r/derealization

Hello guys,

First post on this sub. (F22)

I can’t anymore i can’t no more.

Dp/Dr started for me more than 6 years ago. At the beginning it was strange but still bearable. Year after year it was getting worse and worse, now everything is A NIGHTMARE.

I feel like nothing is real no matter where i go or where i stand. I feel like people around me do not exist no matter if they’re 3 or 400. I see everything as a child's drawing. Everything is flat, without relief.

Everything is blurry and like a dream. When i talk to someone i just feel like they’re not even there, not even real. I try to act as if nothing happened but I can't in fact I can't anymore. I hear without hearing,

I read without reading, I write without writing. My only respite is to sleep deeply and when I wake up the nightmare starts again.

No medication helped me.

I just want it to stop I can't do it anymore guys.

Even a 5mn walk is appalling.

I can no longer do anything of what I loved. I exist but from the inside there is nothing left.

I'm ready to do ANYTHING to find a semblance of serenity.

Even if I have to go to the other side of the world I will go.

If you have any treatment ideas that I have not thought of, PLEASE let me know.

If you went that far thank you very VERY much..

hello. i’ve wanted to know what kind of hobbies would y’all recommends to get out of DR? i’ve heard sudoku, yoga/mediation and all is great bc it reduces help but any other recommendations ? thx <3

I don’t know how to explain this exactly. My entire reality feels fake, like some sort of simulation I no longer wish to entertain or be part of. It’s a weird feeling and when I tell people about it, they don’t really understand. I either feel like I’m going crazy, or like I understood something I wasn’t supposed to. Weird idk. I keep asking myself If I get a say in any of this, and by this I mean everything.

I’ve been taking antideps for two months now. Been working well for a few weeks but i crashed out about two or three days ago. Maybe it’s because I started taking them in the morning instead of at night? Or maybe it’s because I tried too hard to work on myself and got deep into certain subjects (Creation being finished, Simulation theory, Neville Godard, manifesting, infinite realities…).

Yall ever experience this? Any advice?

I don’t want to do something stupid but I’m also suuuuuper tired.

Thanks for any replies.

Hi! So, recently I had this feeling of zoing out from reality, more like in a dream and can’t understand the surrounding around you, but I still can move around and talk (but I don’t feel anything) for about 2 hours straight and felt like going crazy or sth.

I remember having this 4 years back but it didn’t last longer. Maybe 10-15 mins.

I searched it up, so I’m wondering if I’m at risk of developing this dissociation or if it’s the starting symptoms.

For context, I didn’t have sleep the day before.

I’m not dealing with anxiety , weed or any past traumas.

Is it just lack of sleep or should be concerned?

Hey everyone, this is kind of an update to my last post.

I won’t repeat everything, but I’ve been dealing with derealization/anxiety symptoms for a while now. Lately I’ve noticed some changes and I’m trying to figure out if this actually means I’m improving or not.

Some things I’ve noticed recently:

- I have days where I feel genuinely good, like myself again, even happy and energized

- The thoughts/sensations are still there, but they don’t hit as hard on those days

- I’ve realized that anticipation is worse than actually doing things once I’m in the situation, I’m usually fine

- If I just live normally and don’t overthink, I feel okay

- But as soon as I start analyzing how I feel or thinking ahead (“what if I feel weird later?”), it triggers anxiety and the feelings get stronger

It really feels like overthinking/self-monitoring is the main thing keeping it going.

I’ve also had moments where I push through discomfort (like going out, driving, etc.) and it ends up being fine, even if it feels weird at first.

At the same time, I still get “off” days (especially after bad sleep) where I feel:

- brain fog / lag

- slight derealization

- just generally off or disconnected

Another thing is that it’s less panic now and more just annoyance. Like I understand what’s happening, but my body still reacts sometimes and it’s frustrating.

So I guess my question is:

Does this sound like actual progress?

Like, is this what getting better looks like (more good days, less intense reactions, but still inconsistent)? Or am I just going in circles?

Would really appreciate hearing from people who’ve gone through this.

Hi this is my first time posting on reddit so I apologize if i posted in the wrong subreddit and if this is a bit choppy and long

Im 14 years old and around two days ago I stopped using a high THC strain pen and I've been feeling really uncomfortable and out of it since. Im posting this Wednesday night but on Monday morning, I got my pen back from a friend after lending it to them over the weekend. (It's kind of a shared friend group pen) and before class started, I took around 3 hits which is my usual. But during my first class in math I had a REALLY bad experience with the weed, I don't know why it was stronger than usual but it left me feeling so anxious and paranoid for the rest of the day after the effects went away. I think I greened out I dont know, but I also had a similar bad experience with the same pen a couple weeks back when I greened out for the first time at school and went to the urgent care after I passed it off as a concussion. My parents or the doctor didn't clock it was weed

Anyways after Monday morning I fully decided to quit the pen after having that experience, but since then I've been feeling really out of it and i think its derealization or some sort of dissociation. I'm really scared because in the couple months I've been regularly using the pen, this has never happened to me :( and the last time I felt like this when I greened out and went to urgent care, I feel like it only lasted like a couple hours before the feeling went away. But now I've been feeling really anxious and paranoid about my surroundings not really processing clearly in my head and its making me so stressed. I feel more out of it during certain periods at school (math class which was when I had the bad experience Monday morning, and health class which was when I greened out a couple weeks ago). It makes me feel really uncomfortable and I'm really stressed about the derealization not going away soon.

I have really strict parents and I would rather die than confide in them that I've been smoking weed. Today I left school early during health class because the derealization was particularly bad. I confessed to my mom at home that I've been feeling not real, but I told her it was because of stress for school (which it kind of is but it's not the root of the cause) . Im so, so anxious about this feeling not going away soon because school has been really stressful and I feel like i won't be able to focus on my studying when I feel like this. My friends are still users of the pen and when I confided in them about how I felt, the friend that introduced me to the pen in the first place told me that it might last up to a few weeks. It just made me feel more upset, and by the time I was in health class, I left early because I had went on Google and made myself more anxious by searching up how long this lasted.

Im so sorry for the long post but I feel like I need to relate to someone or have some solid reassurance because I'm really really upset and anxious and its making me dread going to school. I wasn't feeling the derealization at home but now that Im worrying about it, Im getting anxious in my own house. Will this feeling go away soon? I really don't want to get professional help because it would make my parents furious at me and I don't want to face my dad's wrath. I feel really guilty of using the pen in the first place and I just want it all to go away:(( if you have advice pls pls pls tell me:(

The other day I had stayed up all night. The following afternoon I had been talking to one of my friends, and the derealization had been hitting pretty bad, especially seeing as I hadn't slept. She was talking, but I was staring straight ahead, and didn't process a word she had been saying. Out of nowhere, I heard someone ask "Are you okay?" so I began frantically looking around to figure out who was talking to me. It didn't sound anything like my friend, or anyone I know for that matter.. But, when I looked back over at my friend, she was looking at me like I was crazy. I asked "Did you just ask me if I was okay?" to which she replied "Yeah?"

I know it was her but something about that experience felt so off, the voice didn't sound like her at all. I would say she might've just changed pitch as she asked the question but I know for a fact that if she had changed pitch, it wouldn't have sounded like that. I almost thought I was hallucinating. It really freaked me out, and I wanted to know if anyone else has had a similar experience?

Hi I am turning 18 in a month or two and ig I should be able to consult a psychiatrist by myself now. I had been feeling unreal since 2020 or 2021 (I cannot remember exactly).

Sometime after my father passed away due to cancer in 2022, my mother took me to a child psychologist (not a psychiatrist) when I was 14 and I feel like my condition was pretty much neglected. She just told me to drink more water and keep a diary. This did not help at all. Till now I have been living like this, feeling detached with reality and fun activities don't feel like 'fun' anymore.

I have gotten used to it by now, I even forgot about this feeling for sometime now and it feels like my entire life has been like this from the start and that this is normal. Can anyone help?

I finally over came my derealization and here’s why. my derealization started by smoking weed for the very first time, im not a smoker at all so my body/tolerance was not used to the weed. I thought I was in a coma, or in a dream. Like life wasn’t real. so I did exactly what most people do, I started looking how I was feeling. I came across “solipsism“ “sonder”. this kept me up at night, I would stare at my family like “are they real“ and be so lost and scared. this lasted for about 4 weeks. asking chatgpt, or looking up on TikTok will not help this go away it Keeps it, especially if you have strong anxiety.

how I got rid of it:

one night I was going through my snap memories, I felt so good, I thought to myself if I can’t even remember what I had for dinner 2 weeks ago how could I be in a dream or creating my reality. while watching my memories I came across videos I didnt even remember this helped a lot. Also watching movies I never even seen before helped so much more. the key is not to try to get rid of it but focus on things you never did, create new memories, eventually you’ll come to a state “I don’t even know what derealization feels like anymore“. Now the biggest thing people get confused on is it’s not the same for everyone. Some people can go 2 weeks to 2 years to 10 years. it’s how you manage it. so my advice is, listen To music you never heard, spend more time with your family, play games you never played, watch movies you never seen, visit places you never been. create memories that was never there. Most importantly, stop searching things up that has something to do with “derealization“ and “solipsism“ because at the end Of the day you only get one life, don’t spend it trying to get answers, just live. smell the flowers, take a moment and look at the sky, go to the beach and watch the waves, this 100 percent will bring you back. I wish luck on all of you!

one thing to keep in mind. this is NOT PERMANENT. it’s only TEMPORARILY.

and if you was in a dream or your not in reality, so what. either way life is still going to be the same, you’ll still have bills to pay, you still have to go to school, you still have to go to work. you still have to wake up the next day and start your day up. just live life leave it alone eventually you’ll forget it it’ll fade, your brain will get tired of trying to get answers.

Hallo, habe seit sehr vielen Jahren PTBS, Derealisation, Panikattacken. Konnte aber immer noch normal arbeiten gehen und auch sonst alles machen. Irgendwann vor ca 5 Jahren wurde alles (beruflich bedingt) schlimmer. War lange krank und bekam Prozac. Derealisation wurde damit aber eher schlimmer. Ängste und Panik kaum bis garnicht besser. Ich sollte es aber weiter versuchen. Es wurden viele Dosen ausprobiert. Bin irgendwann wieder arbeiten gegangen (nach ca 18 Monaten). Nahm Prozac weiter, auch wenn es irgendwie nicht wirklich half. Dann war ich ca 1 Jahr stabil. Wurde schwanger und wurde daher auf Zoloft umgestellt. Half auch nicht mehr aus heutiger Sicht. Ich dachte aber die SSRI würden mich stabilisieren. War aber nicht so (aus heutiger Sicht). Als mein Kind 6 Monate alt war, brach meine Situation wieder ein. Alles wurde extrem schlimm. Dann wurden in ca 1,5-2 Jahren sämtliche Medikamente ausprobiert. Venlaflaxin, Medikinet, Opipramol, Promethazin, Lamotrigin, Lexapro, Lyrica. Hat alles nichts gebracht. Es wurde immer schlimmer. Jetzt kann ich garnichts mehr alleine tun (massive Agoraphobie). Extreme Derealisation. EMDR hat nichts gebracht. Versuche es jetzt mit SE (aktuell erst angefangen in Eigenregie). Traumatherapie bei einer Therapeutin läuft zusätzlich. Nehme aktuell noch Lexapro und bin es elendig am ausschleichen. Könnte es sein, dass die Medikamente dazu beigetragen haben das es jetzt so heftig ist?

dude i scrolled through all reddit and i can’t seem to find anyone who gets triggered by something similar.

TRIGGER WARNING: passage of time, existential dread, extreme nihilism(?), liminal, and vent

I can’t look at my photos when i was a baby, bc i get an intense feeling of dread. nostalgia is a very weird feeling for me. i experience emotions in a very unusual way that makes me almost unable to identify them.. jeez this will be difficult to explain.

so seeing photos specially from the 80s 90s and the 2000s, makes me feel really uneasy, dizzy and nauseous. it’s like seeing a present that doesn’t exist anymore. everything has changed so much. what makes it worst is seeing some of my now deceased loved ones, and thinking they’re not here anymore. people grow up, some of them dies, others are being born, and technology progresses. that’s simply passage of time right?

everytime i see vintage photos i’m stuck in a feeling of kenopsia. everything’s gone, and it’s just a “burning memory” on those who are still alive recalling. it’s an awful nihilistic feeling.

i recently have watched a ps2 game gameplay. and it sent me into an episode. something as absurd as that. just thinking about the kids who played the game in the 2000s, and now they’re absolutely moved on. and i associate this feeling with kenopsia with this exact quote: “you can go back to the past but NO ONE is there anymore”.

this also feeds my simulation theory / existential OCD. i’ve had this feeling buildup for YEARS too. it’s not something new for me. i had it even when i didn’t had dpdr, but when i got dpdr, it started feeling x100 times more liminal and agonizing.

why does the past feel like another inexistent universe? why my memories feel unreal? heck i even doubt if they actually happened or if they just randomly appeared in my brain…

i feel like i’m stuck in a simulation.

sorry if this confused you. i can’t even understand my own feelings and why they make me feel this way. i’m just so confused on how my mind works, i hate myself. not only for this but on all aspects of life, i feel like the weird and defective one. i just get this feeling of unreality that literally has me drowning and i can’t seem to do anything about it, because no one has this, i went through multiple therapists, and when i talk about these kind of feelings, they just look at me like what 🤌🤌. why why why why whyyw hywhyw why

Hallo, da Lexapro (Escitalopram) bei mir in keiner Dosis half, sollten jetzt auch die 10mg täglich reduziert werden. In der Klinik wurde ich auf sofort 5mg reduziert, was schreckliche Entzugserscheinungen machte. Also wieder zurück auf 10mg. Nun habe ich zuhause von meinem Arzt Tropfen verschrieben bekommen. 1 Tropfen gleich 1mg Lexapro. Ich begann mit 10 Tropfen (10mg), wie vorher mit den Tabletten. Vertrug dies natürlich gut. Dann bin ich nach einer Woche runter auf 9 Tropfen (9mg) und dann nach 1,5 Wochen (etwas länger da ich krank war) auf 8 Tropfen (8mg). Diese 8mg täglich nehme ich nun seit 6 Tagen. Seit 3 Tagen fühle ich mich wie kurz vor einer Grippe, extrem müde, bleiernde Schwere, Schwindel, verstärkte Derealisation (habe ich sowieso) und Muskelschmerzen… Kann das schon davon kommen? Oder hat es wahrscheinlich eher andere Gründe?

Hi,

I've been suffering from this for two months. I'm in derealization most of the time, but sometimes I have stronger attacks (especially in public) and my dizziness becomes extreme, everything feels dreamy, I get tunnel vision and I feel like fainting.

Now, I've read the best thing we can do is doing stuff while having symptoms anyway. But I'm scared to faint when I'm in public and there are no chairs, like in supermarkets. I've read this is just a feeling and you won't really pass out, and that has reassured me a bit.

But then I've found people tellling about when they actually fainted from derealization, and I'm scared again.

What should I do?

I just don’t know how to process this and no one responds to these things anyways (I know I sound like I’m whining but I’m a little emotional so just bare with me I guess)

I’ve been assaulted many times before but when I moved away from my family and started dating someone for the first time and fell completely in love, I thought I put it all behind me. So when my partner assaulted me it just kind of broke my brain. Not even what he did, but the fact that it happened AGAIN after I had already mentally closed that chapter and also completely placed my trust in him. It’s the fact that I was completely blindsided that I find intolerable. That I wasn’t prepared, that I lost control. I cannot separate what he did from myself and I’ve been immersed in this intense dissociative fog for the last year and a half. I have severe symptoms, I feel like it’s daytime when it’s nighttime, nothing feels real, etc. I think I feel an incredible amount of shame and self blame and I need to let my body process that so I can relax. When I cry and get insanely emotional I feel better after for about 20 minutes, even *almost* normal (one time), then the fog sets in again. And I do exposure therapy and my symptoms have definitely improved, (I have agoraphobia. When I leave the immediate area the derealization gets wayyyyyyyy worse and it’s terrifying). I’m just crashing out a little bit this morning because I don’t think my current therapist knows how to help me (she’s not a trauma therapist) and I have an appointment with a new one (yay) but I’m just frustrated and feel like I’ve wasted so much time despairing about being incurable. I haven’t felt normal or present for so long. I’ve missed out on developing friendships and even a new relationship because I’m so emotionally withdrawn and when I try to connect with people my head gets foggy and I have to go home even though part of me is still screaming for connection.

I guess I want to know if other people feel this way because it’s truly such an isolating feeling. And also if anyone who has been groomed their whole life and had the agency beaten out of them knows how to practice creating room for their emotions without attacking yourself like it’s YOUR fault you can’t feel your emotions I guess that would be helpful too. Not fixed, just advice.

it had me sitting in my bed for a week straight, no productivity, no laughter, barely any phone, barely saw my family- derealization. From THC carts/yarts/whatever you want to call them. they do me bad, but when i smoke regular/ real weed i feel normal again and i begin to have the motivation that the carts somehow took away

People with tbi who have derealization. This is a brain network problem where signals don’t properly connect between regions. Neurofeedback ILF will help your situation