HELP

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I've been suffering from dissociation or something for years. I've posted alot of incomprehensible jargon on this forum before, but I feel like I've finally untangled all of my thoughts. Almost anyway. It still feels like in order for things to be the way they're supposed to be, my brain really really has no choice but to "ground" things incorrectly, and it's hard because my brain really really wants to keep grounding things incorrectly like that, it's hard to explain. And the incorrect ground I want is stuff that is very fragile and makes things get tangled up again and stuff

That seems like it would be scary. How can we help you? We would be happy to help if we can.

dissociation sucks. really bad. I have it since many years and I must say it hasn't got any better but with time I've got used to it. They call it derealization - depersonalization syndrome in my case. I can't think of any mental issue that can cause THIS MUCH suffering without actually making you act any weird or overtly crazy, or rather as crazy or insane as it actually feels like. I mean I behave rather like a person who doesn't have it, but I still feel it. and it's pure hell.

Can you explain more how it works for you guys? I want to understand it. I have been told that I do that by my psychologist but I am not diagnosed with disassotiative disorder. I have very distinct personas that I go in and out of. Almost like multipersonalit but not different people, but different ages of myself which can range from toddler to mature adult at any given moment.

Some people have called what I go through disassociation but I do not know if it is similar to what you guys have.

I have disassociation from time to time. I think my anxiety makes me more prone to it than most people. It's the most horrible feeling in the world! You can have disassociation without having a disassociative disorder. Even "normal" people can experience feelings of disassociation when they don't get enough/get too much sleep, for example. In the cases where it is caused by an underlying condition (such as anxiety or depression) it can be very painful for the sufferer.

The main disassociative disorders that are normally highlighted are derealization and depersonalization. Derealization is basically when something in your surroundings seems "off." You may view the world as if you are looking through fog or haze, and your surroundings seem alien-like or unreal. Depersonalization is almost as if you are looking down at yourself instead of viewing the world through your eyes. You become detached from yourself, and normal body functions seem like they are not doing their job anymore. You may also experience existential thoughts. This can be very scary for anyone experiencing it, especially those who fear "going crazy" or something related. The only way to entirely get rid of these feelings in my experience is to forget about them. This is near impossible, but you need to distract yourself by getting back into the "real world." These feelings never happened to me during the school year when I was busy, only during the summer when I sit at home all day "stuck in my own head." Worrying about disassociation will only make it worse. Just know that a lot (5% prevalence in the GP) have gone through the same thing and many have overcame it. The most common causes of disassociation are anxiety, depression, trauma or prolonged stress, epilepsy, psychosis, migraines, and sleep deprivation.

Multiple Personality Disorder is referred to as Dissociative Identity Disorder, by the way^^^^^^

Thank you so much for explaining and for sharing the correct term of disassociative identity disorder. I actually disassociate as well but very much lighter compared to what you are describing. I thought it was normal because I have always done it.

is there an activity (like walking), using an object, using a weighted blanket, holding an animal/pet that can help make you feel more grounded?

Also, exercise can really bring you back "down to earth." Try turning on really cold water, and running yours hands under it. That snaps a lot of people out of things. Your brain is essentially doing this as a coping mechanism because it has perceived something as a danger to itself (I know that sounds really weird ). Just know that this can't hurt you, and even when you feel things like this it is okay. Goodness, all this writing about DP/DR has triggered it some for me now! Like I said, try and let it go. Just forget about it.

I read the article. It was quite informative. I also took the anxiety test linked in the article and got a 74. I am not surprised by that score.