★★★★★ 5/5 ratings | Care Anytime
Sometimes, your life feels strangely unreal – as if you are watching yourself in the movie, moving through a dream, or interacting with people in a dreamlike state. This may seem appealing for a person who seeks excitement and adventure but a persistent sense of disconnection, disorientation, and unease is anything but fun. When left untreated, the detachment becomes constant and recurring, you cannot concentrate on simple tasks and daily obligations, your relationships become strained, and you feel as if you are not truly present in the real world.
Depersonalization/derealization disorder (DDD) is a serious mental health condition defined by recurrent and persistent experiences of feeling detached from oneself or from the world that surrounds the person. This Dissociative Disorder can make you feel as if you are observing yourself from outside your own body, or see the people or objects around you in a fog. Sounds can feel either too loud or too muted, and visuals might seem either too sharp or too dull. Despite these bizarre sensations, you can recognize that your perceptions are distorted and you are not actually detached from reality, even if you only barely realize that something is off – still, the disconnection persists and causes emotional dysregulation.
Depersonalization/derealization disorder is the result of a combination of biological vulnerability and psychological stress – the brain overuses a normal protective mechanism:
When you go through an overwhelming experience and anxiety and stress become too intense, the brain might create a sense of distance from self and reality, which becomes chronic as opposed to a temporary dissociation.
Lasting stress caused by emotional overload, a lack of rest, academic pressure, and issues at work can push your brain into this detached mode.
Trauma you experienced in early childhood or sudden shocking events that caused a severe Trauma Disorder can lead to the development of DDD. For instance, if you were abused as a child, dissociation will reduce your pain by creating an automatic distance from the experience, even when it is no longer required when you grow up.
Sleep deprivation and irregular sleep patterns can make you more prone to depersonalization-derealization disorder.
This condition can be substance-induced, especially if you have been using cannabis, stimulants, or hallucinogens.
Pre-existing mental health conditions like severe Anxiety Disorders are strongly linked to the development of DDD.
In case you have been voluntarily relying on dissociation as a coping mechanism when emotions become overwhelming, it can increase your cognitive vulnerability to this disorder.
You will undergo a clinical interview - one of our clinicians will ask you detailed questions about your experiences of detachment from yourself or the world. It is necessary to assess the duration, intensity, frequency, and triggers of symptoms as we compare them with the diagnostic criteria and figure out how your condition affects your studies, work, relationships, and day-to-day activities.
Your family can share their own observations about certain behaviors you might have missed - their input is invaluable because it will allow us to learn more about your difficulty engaging in conversations, episodes of zoning out, and increased anxiety that coincides with dissociative episodes. Additionally, your loved ones can participate in the recovery process with your permission - discover more on our Family Therapy page.
Since feelings like disconnection or brain fog can also be explained by medical issues such as neurological conditions and hormonal imbalances, we need to rule these out before proceeding with DDD treatment.
Regardless of the form of treatment you opt for, your diagnostic process and recovery will be monitored by licensed therapists and board-certified psychiatrists whose skills and knowledge allow them to help patients with severe DDD symptoms.
Depersonalization/derealization disorder treatment comes in different shapes and forms – everyone’s experiences and backgrounds are unique, which is why it is important to select an individualized treatment strategy in accordance with the patient’s needs. Here are just a few DDD treatment options available to our clients:
If you want to explore the feelings of detachment from yourself or the environment in a safe, structured space, Individual Therapy is the right solution. Speak to a therapist who will help you reduce the confusion and fear you associate with these complicated sensations, identify distorted thoughts and beliefs you hold about your experiences, and master healthy coping skills to reduce the frequency and intensity of episodes that bother you now.
DDD is often linked to trauma the person was unable to process properly, which is why we advise many of our patients to try Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Therapy (EMDR). Under the supervision of an EMDR practitioner, you can resolve trauma-based distress, break the dissociation cycle, reframe beliefs connected to dissociation, and cultivate a more grounded perspective.
Holistic depersonalization disorder treatment can complement more traditional Therapy Modalities - for example, Art Therapy provides an individual with a non-verbal way to process their experiences and reconnect with their sense of self and surroundings once more. Certain feelings can be hard to put into words, which is why you can create art that will affirm your identity, foster a sense of personal grounding, and let you focus on the present moment and authentic sensory experiences.
You are free to choose between different Levels of Care based on how acute your symptoms are currently - there are people who recover in an outpatient setting, while some individuals are strongly recommended to undergo residential depersonalization/derealization disorder treatment. Either way, we will support your decision and help you maintain your progress with a wide range of aftercare programs and services.
Depersonalization/derealization disorder can be a significant challenge in daily life, especially when your symptoms are getting worse, the episodes are more intense and frequent, a constant sense of disconnection makes you miss important moments with your loved ones, and mental fog does not allow you to focus on your job. Despite all the problems your condition causes, you can overcome its most debilitating manifestations with treatments for depersonalization/derealization disorder selected for you by an experienced clinical team and your own readiness to feel more present in the world and reconnect with your inner self.
