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Unreality and extreme anxiety


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I have had many bad evenings this week. Anxiety starts increasing around 6pm and i get these horrible feelings of unreality/disorientation. I feel like i'm not at home, even tho i know very well that i am. Just a feeling that i'm somewhere else and this freaks me out. Try to watch tv or do something to distract but the feeling is often so intense that nothing helps. Anyone else experiencing this?
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Derealization used to scare the crap out of me, and that actually would be the trigger of my panic attacks when I would go anywhere. I learned that it's the body's way of dealing with the anxiety and it's perfectly natural...but it can be a side effect of certain medications..so on and so forth.
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what's your support/family situation like.  I feel if you are alone the more likely you experience this.  but you can always pick up the phone and call a loved one if you have someone.  being around loved ones made a world of difference for me.
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what's your support/family situation like.  I feel if you are alone the more likely you experience this.  but you can always pick up the phone and call a loved one if you have someone.   being around loved ones made a world of difference for me.

 

Sometimes it helps to have people around, but if my depersonalization/derealization is very bad, i actually find being alone the easiest. Its a long story, but i think lots of my anxiety and other symptoms come from my childhood (parents having issues and i felt i didnt have any peace at home those days, and now having my own flat i cherish the opportunity to be at peace and most importantly be in control about the way i live and be).

 

We all have a different kind of story that has led us here, and one can never totally relate to what another person is going trough. And in my case there's also the language barrier  :D, its quite difficult to explain some of this stuff in my native language and in english i sometimes struggle big time! Anyway, its great to have you guys out there to comment and give feedback, so a really big thank you for that  :smitten:

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  • 3 weeks later...
I ofter feel like the lkights are on and no one is home! Sometimes I feel like no lights are on and no one is home! lol! It is an aweful feeling!
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It's good to read on this subject, and understand it more so it doesn't scare you. It can be the result of an over stimulated mind, kind of a defense mechanism where your brain just pulls its head in like a turtle, as I've heard it put before.  It's nothing to be afraid of and it's a very natural response to the stress of the mind. Being as you are withdrawing from a benzo and that is stressing your mind especially if you have rebound anxiety from the withdraw and tapering.

 

Just thought I'd share...it can be scary and hard to deal with but after you understand it and lose your fear it WILL go away.

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Cupcake and wantalife,

Thank you so much for posting about this. My panic attacks started in my early 20's and they always began because of dr/dp. I just recently, through withdrawal and this board have come to realize its about over stimulation and defense. This is huge wantalife - when you know what it is the power gets taken away. Please give it a go, and think about it from that point of view, I think you will find it helps tremendously. It has made all the difference to me and I hope to carry the skill with me after I'm all done tapering and healing because I know it will crop up again at some point. No one has ever, in all these years explained it me like this. If they only had - I probably wouldn't have gone on a benzo! Best to you.

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I generally get a rush of dr then panic sets in, however it's always when I'm somewhere else, other than home..though I've had a bit of it after my taper was finished, lasted about 3 days and boy I hated it but when it was gone, everything looked so clear.

 

Its been said that dr/dp doesn't cause panic, it's a byproduct of the anxiety/panic...and when I analyze my situation I do notice that I'm rather anxious as I step into the store, or even before I get out of my car...then I go in the store and BOOM I feel weird, unreality until I start to leave...funny, it's over with before I leave LOL.

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Mine never happens at home either and I imagine that if it did that would be hard. And now that you mention it, I guess there is some dr before the panic - I'm not even sure because I've been repressing dr/dp for so long. I thought I was nuts for quite a few years and never analyzed it. But now that I started looking deeper, I'm looking forward to putting a lot of it behind me.

 

There were times I would walk into the food store and this feeling of being naked would hit me. I would actually look at myself to check! But then I couldn't trust my eyes because of the "invisible" feeling and just keep walking hoping for the best - I figured if anyone stared I'd know why  :laugh:. I'm strange, I know. :)

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Wow a feeling of nakedness would actually be beneficial to me, not in a perverted sense LOL or maybe.....

but it would distract me and make me laugh and I'd feel better.  The sense of unreality is a sort of defense mechanism of the brain, some of us get it more than others. It's not a disorder...more of a body function that's quite normal of the healthy brain...something to keep in mind so that we don't fear it and panic...I'm still working on this one. If some could grasp this wholeheartedly, they could banish their panic attacks if they are caused from dr. 

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Mine never happens at home either and I imagine that if it did that would be hard. And now that you mention it, I guess there is some dr before the panic - I'm not even sure because I've been repressing dr/dp for so long. I thought I was nuts for quite a few years and never analyzed it. But now that I started looking deeper, I'm looking forward to putting a lot of it behind me.

 

There were times I would walk into the food store and this feeling of being naked would hit me. I would actually look at myself to check! But then I couldn't trust my eyes because of the "invisible" feeling and just keep walking hoping for the best - I figured if anyone stared I'd know why  :laugh:. I'm strange, I know. :)

 

No, you're NOT strange at all!  ;)  You'd be strange if you truly WANTED to be naked in the food store, but you checked to make sure you were NOT naked...so that's actually proof of just how "normal" you are!  :laugh:

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  • 1 month later...

This looks like an older posting but I just discovered it. hoping to get some feedback on this. I have suffered from severe attacks of DP/DR for many years. Ironically, this has NOT been a major problem for me during w/d from benzos. the problem started for me way back in July 2007. I had been a regular pot smoker for about 1 1/2 years. I wrote about this somewhat in my blog, but basically, I had an extremely 'bad trip' while stoned. I don't think that my mind has ever completely gotten over it. I say this because for many years, I thought I had the problem licked and that it was just a thing of the past. Unfortunately, 4 years ago, I found out real fast that when too many life-stressors were going on, I became just as vulnerable to these attacks once more. It was like having to re-live the worst moments of my life!! This was THE issue that caused my family doctor to hook me up with ativan and my long road to using meds...

I know the thoughts that trigger the attacks. I've just never quite been able to deal with these. I simply try to avoid thinking about the thoughts that cause them. But this never seems to solve the problem entirely, it just pushes it away until the next time.

I feel sad sometimes, because there is a certain subject matter that I litterally have to avoid to keep the attacks from coming on... The other day, I saw that my son had checked out a book from the library that was about this subject. When I saw the book, I cringed!! :-X

I love to read stories to him, but these are books that I fear I'll never be able to read to him at bedtime and this makes me feel sad. :'(

Any thoughts, advise or comments would sure be appreciated...

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Hey Pang!

 

I had a similar experience when I was 18 on prom night. Gosh, pot just ruined that night for me, and everyone else that was with me. I had such severe dp and hallucinations I begged them to take me to the ER and my ride just pulled over at some back road until I shook it off. I had a relapse in church a few nights later but I had DR on and off between that time I just didn't know what it was....I just knew something wasn't right. Thankfully it never came back like that.

 

My panic attacks would start out with a rush of DR that sent me reeling, most generally when I was out in public. I guess that's just how my mind responded to anxiety, by trying to shield me from it by giving me DR. As much as I appreciate my mind trying to help, I'd really rather deal with it some other way.

 

All the sources I have read about this subject have all stated that in order to beat the DR you must eliminate the anxiety...well to me it seems the dr is bringing on the anxiety. However, I know some people that have been in the er repeated times for chest pains and breathing problems only to be told it was anxiety. So I suppose we can have anxiety without knowing it until our minds try to "save us" from it by unleashing derealization.

 

Now benzo induced DR is another story...we just have to let it ride out...but I have noticed a marked improvement since increasing my protein (gaba building blocks) and eliminating ALL man made food additives. I do not eat it if it doesn't look freshly picked or butchered. And even then I read labels carefully.  Increasing chamomile tea has really helped as well, possibly easing my racing mind and the "unfelt anxiety" thereby reducing my dr as much as possible until complete healing is achieved.

 

Looking at derealization with a quizzical viewpoint helps as well. When you find yourself in a derealized state, pause and look around at how everything looks, try to enjoy it, knowing it will pass. And you may find yourself anticipating it, and in anticipation it may never show its face again. You can't help what your brain puts you through, but you can control your reaction to it.

 

Your friend,

~cupcake~

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Thanks for the help cupcake! I appreciate the fact that you're a regular poster to the forum! :smitten:

Thank you also for sharing your experiences with me. I used to consider my experiences to be unique. Knowing that others have gone through ordeals similar to mine helps me to keep my own thoughts about myself in perspective. one thing I have to do is to learn to forgive myself for things I did in the past and move forward...

Thanks to my wife, I do pay lots more attention to my diet then I would have before... I used to joke about the fact that I would sometimes end up going back to the store to return an item when I went shoping without the Mrs because I accidentally bought something that she didn't want (a cheaper version that had the additives). Thankfully, I'm better trained now to watch what I buy... gotta hand it to her!!

Anyway, I'll be working on the anxiety... Now that I'm through with benzos, I consider myself to be in a much better position to deal with my feelings.

Thanks again, and I wish you continued success!

friends always,

pangelingua

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Just found this thread, and have bookmarked to comeback and read properly - DR/DP - is that for de-realisation and depression??

 

 

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