Do you have any tips etc that helped u recover?
Adding to my last post, and without reiterating the importance of distraction and engagement, I will just mention a few other things that helped.
Attacking your situation with aggression is powerful. You're not a helpless victim. Believe in your own strength and feel it. Aim it against the experience.
It's not possible to experience anger and fear (fight and flight) at the same time. It is, however, hard to direct your anger against an impersonal situation or reality (especially a reality you seemingly can't change or a perception you struggle to reframe).
When I first had DP/DR, I reached a point once where I felt total all-consuming rage against my situation, against everyone around me who wouldn't (couldn't) understand, and most of all against myself for being so weak, submitting to and cowering before what was essentially just a bunch of feelings, thoughts and perceptions. That defiant, dominating spirit parted the sea of anxiety and reduced DP/DR. At least for a short while. It may have been a turning point in my relationship with DP/DR.
Ordinary frustrations and pain can help draw you back into an associated state and reconnect you with yourself and the world, so don't completely avoid stress.
I developed a strong intuition for that permeable boundary between the derealized and realized/associated states. When dwelling in a pre-derealized state there was a force of repulsion that allowed me to pull back and take some abortive action. Depending on the urgency, that action might have been repeating a phrase or a word in my head or aloud, reciting or calculating a number sequence in my head [2, 4, 8, 16, 32, ...], initiating a conversation with someone, listening to an audiobook, watching the news or a sitcom.
Calm, slow, deep breathing was also immensely helpful.
In the case of DP, I felt identified with myself when I forgot about myself and lived with some immediacy. I would try to be totally identified with and lost in what I was doing (flow state).
I knew who I was when I was with others and we were getting to know each other.
The first time I had DP/DR, I quickly gave up seeking help from anyone. Back then, these forums and support groups did not exist. When I later suffered DP/DR, I discovered this forum, but at a glance I found the discussions too triggering and some of the participants pessimistic. I already knew full recovery was possible, and my attitude was optimistic and hopeful.
As a result, I decided to stay far away from any discussion of DP/DR, or anything too close to it or personally triggering. Nevertheless, to better understand my anxiety and panic attacks, I did educate myself about it. I read parts of Hope and Help for Your Nerves (by Claire Weekes), which I strongly recommend. I didn't read all of it, since I wasn't interested in learning dozens of new ways to be anxious! However, a little understanding can go a long way to dispelling anxiety.
So, if I were you, I would learn what I can here as quickly as possible, then avoid visiting again. When you are fully recovered (not immediately, but maybe a few months later), then perhaps stop by here just to tell others about your recovery. Only discuss it at length, like me, if you are feeling really confident and strong!
While you're suffering from DP, work to make your life secure and improve your situation. Even though you'll feel stronger when you get through it, if you languished during that time, you might come out feeling vulnerable about your life situation. That anxiety you have bubbling beneath the surface can then burst out and trigger relapses.
Don't allow the anxiety to paralyze you. In spite of your suffering, act.
Thank you for sharing! I also found something that amazingly helped me! So i was looking on the internet i was feeling kinda hopeless and i found a post of someone that also helped me very good!
http://www.calmandcourageous.com/grounding-technique-reducing-depersonalisation-derealisation/ So i've read this. and i was like oh well, why not? Because meditation normally doesn't work for me...
So i was trying to pay attention to my body. I was moving my hand and told myself this is my hand that is moving and i was looking at my legs and told that they're my legs. Did some breathing and went outsite for some air. And after 3 years i finally feel better in a matter of minutes!? i was like so more grounded. I was shocked. Just in a couple of minutes. I wasn't feel that high anymore like i was no one. I felt i was someone again. (not completely myself but...) I knew i was taking part of this world again! It's amazing. Something this simple actually really helped me feel more like myself in minutes! And thanks once again for sharing. I had a very low vitamin D at first. And when i was taking supplements i felt much less anxious. I do also take b12 pills. Best Regards, Jesse
I'm happy you found a way to trigger the undepersonalized state! It is hard to do this, but actually not any harder than triggering DP/DR from the normal, stable, anxiety-free state. Believe it or not, I spent months trying to re-experience derealization and depersonalization (and realize other crazy states of mind) but usually failed.
It's just a matter of experimenting a lot and finding what works for you, in addition to employing some general strategies.
