Feeling unreal? Here a light for your fog!

Okay I have had this feeling now for a few months, right now it's almost 90-95% gone and it comes in waves off and on throughout the day. I found some things on this that I would like to share with you guys that might put your mind at ease about this very disturbing withdrawal symptom.

Hope this makes sense....this is a synopsis of natural depersonalization and what causes it...the fogginess and sensations of unreality.

The link to the site I got MOST of this information from has some ads, so I won't post it here. It directs you to the Joe Barry panic website, so you can find most of the information below at his site. Alot of this information is a result of my own researches over the month, I may have already shared with some of you already...I can't remember 

The sensation is caused by delayed perception. While under constant stress or anxiety there is a build up of stress chemicals in your system that causes a delayed response in the transmission of information between neurotransmitter sites in your body. This slight delay between experience and thought can create a momentary sensation of unreality. The same effects are experienced under the influence of marijuana but people do not react with fear in this situation because they are aware it is the drug causing the sensation

The quickest way out of this disconnected feeling is to really accept it for the time being and have faith that it will pass shortly. Shrug your shoulders and relax into it. You can take this relaxed attitude to it because you know that you will return to normal when you move out of this period of anxiety. It is a phase you are moving through so be patient with yourself while you are in it.

What really moves people out of this sensation quickest is adopting an attitude that all is well. And it is. These unusual sensations of depersonalization are just a nuisance‚ but it will pass. Not feeling connected to yourself in this manner is solely due to the anxiety in your system and it is then reinforced by your constant checking to see how you are feeling. It is like you are over analyzing yourself all the time and that can make you feel even more strange. I appreciate how uncomfortable it can feel but don’t worry about it‚ it will leave.

There were comments at the end of this commentary I would like to share with you.

"I had this terrible incident and there were a number of factors that contributed to it. breaking up with my girlfriend, heavy weed use, and the terrible “looking up on the internet to see if I am crazy/have some sickness.”

Comment by a reader "The worst thing you can do is sit around and be by yourself. make sure your mind is ACTIVE and you are constantly learning. exercise really help. also, I noticed that all of this caused me to be depressed, which made it all so much worse. a healthy diet, exercise, omega-3, zinc, ginkgo biloba, b-complex vitamin, and a multi-vitamin. really helped a lot. no more pot, alcohol, or other drugs! even caffeine can make the anxiety worse."

Another commenter stated that POSITIVE THINKING helped hers go away. Most of the folks that suffered from it from drugs, anxiety etc...said that it did go away in a few days, weeks or months but they had to quit dwelling on it! They had to control their thinking and that alleviated much of the anxiety causing the problem to begin with.

"Just try to relax and you will get through it. I did. I know the feeling so well. the feeling of separation from reality is terrible." Said one sufferer. So, basically anything that helps anxiety will help this situation. Funny though, I don't feel anxious but maybe thinking and dwelling on it makes it happen/worse, because when I feel unreal, boy, I can't stop thinking about it!

I also found that ginkgo enhances the uptake of choline in the brain :-) All the other commenters stated that choline drastically helped. I have started using ginkgo and pleasantly enough, a side effect is reduction or elimination of TINNITUS.

I think if we didn't have this fogginess, then we'd be eaten up alive with severe panic. Our minds are under stress from quitting the benzo's so it's a defense mechanism to protect us. I'm noticing as it goes away, my mind is VERY quiet and calm.

I found a book called Feeling Unreal: Depersonalization Disorder and the Loss of the Self..I ordered it from my library and I urge anyone feeling this way to take a look.

OH BTW in my research I found that in the brain, there is no difference between drug induced dp/dr or natural dp/dr...just different causes..same effect. Another thing, I have noticed that even before benzo's I would feel rather unreal in a brightly lit store. I actually caught myself holding my breath!! It's a form of dysphoria (I have read). The lights trigger it the cause, but don't actually cause it. Rapid, shallow breathing results in this feeling by causing changes in the body and brain, probably chemical. The last time I went to Walmart I watched how I breathed and it really did help! Paying attention to my breaths also provided a distraction, helping even more.

I think we just need to try and forget about it

Love to all,

Cupcake

thanks, cupcake.

very interesting information.  i so appreciate your willingness to help others as well as the positive motivation you have to help yourself in this healing process.  i'm always amazed that you can remain so upbeat.

Hi cupcake,

I moved your post to Chewing the Fat since it fits the description for this board: For non-support orientated benzodiazepine discussions. Perhaps you have a pet theory or personal experience you would like to share.

Pam

thanks, cupcake.

 

very interesting information.  i so appreciate your willingness to help others as well as the positive motivation you have to help yourself in this healing process.  i'm always amazed that you can remain so upbeat.

 

 

I don't always feel so upbeat...but I am right now...mostly

Hi cupcake,

 

I moved your post to Chewing the Fat since it fits the description for this board: For non-support orientated benzodiazepine discussions. Perhaps you have a pet theory or personal experience you would like to share.

 

Pam

Hey Pam

I was kind of contemplating moving this to the the Alternative Therapies board, because there are supplements and thought process control suggestions, but this is just fine.

I had a pet theory earlier in my positive thinking thread I posted a few months ago...this information I found today seems to support my theory that it is a result of a chemical imbalance... or as stated here, a neurotransmitter issue. I just didn't make the connection between anxiety and this issue. I don't remember it anyway

cupcake

Hi cupcake,

I debated where to move it too, if you would like to move it there, feel free.  It's hard to say since it covers a wide area, but it's good information. 

I got my book on Depersonalization and Feelings of Unreality. Okay, it seems that drugs that help this condition block Glutamine in the brain. So if we avoid this substance maybe we can help this issue. Also....this book states that significantly reducing our anxiety we can greatly diminish depersonalization. Funny, benzo's work in over 1/2 the cases The cases where those individuals are highly anxious. Most other drugs including ADs are generally ineffective.

Dietary sources of glutamine include plant and animal proteins such as beef, pork and poultry, milk, yogurt, ricotta cheese, cottage cheese, raw spinach, raw parsley, and cabbage. Glutamine is found in many foods high in protein, such as fish, meat, beans, and dairy products. I have been avoiding dairy and I notice it seems to make it worse, and days that I don't eat any meat, I tend to feel much better. So, I need to beef up on vegetable proteins...while avoiding soy. Fermented products tend to make it worse as well.

Anyway, this book implies (as does my theory) there is no difference between natural DP and drug induced DP.

We may not think we are anxious as we suffer with this, but dwelling on our feelings is a form of anxiety.

Another interesting tidbit, severe depression has many of the same symptoms brought on by depersonalization, which isn't limited to feeling unreal. It appears that increasing serotonin in the brain can help eliminate both. Intense aerobic exercise seems to help some patients at the Mt. Sinai in New York. It helps me immensely, but I feel that it should be started slowly because of our sensitive CNS..and too much exercise can be detrimental on the nervous system I have read. That being said, exercise increases blood flow to the brain, increases beneficial chemicals in the brain, including serotonin which is known to help this condition and also provides a sense of attachment to our bodies, helping to keep us grounded in reality.

My thoughts have been it's also related to a short attention span...when I am not having this problem my attention is wonderful...the book confirms my suspicions by stating that drugs that increase alertness also decrease DP. 

Reducing self focused attention can help as well...moving the attention away from the symptoms helps ground the individual into reality. It's my thought that during our disassociation, our attention is turned inwardly, instead of onto reality.

The amygdala seems to remember situations that warranted a dissassociative state (the amygdala is where panic attacks happen in the brain) and when the individual is in another situation that is similar, such as a crowded area or dark room, (or in my case, a brightly lit store)where the original trauma event occurred, the person tends to disassociate again often causing panic attacks, which is what happened to me when my panic attacks started.

cupcake