I've had derealisation for 3 1/2 years now.

3 1/2 years of a constant dream! It's eased up a few times but never gone away. I think I'm going to be like this for the rest of my life, stuck in a dream state, only half living. I was a heavy weed smoker in high school. I smoked almost every day when I was 16 until I was 17, then I got the derealisation. I thought it would just go away after I quit smoking so I wasn't scared. Well eventually I did quit smoking and it never went away. Started smoking again a year and a half later in college for about 6 months. The derealisation got about 4x worse. It's stayed that way ever since. I don't know how I could be so stupid but I feel like I've definitely ruined my own life. Just a rant, sorry.

[cutelady29]

How do you deal with day-to-day life

[Hidden in reply to cutelady29]

Right now, I really don't. I don't work or go to school. My family doesn't get it, they think I'm just lazy. But I've tried to hold a job. it's kind of hard to work when you have the memory of a goldfish though.. lol

[cutelady29 in reply to Hidden]

I keep staring at everybody and keep saying they are my family but it doesn't feel like it

[RyRywifey]

I'm assuming you still have Derealization because you try to fight it because it is very scary. I got Derealization for smoking weed too almost 3 months ago. I was only smoking, everyday for about 4 months prior to that bad trip. I was trying to fight it too because I thought I was losing my mind and I was crying everyday asking my bf what was wrong with me and telling him I needed to be in an asylum because I felt like I was losing it. Until I watched videos on YouTube and found out what it was. Then I started to be able to manage it, it started getting less and less little by little because I knew it was only from anxiety. Then I started taking Magnesium. Best decision I made!!! I started seeing a therapist too which I still do but I was determined not to get on meds. Seeing her helps me as well, that and my Magnesium have me at 85% back to my normal self. It's a gradual recovery. But I haven't even been taking the Magnesium 2 weeks yet and I'm already at 85% my normal self again

[Hidden in reply to RyRywifey]

I know rationally that you're right, but part of my anxious brain is telling me that I'm going to be stuck like this forever, my case is different from everyone else's, i'm only going to get worse, etc. It sucks. /: derealisation is so SCARY. I feel disconnected from everyone around me and I used to be really social.

[Tatjana84 in reply to Hidden]

Ok. Now stop and 'listen ' to me! It will go away, you have to start reprogramming your brain. Today say to yourself, ' I accept it' , breathe and do one activity that you haven't done in a while. Slowly with no pressure.

This what anxiety does to you. Makes you think you will never get away from it. It's a circle. You go around and around in it. The only way to escape is to brake the circle. I have anxiety, some days I can't get out of the bed , some days I'm better, some days I'm great!! Brake the circle! Do something about it today- now! Seek for help, go to your gp, open the windows, life is beautiful, we just have to start learning to love it!!

[SquirrelsHolt in reply to Tatjana84]

I love what you've said. You are right- it is all about rethinking. I'm battling anxiety/panic attacks myself,so I'm scanning the site to see what works for some people.

[SquirrelsHolt in reply to RyRywifey]

May I ask, when you say you take magnesium, is it in pill form and what dose? Thanks for your help and I wish you well.

[RyRywifey in reply to SquirrelsHolt]

Thank you and yes, it's a vitamin. Magnesium Citrate. 250mg. I take 1 in the morning and 1 at night

[SquirrelsHolt in reply to RyRywifey]

Interesting. Did a Doctor put you on to this? What benefits have you noticed since taking it.

[RyRywifey in reply to SquirrelsHolt]

No, my therapist tried to prescribe me meds but I did not to develope a dependancy, so I searched and searched for the natural way out. A natural recovery. And I found Magnesium is a natural cure. I was hesitant at first because I tried quite a few vitamins already that I thought may help with no results (no search on those) but I felt results almost immediately with my Magnesium. Anxiety symptoms have really diminished, my constant fearful thoughts, impending doom feeling, etc.. They all started to disappear and when those thoughts started going away, so did the DP/DR. It's been about a week and a half, and I would say I'm about 90% recovered. They say give it 2 weeks so almost there!!!

[SquirrelsHolt in reply to RyRywifey]

Excellent results for you. Well done. I'm going to see of I can be brave enough to go and find a chemist tomorrow and buy some. Can't be any worse off? Thanks so much for your into and best regards.

[RyRywifey in reply to SquirrelsHolt]

You're more than welcome!! Any health food store should have them! Best regards to you as well!!

[SquirrelsHolt in reply to RyRywifey]

Did it mead you were able to sleep better?

[RyRywifey in reply to SquirrelsHolt]

Yes!!! The one I take before bed, I fall asleep so much easier like I used to and sleep thru the nighy

[HeatherJones]

Drugs and alcohol are the main cause of derealisation and anxiety issues. You need to quit smoking and small changes in your lifestyle like eat healthy, exercise, visit a good psychotherapist and take proper treatment.

[Tatjana84]

I've had it few years ago, but I wasn't ever smoking anything! Mine happened due to alot of stress I went through! It was horrible. I had to put my hands under hot water to prove to my self that I'm still alive. I would be looking at my kids, and felling like they not mine, just horrible. What helped me was accepting it. Just saying to myself ' ok , it's happening, you ok , you alive, don't stress about it, just accept it' . And I would relax. Didn't try to fix it anymore, didn't get mad about it, just kind of froze in time... And it went away in a week, and has never returned. You need to learn to deal with it ASAP, eather on your own , or seek professional help. Go to your GP! Tell him what is happening

Hope everything clears soon!

xox

p.s. Hope you never smoke weed again! 😉

[RyRywifey in reply to Tatjana84]

I really like your response. You give so much hope, you just don't know

[RyRywifey in reply to Tatjana84]

Hey tatjana84, I know this post is 8months old, but I was suffering so badly with Derealization at the time (100% recovered as of 4 months ago) and I just want to thank you again for this response because it did so much for me. Even coming up on this again looking thru my notifications, it was refreshing. Thank you because I believe every post I read like yours, including yours, lead to my recovery. One of the best feelings in the world is recovering from that if it has ever happened to you. Hope all is well. Be great! 😊

[Hidden]

I got the same thing from the same reason.. I started smoking at 15 quit at 18 because i had a very bad scary experience with A panic attack. I thought quitting would make itngo away too But iam Stuck like this. Its weird but when i look at thinks i feel like its not real or a dream and when i touch things i cant really feel them its fake showering makes it worse i dont feel the water hitting me its like Bitch get a Grip its the hardest thing in my life.

[Sweetlolly11]

I see this was a long time ago but I only found it just now, how are you nowadays (if you still come here)?

I have been depersonalized and derealized (mostly derealized though) since February, 2012. Four years now, constant. I was actually in therapy in between, and I didn't know what it was, I tried explaining it to my therapist using my symptoms but she never understood what I meant. It was not after I ended therapy that I did find by myself what it was.

For me it started out of nowhere, I felt it the night before I went to sleep, but that's usual for me when I'm really tired, I basically start to even hallucinate and what not, and the next morning I woke up feeling exactly the same and I never stopped feeling this way. Smoking weed usually did not make it worse, though. I would feel EXTRA derealized while high, but it was actually a quite pleasant experience, to be detached from everything and just... chill. I don't remember it making it worse afterwards - but maybe it did, I just didn't realize.

Anyway, I stopped smoking weed, and if anything, my derealization just got worse. It's becoming so bad I have to remember I am actually still alive and this is not a dream - I mix dreams up with reality quite often. Don't know what to do exactly :/ You don't even know how many times I fixed this text before sending it because I wrote nonsense (can't concentrate at all). It's just horrible - the WORST symptom of anxiety BY FAR if you ask me!

[Hidden in reply to Sweetlolly11]

Mine is slowly going away. I've found the best thing you can do is just accept the feeling, don't ignore it but don't dwell on it. Just think to yourself "I'm going to feel weird today but that's okay and I'm still safe", and don't let your mind linger on any of the crazy thoughts.

[Sweetlolly11 in reply to Hidden]

But I hardly even notice it anymore... that's the problem. I've completely grown accustomed to it, I don't even notice it happening. Sometimes it gets worse and that's the only time I notice.