View Full Version : depersonalisation
how does anyone cope with this i get this 24/7
hi bab,
i try to, how do you feel?? i feel unreal inside and out, and sometimes parts of my body dont feel like they belong to me and the feelings are so weird you feel like you will be committed if you tell anyone!!
hope u feel betterxx
parisdebxx
hi paris thanks for replying
i just feel so wierd - like im here but im not really here and i need to pinch myself to keep me grounded - so horrible:flowers:
Hi there, I have suffered with this on and off for 3 years now. I have had it before too and it always goes completely but here is a link to an article that tells you about it and it may take the fear out of it for you. I know it has helped me.
http://www.anxietynomore.co.uk/depersonalisation_and_derealisation.html
This is the 2nd time I have posted this link today. I dont mind if it helps people because I know just how this feels.
Shirley
thanks so much for replies - and thanks shirley - its really helpful
bab, I first started experiencing depersonalisation when I was nine years old and it absolutely terrified me for many years, especially as if I tried to describe it to anyone they just looked at me blankly - especially the medical profession. 55 years later I still experience it sometimes, especially when I'm going through a particularly stressful time, as I have been for the last five months. I used to dig my nails into the palms of my hands until they bled or even cut myself (not recommended) to try and bring myself 'back' into the moment, but lately I've just started thinking "this is interesting, let's go into this and try and find out what's really happening - you've exerienced it for so long and it hasn't done you any harm." So every time I start to feel depersonalised now I try to go into it and examine it, and amazingly it disappears. It thrives on our fear, deprive it of that and it goes away - or at least that's my experience. Sadly I haven't managed to deal so successfully with other frightening symptoms. I think its origins are in our brain's attempts to somehow 'protect' and 'remove' us from trauma, but that's not much help if it only terrifies us even more.
HI Bab
I get this alot, and I think it's one of the worst symptoms cos you start to think you are going mad. I got it really bad in Dec 07 and I really really thought I was going to end up i a padded cell......which scared me even more.
It comes and goes now, at the moment it's here again cos I'm pregnant and scared. It tends to come back when I'm stressing about something, so I know it's anxiety that causes it.
I try to distract myself. I find cross stitch very useful as you have to concentrate, it totally absorbs me to the point that I forget the depersonalisation. Cross words are also good for me.....but you may find something else helps.
Walking is good too as I find sitting in the house makes me feel a bit hemmed in and the dp gets worse, even though the house is my safe zone. It helps to work off any adrenaline too.
The main thing to remember is that this is a common and totally harmless symptom of anxiety and as with all the others, it gets far worse when we focus in on it.
Hi bab, I am glad you found the article helpful. BNCfan talks about going into the DP and examining it. Well last night I was in a DP state (I am now come to that!) and I sat there quietly for half hour or 3/4 saying to myself, "Well ok, I know you cant harm me, there is nothing seriously wrong, nothing awful is going to happen, everything is fine so just enjoy what you are watching on TV" etc etc etc. The next thing I knew, the DP was a lot less again! I felt like I "talked myself" out of that episode. Also I agree that like other anxiety symptoms, it thrives on fear or if we get upset with it and try and push it away, it gets worse. So best to just talk ourselves through it or like Andrea says, do some CrossStitch or knitting or anything to distract ourselves. I notice that when my mind is totally off the DP, its not there so distraction is great too. And of course the artcle at the above link. I was so glad when I found that!!
Shirley
Great news Basil Cat - congratulations! I'm delighted what I suggested was some help.
Yes it was definitely some help BNCfan thank you. It takes some dealing with, this DP doesnt it? Its the 4th time I have suffered with it, with anxiety, in 30 years so I am not new to it. But its the first time I have had the internet to fall back on for help and information.
Shirley
I am suffering really badly from this at the moment - I know that I'm existing and acting out my life but somehow it's not me doing it. It's really bizarre, like I can't snap out of it. I'm trying my best to relax and take time for myself but being alone makes me scared.
It seems to have got much worse over the last week. I have a docs appointment on Friday so hopefully he can help, but last time I described my symptoms I was prescribed anti depressants which I don't know if these help or not?
Does anyone know if hypnotherapy helps with depersonalisation? I am flying to Australia in March (which I am terrified about, I hate flying) so I'm going to try hypnotherapy to help with the fear.
Hi Hercy, Sorry to hear about your DP. I have had it from extremely bad to mild and anything in between too. Go to page 1 of this thread and I have left a link to an article at a website, all about it. The thing is, the more we worry and obscess about it, the worse it gets. So you need something that will distract you from being irritated with it. Its not something we can snap out of. It takes patience and understanding (thats why I left the link on page 1) and the article will help you understand it better and take some of the fear out of it too.
This last year I have been busy with all sorts. 2 voluntary jobs, going down town, coffee with mates, shopping, driving around more, walks in the park. But although I am much better than I was, I am still not 100%. I am sure I am doing much better as I am trying to keep doing things as normal.
Anyway look at the link about DP and see what you think. The whole website is good really. Its helped me anyway.
Best Wishes
Shirley
I only tend to get this when im extremely tired, when do you tend to get it?
this is my worst symptom i get it all the time - like im in a daydream
I find that whenever I have been in an anxiety state, it is the symptom that has always lasted the longest. Its very difficult to explain to someone who has never experienced it, isnt it. I think that thats an understatement really. I tried explaining it to my husband as like living with your head in a goldfish bowl. You can see and hear everything thats going on around you but you are not a part of it somehow, like you are distanced from it. Or its like there is a big thick glass barrier between you and everything. Again you can see and hear everything but you are not a part of it, not really there. Needless to say, it varies in intensity too. Did you go to the link I left about DP on page 1?
Shirley
ScreamingAnt
09-02-09, 10:51
I've suffered from this since I started secondary school. Only now (15 years later), do I find this thing has a name. It use to drive me complete insane, the best way I could describe it to myself was as "my brain getting overloaded", getting stuck in the cycle of "Is this real?" eventually leaving me screaming inside my head.
When this first started I remember coming down for breakfast with the family (I was about 12) and just shouting "no, no, no" as I couldn't quite cope with feeling detached from everything, I even ended up taking time off school (I think my parents must have thought I was crazy)
It doesn't happen as much now, but I do find I still get it if I'm in a meeting room with a load of people. My brain will try and go down the track of "Is this real", and I (like BNCFan) dig my nails into my hands or thighs in order to remain 'with it'. I also found that it lost its power if I said "Ok, lets see where this leads, and let it run its course".
I'm so pleased I found this post and found other people with this issue!
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