization

[Olive Yew]

Thanks for explaining more about derealization. It's not a term that I fully understand. I don't think I have it in the classic sense, but one thing I do really notice about myself more and more is that I often feel as though I am in some kind of semi-trance (for want of a better analogy). It's hard to describe, but it's as if I'm living in my own little bubble and I'm on auto-pilot much of the time, definitely not fully alive. The days and weeks and months go by and I wonder where the time went. And then, every so often, I'll be kind of jolted awake. It's literally like I fully wake up and I see there's a whole wide world out there and I feel more able to interact with it. But then I slip back into this semi-trance again. Could that be a form of derealization too?

Yeah thats derealization

[raggamuffin]

Basically you put your mind through enough stress and worry it retreats from reality so to speak in an attempt to allow your mind and body some resbite. But most people with anxiety, when they experience a symptom the body is giving out to say "Hey you've stressed me out enough I need rest" they fear and worry about the symptom so they add secondary fears and worries thereby making the symptoms worse or indeed last longer.

It's a vicious cycle and you have to make it stop by not allowing yourself to worry about the symptoms. No matter how horrid or painful or surreal. Just allow them in and they will come and go as they please.

Anxiety does make you live in a little bubble. You become so far withdrawn from reality and you're running on paranoia, fear and worry. It's no wonder you can spend weeks or months with derealization where nothing quite seems real, everything is off, your head is fuzzy etc.

The sooner you curb your fears and worries the sooner you will start feeling better. It won't be overnight, this took months/years of worry and stress to cause anxiety and it's symptoms and it'll take months/years to undo.

But it's something you have to work at. You can' expect to change your mindset from paranoid to rational overnight. You must practice it and remind yourself to steer clear from reacting to stresses or symptoms emotionally. You respoind with apathy and remidn yourself you're not in danger and death isn't around the corner.

Ed

[tailspin]

Yeah thats derealization

Thanks for confirming that! As I was writing it out, I thought, wow, yes, this does sound like it!!

[tailspin]

Basically you put your mind through enough stress and worry it retreats from reality so to speak in an attempt to allow your mind and body some resbite. But most people with anxiety, when they experience a symptom the body is giving out to say "Hey you've stressed me out enough I need rest" they fear and worry about the symptom so they add secondary fears and worries thereby making the symptoms worse or indeed last longer.

It's a vicious cycle and you have to make it stop by not allowing yourself to worry about the symptoms. No matter how horrid or painful or surreal. Just allow them in and they will come and go as they please.

Anxiety does make you live in a little bubble. You become so far withdrawn from reality and you're running on paranoia, fear and worry. It's no wonder you can spend weeks or months with derealization where nothing quite seems real, everything is off, your head is fuzzy etc.

The sooner you curb your fears and worries the sooner you will start feeling better. It won't be overnight, this took months/years of worry and stress to cause anxiety and it's symptoms and it'll take months/years to undo.

But it's something you have to work at. You can' expect to change your mindset from paranoid to rational overnight. You must practice it and remind yourself to steer clear from reacting to stresses or symptoms emotionally. You respoind with apathy and remidn yourself you're not in danger and death isn't around the corner.

Ed

All this is SO TRUE. Thanks, Ed. It really is a self-perpetuating vicious cycle. I need to find a way to interrupt it. I think those moments where I do come alive are moments I need to build on. I need to try and start etching them into my consciousness more and hopefully that will start widening my bubble! And, as you say, accepting that this is a process that will take a while, just as it's taken a while - years - to get me to this point. Practice, practice, practice!!

[Olive Yew]

http://www.dpselfhelp.com/forum/index.php?/topic/20892-the-holy-grail-of-curing-dpdr/ this is THE BEST thing EVER for helping with dp/dr, depression, anxiety, and several other mental disorders. The guy's hilarious and his advice really does help/work. I think everyone needs to read it. It's helped me so much.

[tailspin]

http://www.dpselfhelp.com/forum/index.php?/topic/20892-the-holy-grail-of-curing-dpdr/ this is THE BEST thing EVER for helping with dp/dr, depression, anxiety, and several other mental disorders. The guy's hilarious and his advice really does help/work. I think everyone needs to read it. It's helped me so much.

That's a great link. Thanks, Olive Yew. I read some information there that I had never thought about consciously before but when I read it, it really struck a chord. Very interesting and useful reading and gave me a new perspective! Thanks!

[Olive Yew]

That's a great link. Thanks, Olive Yew. I read some information there that I had never thought about consciously before but when I read it, it really struck a chord. Very interesting and useful reading and gave me a new perspective! Thanks!

No problem :) anything i can do to help