Feeling very not like myself, feeling... - Anxiety and Depre...

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Feeling very not like myself, feeling like I can't control my thoughts during panic attacks. I want to go back to normal, what should I do?

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I (20F) have always had anxiety, it is primarily situational and has never lasted more than a day, it was way worse when I was a kid but I've learned how to deal with it and control it more as an adult. fast-forward to now I've moved to college and have been doing pretty well so far (school and being away from home for long amounts of time was a huge trigger throughout my childhood) but for the most part, I've been fine while living at school. In February, I took an edible (I've never done a drug in my life and this edible had no actual weed, just lots of Delta-9 THC and live resin(?)) and had the worst panic attack of my life. It was so bad that the next morning I immediately called my mom to come get me and I went home and had derealization for almost a week, I felt like the world wasn't real, would have panic attacks at night, and felt like I was going crazy. That all happened a month ago and the derealization completely went away and life went back to normal.

This was all until about a week ago when I started constantly thinking about that experience, the panic attack, how it all happened in my dorm room, and how horrifying it all was. I kept trying not to think about it but would just keep going back to it. At this point, I decided to watch some videos to try and take my mind off of it. I decided to watch a 'scary stories around the internet' video because I've always found them interesting, however, this one contained a horrifying story about schizophrenia which scared the lights out of me (I've never had schizophrenia and I know I don't know, the concept of it just horrifies me and I try to avoid thinking or hearing about it as much as possible.) This and all of the previous worrying thoughts about the bad edible experience caused me to have another panic attack. This one was not nearly as bad as the bad edible experience panic attack I've mentioned but it was still really scary so I called my mom to come get me so I could just be at home and not in the dorm room. That was on Monday, since then I've felt disconnected from my thoughts, not like myself at all, thinking I'm going crazy, can't keep track of time and it feels like it is dragging or going by too fast (ex: I look at the clock and it's 8:30 and I'll feel like I've done a lot just to look back and it's 8:33), it's hard for me to concentrate, I hyperaware of myself and every little thing, and I don't want to be alone. At first, I thought this was depersonalization (and it still could be) but I don't constantly feel like I'm not in my body or like things around me aren't real, which is the main symptom. I think what's scaring me the most is that I don't feel like that constantly and that I have bouts of rational thought and feeling like my being "normal" is coming back and that this will all pass but then I will have one scary thought, spiral, start panicking and crying because what if I don't know what this is and it's permanent? Then I start the researching and being comforted by one thought then start to think more rationally and calmly then have a scary thought and I start the process all over again. another thing I've read is that once you have derealization/depersonalization you forget about it and never experience it again, So why would I experience it after the derealization from the edible?

Rationally, I know that this is all anxiety and will ultimately go away at some point, but I just feel like since it's been more than a week I should be feeling even somewhat better by now! It is currently a midterm week and I have had to miss school because I get so panicked. I have been sleeping in my mom's bed and have been scared to be away from her as she is the one person who totally understands me and knows how to deal with my anxiety but doesn't really know how to deal with this prolonged period of depersonalization or whatever this is. If you have had a similar experience or know how to get out of this constant spiral besides just "not thinking or focusing on negative thoughts" or just trying to truck through it, please please help.

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CLB1125 profile image
CLB1125

if this continues I strongly recommend seeing a doctor or therapist. After researching Delta 9 these are the side effects you are experiencing, which should be short term.

in reply to CLB1125

Yes, and I feel like the effects were short term and did go away. It has been a month since I last had one and I haven't taken any since. What I'm describing all started up about a week ago, there is no way that edible would still effect me? I'm just really ready to go back to normal😭

CLB1125 profile image
CLB1125 in reply to

There’s really no way of knowing how long these affect someone without talking to a professional. If they continue to bother you, I would see someone just to be sure. It will also give you peace of mind. ❤️

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