The terms Depersonalization and Derealization Disorder refers to dissociative conditions in which you feel detached from your body or its processes. You may feel that you are an observer of your life (depersonalization) or that you are not connected to your surroundings, often accompanied by feelings of loneliness (derealization).
The condition is often caused by severe stress. After all other possible reasons have been ruled-out, the diagnosis is determined by symptoms. For patients with comorbid depression and or anxiety, psychotherapy is combined with medication therapy.
Here’s what you should learn about Depersonalization and Derealization Disorder.
What are Depersonalization and Derealization disorders?
Depersonalization and Derealization Disorder is when you feel:
- Detached from your thoughts, emotions, and body (depersonalization).
- Disconnected from your surroundings (derealization).
People with this ailment do not lose touch with reality. They come to terms with the fact that their perceptions aren’t real. Depersonalization or derealization disorder can also indicate these conditions:
- Brain diseases.
- Seizure disorders.
- Psychiatric disorders, such as schizophrenia and dementia.
What are the symptoms of Depersonalization and Derealization disorder?
The symptoms usually fall into two categories:
Symptoms of depersonalization and Symptoms of derealization.
People with this disorder can experience symptoms of just one or both.
Symptoms of Depersonalization include:
- feeling like you are detached from your body, sometimes as if you’re looking down on yourself from above
- feeling outside of your body, as if you have no actual self
- numbness in your body or mind, as if your senses are turned off
- feeling as if you can’t get a hold of what you do or say
- feeling as if parts of your body are different in size
- difficulty associating emotions with memories
Derealization symptoms may include:
- having trouble recognizing surroundings or finding everything hazy and almost dreamlike
- feeling like a glass wall separates you from the world — you can see what’s beyond the wall but can’t connect to anything
- feeling like your environment isn’t real or seems flat, blurry, too far, too close, too big, or too small
- experiencing a dismantled sense of time — the past may feel very recent, while recent events feel as if they happened a long time ago
Happening together, these problems can leave you feeling distanced or disconnected from yourself and the world around you.
What are the causes of Depersonalization and Derealization disorder?
No one’s sure about the exact cause triggering this condition. But for some individuals, it seems to be linked to experiencing stress and trauma, especially at a young age.
For an instance, if you grew up around a lot of violence or yelling, you may have mentally excluded yourself from those situations as a coping mechanism. As an adult, you might fall back to the same disassociating tendencies in stressful situations.
Using certain drugs may also cause symptoms similar to those of this disorder in some people. These drugs include:
- Ketamine
- Salvia
- Marijuana
- Hallucinogens
- MDMA
A small 2015 study compared 68 people in recovery from substance abuse issues who were abstinent for at least six months with 59 people who had never experienced a substance abuse disorder. More than 40 percent of those in recovery had minute symptoms of Depersonalization and Derealization Disorder.
How is Depersonalization and Derealization disorder treated?
The most effective treatment for this condition generally involves some type of therapy, especially psychodynamic therapy or cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT).
With the help of a professional therapist, you can learn about your disorder, uncover and work through any past trauma or triggers, and explore coping strategies to get through future episodes.
A word from the doctor —
Depersonalization and Derealization Disorder may feel jarring. You may feel detached from yourself or your environment. If these feelings happen occasionally and for a short time, you may not need thorough treatment.
However, if the symptoms cause stress or interfere with your daily life, you may need to talk to your healthcare provider. Therapy might help you deal with the triggers and prevent the symptoms from returning.
If you want to know more about how to cope with your Depersonalization and Derealization disorder, then what is the wait for?
Contact me right away. I am here to help you.
