Do you ever feel "not real" or robotic?

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i often experience derealization which kidn of contributes to feeilng like a robot. but ive never felt depersonalized

Bland-Sometimes. But when I was a child I was very robotic. I always did what I was told and never spoke unless spoken to. It just did not occur to me to speak out loud. Even when spoken to I usually did not want to respond. I also did not have many feelings. I mean that I did not care or was unattatched to people, even my own parents. It took a long time for me to develop relationships. I don't think this occured until sometime between 8 or 9. Now, I've learned how to connect and have seen the value in it and have become pretty much over myself so I'm not going to withdraw and end up at square one if someone takes advantage of me or hurts me. But feelings were very rare for me as a child. Or maybe it's more accurate to say that I had a limited range of feelings. I never understood the way other's felt either. Today, I still find it difficult to relate to the feelings of others at times. Why can't everyone just act rationally and logically? Actually, though, the only times I get that old feeling of cold robotics is when I'm completely fatigued and worn down. Then the old ways come back until I'm restored. Another thing about feeling like a robot; my AS son walks like one. When I was a child I felt very stiff and uncomfortable in my own body. My arms did not swing naturally, I had to train them by talking to myself, mentally, and commanding my arms to swing loosely and alternately with my steps. I observed other people and copied them. Now when I want to be judgemental about other's outbursts of emotion I coach myself and explain to myself why the person might be acting that way and I remind myself that I should have some compassion because the other person is just acting naturally and normally, even though I would not react that way.

I meant to post this link: http://www.depersonalization-home.com/forum/index.php

It is a support forum for people who feel depersonalized.

When i am working sometimes driving its like its automatic since i ussally work alone sometimes hours can go by my body just working while my mind is off thinking about my inerests I wont even remeber do all the work I did or how I got somewhere sometimes its distubing.

Yes sometimes, although it's really dissociation for me. I have lerned to cope with it fairly well over the years. Si fallor, sum, as Augustine once said (that is, "If I err, I exist" and I've erred enough times to confirm my existence). I find studying philosophy and thology helps me a lot with this, as well as creative pursuits, talking with others who has AS or are Aspie-ish, and my cats (they know I'm real and present - otherwise they wouldn't bother to keep me around. Unreal persons couldn't feed them.)

I prefer the term "dissociation" myself, because I don't really feel unreal or not like a person, but more like I'm a person detached, dissociated from the world and other persons around me. I consider this related to my AS, since my AS inclines me to be rather existential, perceiving and pondering things in ways that are not easily relatable to how society or others think, perceive or communciate. At times that can be alienating.

When I in my early 20's, I had a breakdown. I was very depressed, very mentally fatigued and having mild psychotic episodes. During this time, right before my breakdowna dn right afterwards, I do recall feeling robotic at times - I would contributed that to my quasi-psychotic state of mind at the time and related to that, not AS. I did find a lot of consolation in philosophy and theology after my breakdown. By reading these books written by brilliant minds was the only way I felt real and felt connected with the rest of the human race It was the the first real stepping stone in my recovery from my breakdown. But since that times, I don't think I've ever felt robotic, just dissociative.

Its not so much feeling 'not real' but I feel a lot more like this gangly akward disney puppet. What I hate is the fact that still, often enough, as much as I try to beat it out of myself with lots of yin energy, I still have that brain chemistry which real easily wants to take me off to disneyland and where I don't biologically feel like an adult. Its happening less and less often these days and I think my alternation between feeling like a little kid and feeling like this dark & epic-minded adult are getting more and more averaged out. As for looking puppet-like and choppy, I've lost that for the most part but its still there real subtley on the mornings where I wake up and can just tell that my brain chemistry is bunk.

Bland-I would not refer to what Ive experienced as disassociation. I used to live in robotic mode constantly. It was all I knew. My lack of empathy and emotional attatchment and the way I percieved life were much different than today. Puberty brought me out of myself but was very turbulent and self-destructive. I dont think that I was psychotic from birth and even though I did not score very high on the AQ on the Self-Diagnosed Aspergers Thread, I know that I was not normal and was just born that way. I can really relate to that statement, "I felt like an anthropologist on Mars". My mother used to make me do all the chores, even though I was the youngest, because she said that I always did them thoroughly and well. I remember enjoying the repetitive, mindless jobs. I was very meticulous and methodical and I found chores very relaxing. Of course, later on I was resentful! People did not know what to think of me when I was little but simply remarked on how quiet and good I was and thought that I was especially smart. I wish that someone would have had a clue that something wasnt right because I had a terrible, confusing and shellshocked childhood. Its tough being a robot!

i never feel real in this world. the only time i feel real is when i'm in my mind.
april

I remember feeling this as a child, young adult, and sometimes even today too.

About a week ago, after having a wird nitemare that I only existed as a spectator in reality, I had this sudden wird sensation that I wasnt reelly me, like I was... some sorta... energy being... who decided to live in this body as Alan Stevenson for awile and coud leeve an live someone elses life insted for awile anytime I wanted, and that was REELLY wird.

I've felt like the world is a dream sometimes, but I'm not sure that counts. *pokes self* real now though, apparently.

Someone asked me why I walked and moved like a robot once.... why I did it... I thought... JEEZ... I dunno!