Depersonalisation
In the process of writing this book I covered the feeling of detachment from
oneself, otherwise known as depersonalisation: an emotional disorder in which
there is loss of contact with your own personal reality accompanied by
feelings of unreality and strangeness, also a sensation of ones environment
looking or feeling ‘strange’ and unusual.
This one question kept coming up more and more as I was writing this book, so
I decided to add an extra chapter on this annoying, yet harmless, symptom.
D.P., as I will refer to it, is a common and understandable offshoot of the
anxiety condition. I can also tell you that it is in no way a mental illness.
It is not serious or harmful in any way and has a totally logical explanation.
It is temporary and, with patience and understanding, eventually passes like
any other symptom.
The key to recovering from this feeling of detachment is to surrender to this
strange feeling, to pay it no respect and realise it is just the product of an
over-tired mind, fatigued by your constant worrying thoughts and the constant
checking in to how you feel. This symptom relies on your fear of it to keep it
alive.
When people are caught up in the worry cycle, they begin to think deeply and
constantly. They study themselves from deep within, checking in and focusing
on their symptoms. They may even wake in the morning only to continue this
habit, “How do I feel this morning? “I wonder if I will be able to get
through today". What’s this new sensation I feel?" This may go on all day,
exhausting their already tired mind further. This constant checking in and
constant assessing of their symptoms then becomes a habit, but like all other
habits this one can also be changed.
All this worry is bound to make your mind feel dull and unresponsive. Is it
any wonder you have come to feel so distanced from your surroundings? Is it
any wonder you find it so hard to concentrate? Some people, when studying for
exams for hours on end, get to the point where they can no longer take
information in, so they take a break and carry on the day after. For you,
there are no breaks and no time outs.
As I have already mentioned earlier, your body has a safety mechanism that
protects it from all this worry and slows the mind down to safeguard itself.
It takes a step back from this onslaught, which can then produce your feelings
of detachment and the world around you may become hazy or out of focus.
Once you understand this symptom as being caused by an over-tired mind,
exhausted through worry, that you are not going mad and these feelings can’t
harm you in any way, it makes sense. With the fear factor taken out of this
symptom, it can start to hold less power over you and affect you less than it
did before. Although still annoying, you now know why you feel these feelings.
Once you learn to accept them and stop adding worrying thoughts to the mix,
this is another symptom that you will be able to overcome in time. Taking a
step back and giving up the worrying thoughts, gives your mind the chance to
rest, rejuvenate and refresh.
When it happened to me, I recognised and understood what was causing it. I
realised that I was checking in and worrying about it and I did fear this
sensation, so I just stopped doing it. I also learnt to get busier and stop
brooding on this and other symptoms. Being active gives you another focus.
Having too much time on your hands can open the door to too much needless
thinking. With less worry and fear of this harmless but upsetting symptom, I
was eventually able to overcome it. It merely became a nuisance and because I
knew the reason for its existence, it no longer held any power over me.
When a worry or fear loses its importance, it loses its power and that is why
it is essential to realise these symptoms are neither harmful nor serious.
Gradually, without all the checking in and worrying, this symptom that so
dominated my life began to diminish and eventually disappeared completely.
This symptom is like any other all symptoms are still being fuelled by your
fear of them. As long as the fear continues, so will the symptoms. When we
start to understand why we feel like we do, we automatically fear them less
and they start to lose their edge and importance, this is when symptoms
gradually start to fade.
Paul David spent years after his own recovery studying the
whole subject in full so he could go on to dedicate his life to helping
others. He then went on to write a book entitled ‘At Last a Life’ telling
his own story of recovery and what took him there. For more information and
better understanding of the subject visit his website at:
www.anxietynomore.co.uk
