[lolwhat]

I feel almost normal during the day, especially when it's sunny... I have many hours where I don't notice my dpdr...

But the thing is... literally as the sun sets or the moment it starts getting dark... it's like someone flipped a switch & the DR kicks in like crazy even though I felt almost normal the whole day.

Also it makes a big difference if the sun is out or if it's a bit darker outside than usual due to weather?

Does anybody understand the mechanism behind that?

As far as I know DP is associated with high levels of serotonin... maybe this has something to do with it as it's very much connected to the circadian cycles.

What are your thoughts on this?

 

[London]

Im not sure but its exactly the same for me. Blue light blocking gaming glasses really help me

 

[allison84]

Fluorescent lighting is the worst for me the dr kicks in bad
But I find night time i feel better im not sure if it's because its dark or weather its because my anxiety seems less at night time .

 

[eddy1886]

Maybe you also have S A D...It can be co morbid with DP (It certainly is in my case) Winter months in the British Isles are crap for me...Thats when I experience my worse moods, anxiety and hence DP...

On bright summer days my DP practically vanishes...

https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/seasonal-affective-disorder/symptoms-causes/syc-20364651

 

[willbarwa]

I feel almost normal during the day, especially when it's sunny... I have many hours where I don't notice my dpdr...

But the thing is... literally as the sun sets or the moment it starts getting dark... it's like someone flipped a switch & the DR kicks in like crazy even though I felt almost normal the whole day.

Also it makes a big difference if the sun is out or if it's a bit darker outside than usual due to weather?

Does anybody understand the mechanism behind that?

As far as I know DP is associated with high levels of serotonin... maybe this has something to do with it as it's very much connected to the circadian cycles.

What are your thoughts on this?

It's not for certain whether DP is caused by too much serotonin -- or perhaps, too little dopamine. But the fact that your DP changes at night could be a sign of something else which may help you find the source of your DP.

You could be right about the circadian cycles and if that is the case, you should consider a sleep study in order to see what changes occur within your brain while you sleep.

There is definitely a strong link between disrupted sleep cycles and short-term DP. However, for long term DP the case may be a prolonged sleeping disorder which has been going on for years!

Whatever the case may be, go see your doctor. Another user pointed out S.A.D but you didn't mention you have any mood disorders so I"m not sure whether that is the case.

 

[something6789]

Because your vision is probably royally fucked up like mine was and you have photo-phobia.

I was extremely sensitive to light and still am sometimes. I was also stereo-blind. I (kind of) mistook THIS as DP - That's why I ALWAYS would only get 90% better until I figured out wtf was wrong with my vison.

 

[lolwhat]

Thanks for the input guys.

Been thinking a lot about circadian inputs as strong aggravating factors for my personal DPDR.

I did a few experiments and came to the following conclusions so far.

There's a natural cortisol rythm every day... Basically it starts spiking at 6 am or so and peaks at 9 am... and slowly drops... basically cortisol is lowest from 11 am till 1:30 pm... then goes up from there again... then thre's a major crash from 4 to 6 pm again... then at 6:30 till 8 there's another big wind of cortisol.. and after that it REALLY drops... that's all so the same time where it gets dark... and my DP gets consistently worse at exactly that time... and then at around 10:30 pm or so there is another wind where it's getting a lot better. This might not apply to all of you but for me the severity of my dp depends a lot on those rythms.

Another thing I noticed is this:

Carbs turn into serotonin... I noticed if I have lots of carbs I get very drowsy and basically carbs shut down cortisol & raise serotonin, so if I suspect high serotonin levels it makes a lot of sense that DP gets worse after that...

Here's what I tested yesterday...

Normally I have my last big meal with moderate amounts of carbs at around 7 or 7:30 pm... meaning cortisol drops after eating & serotonin rises... and I feel dramatically worse at 8 pm compared to the whole day...

So yesterday I tried an experiment... and delayed my meal and instead had it at 9:30 pm.... and guess what... my DP was 50% less and much more bearable...

Now since it's just started getting warmer here & the days get longer I thought maybe that's the reason I felt better and not that I had my last meal later in the day...

Well so I did a test today... and ate a higher carb meal today again at around 7:30 pm combined with 1/3 of dark chocolate which is known to raise serotonin too & sure enough half an hour later my dp got very severe again and lasted for hours and is still strong right now...

Other things I've noticed:

I have chronically low dopamine levels too and depression associated with that... When I take L-Dopa though my depression just goes away and I become very social & confident & the DP doesn't affect me nearly as much as low dopamine causes lots of cognitive issues.

On the other hand I always remember that I got suicidal from taking 5-htp & things that are supposed to raise serotonin...

My DP has been chronic for almost 7 months now... it really started when I took an antidepressant for sleep issues, withdrew from it and then got on an antipsychotic & stopped cold turkey after severe reactions..

Since then my sleep cycle broke.... I do have around 6,5 hours of sleep a night but it feels like I am in stage 1 sleep all the time and not getting any deep sleep phases... basically I feel like I have totally messed up sleep architecture...

But I don't know if it's DP related or if it's sleep related or vice versa... But going on an antidepressant & quitting when you've been high serotonin & getting an antipsychotic if you're low dopamine is pretty much guaranteed to bring about these kinds of issues...

Anyway... I am trying to really figure this thing out... I think DP has lots of different causes & everybody has to adress his particular issues.

Another thing:

Alcohol makes me feel worse when I have it... but the next day afterglow basically makes me feel completely normal for the whole day... then I crash again, this is called glutamate rebound from what I've read. I've read that NMDA receptors seem to be a problem too with DPDR.

Other things I've tried:

Thyroid hormone supplementation: Gave me extreme panic attacks & restlessness but improved my brain function a lot.

High Dose Fish Oil: Gave me strong panic attacks too...

Btw... i always have social anxiety & background nervousness which seems to correlated with high serotonin levels too...

There are posts here that masturbation & porn causes DPDR... which makes sense as it depleted dopamine... I stopped watching porn and masturbating 3 weeks ago... I did it before... I can definately tell you, it helped.

I normally don't make the effort to write and communicate in forums but I thought fuck it... maybe it helps somebody & maybe others have made similar connections & have some ideas to share.

 

[eddy1886]

I am of the opinion that Low Dopamine is a much bigger factor in DP than Serotonin levels...

https://mentalhealthdaily.com/2015/04/02/low-dopamine-levels-symptoms-adverse-reactions/

 

[lolwhat]

I read that page about 10 times too.

Dopamine is a HUGE HUGE factor that's on my mind 24/7.

But it's not really what's the bigger factor but the interplay between neurotransmitters/neuropeptides/hormones etc.

High serotonin will cause low dopamine & vice versa.

 

[eddy1886]

I read that page about 10 times too.

Dopamine is a HUGE HUGE factor that's on my mind 24/7.

But it's not really what's the bigger factor but the interplay between neurotransmitters/neuropeptides/hormones etc.

High serotonin will cause low dopamine & vice versa.

"High serotonin will cause low dopamine & vice versa" !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

CHEMICAL IMBALANCE !!!!!!!!

 

[KY23]

Everyone check out my posts. Light senteticivity and depersonalization are symptoms of bartonella and Lyme. In fact, right now, the only clinical cause of depersonalization are from these things. My posts will explain more and give hope.

 

[something6789]

Read my post above. It’s legitimately what caused my “light sensitivity” symptoms. Dissociation has zero to do with any sort of actual eye sight and sensitivity to brightness. If you have that check your vision. Comprehensive exam.

 

[something6789]

Let me say this again:

In response to "Why does light make such a big difference?"

It shouldn't even be a factor because it has zero to do with dissociation. Being disconnected doesn't some how make light harder on your eyes. There is zero connection between the two. Absolutely none.?BUT severe light sensitivity can DEFINITELY make you feel spacey and foggy.

Read that again and ponder it^^^^^

When it comes to dissociative disorders, light is a non-factor. It's not a DP symptom so get your eyes checked. Very prefereably by a COVD Dr. or at the very least, by someone who will run tests to check you depth perception and will check the balance/convergence of your vision .

I'm certain that People with anisometropia hyperopia, like me, where one eye only is far sighted, and never wore any corrective lenses while also spending loads of time in front of a monitor wind up ruining their binocular vision and throwing their entire visual system out whack. I lived it. Here's what happens over time:

You can lose the ability to see depth or 3D (things look flat and less vibrant)
Turning on light (especially) fluorescent bulbs makes your eyes sting and makes you feel irritated and unfocused
You can see fuzziness/scintillation in your vision. Sometimes you'll even see your pulse.
In extreme cases you lose motion parallax and your vision will also shake when you run because you're VOR is out of whack.
When you run you notice everything shake like mad in your visual field.
You'm See tons of after images because your eyes aren't working together correctly anymore. If you've down halllucinogens before, this can scare you into thinking you're stuxk in some kind of flash back. You ain't. Don't believe it.

^ these are NOT dissociative symptoms. Zero to do with DP. BUT can cause similar sensations.

 

[eddy1886]

Sensitivity to light is absolutely part of DP...All senses are heightened during the fight or flight mode and as a result our vision, hearing, taste, touch and smell are all extra sensitive....It is classic alert to danger and protect mode....

This is exactly what happens to somebody when they go into a state of shock as a result of a car accident or someones death etc...All your senses become extra sensitive and heightened to protect you from danger....

Now im sure there are lots of other reasons for sensitivity to light but saying it has nothing to do with DP at all is simply not true...

 

[something6789]

Lol.....

I had a feeling I'd get a response like that.

Keep telling yourself that. Keep over complicating this and making it harder on yourself. Dissociation is detachment. Period. The simplest explanation is probably the best one. A simple explanation to eye strain is messed up vision. I'm not saying your life situation isn't a factor. I'm saying plenty of people have panic disorder and CPTSD and dissociative issues in total absence of light sensitivity.

That's a fact. But you go right ahead and keep down that rabbit hole. You do you man.