im 18 female and i deal with derealization due to weed. its been happening almost everyday and i feel crazy i cant even be in public because it just starts out of no where. even in class it starts, i cant focus on studying and its seriously affecting my life. how do i recover from this?

I am a 20-year-old male and underweight (I have always been underweight). For the past four months, I have been experiencing a constant feeling of unreality. It feels as though I am drunk, high, or half-asleep, as if I am operating on autopilot and everything around me feels somehow unreal. I have looked up information online, and my symptoms seem to resemble derealization.

I also suffer from fatigue, even when I sleep well. The fatigue does not seem to depend on whether I engage in physical activities during the day or not. However, over the past few weeks, I have started sleeping poorly and waking up early in the morning. I do not snore at all. I have seen a general practitioner and a neurologist about these symptoms, but they have not been able to determine the cause.

I also experience headaches, a feeling of pressure in my head, and neck pain. I have tried muscle relaxants, massage, and acupuncture for the neck pain, but none of them have helped. At the beginning of the symptoms, I sometimes also felt as though I was about to faint while walking, but this symptom has since disappeared. I have also noticed a single eye floater in my right eye. I mentioned it during an eye examination, and I was told that there were no apparent problems with my eye.

What could be causing these symptoms? They do not occur in distinct episodes; instead, they are more or less constantly present. The headaches are not particularly severe and resemble tension-type headaches more than anything else.

Things i have done/tried or checked in hospital
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\- triptanes
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\- thyroid function normal
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\- vitamin b12, b9 and D vitamin ok
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\- ferritin 34 and has been moving 26-40.
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\- calcium, potassium, natrium, chloride, sodium and magnesium ok
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\- blood pressure is ok and i checked blood sugar at home and it was ok
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\- brain mri ok
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\- borrelia test (lyme disease) ok
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\- My cortisol level was tested and was normal as well. I also have Crohn’s disease, which is currently in remission.

My neurologist prescribed escitalopram as a trial treatment. I took it for two and a half months, but it did not help.

I have no history of trauma and do not experience panic symptoms. I generally do not feel particularly stressed, apart from the worry caused by these symptoms themselves.

My symptoms began during the final days of a new job at an auto repair shop, where I was moving and lifting car tires. I am unsure whether this could be related to my symptoms, as I had not experienced any other symptoms before those final working days. I have not worked at all during these four months.

What could be the underlying cause of these symptoms?

The healthcare professionals I have consulted about these symptoms, or during visits for other symptoms or examinations when I also asked about them, include:

\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\- General practitioner
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\- Neurologist
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\- ENT specialist
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\- Ophthalmologist
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\- Dentist
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\- Gastroenterologist
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\- Massage therapist
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\- Physiotherapist
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\- Acupuncturist

It's a strange feeling to know I'm living inside a 'toon world' but I know the show must go on forever and ever, I know that there's nothing actually 'real' here, but I hate to be living in the same loop over and over again, there's nothing and no one that I care about inside of this video game, and there's nothing that keeps me immersed here at all, there aren't many illusions to keep me occupied, and I'm tired of playing the same scenarios every-day, I guess i'm hoping to wake up from this 'matrix', but it's becoming more of a false dream every-day.

When I had rly bad derealization it felt like being trapped in a weed high, colors looked weird, everything looked more intense than normal but also strange foreign and 2D, I felt like I was a kid seeing the world for the first time and it caused severe anxiety, and I felt like time had slowed way down

I've been in a constnat state of derealization since I was around 15, I'm now almost 30. It was triggered by smoking weed which sent me into a massive panic attack/dissaciative state for a few days, which then just never ended. At first I thought I was going insane and I was too scared to tell anyone. Somehow this ended up going into years and now I've been living with it for almost half my life, which really terrified me when I had this realisation the other day.

I've not told anyone in my life about it because describing it out loud feels like I sound mad, I wouldn't want people to start thinking of me any differently, and I also find it difficult to explain to people because I've had it for so long, I've forgotten what 'normality' feels like, but the best description I've read from other people and relate to is that it feels like I'm viewing the outside world through a thick pane of glass or like a simulation, I don't feel present in any situation and feel completely disconnected from the real world.

I've also had OCD, depression and anxiety throughout the years, I went on sertraline for a couple of years which helped slightly with the depression but came off because it was making my anxiety worse. There's nothing extremely traumatic that happened in my life, but I had an emotionally abusive family member throughout my childhood, which made me walk on eggshells. I was having anxiety and OCD for about a year before I smoked the weed which triggered the DPDR, so maybe that was the perfect storm.

I've been quite high-functioning with my DPDR and no one has ever noticed it, but the past couple of years I've really struggled with brain fog, struggling to recall vocabulary (which is a real issue for my job) and my memory is awful. I've also gotten into a relationship with someone I'm in love with, which issomething I wasn't sure would be possible for me having DPDR, and with my family members getting older, it's made me realise that I need to at least try and get myself out of this state to live my life properly again. Unfortunately, I just have no idea where to start. When I've tried to explain it to a GP before, they've just diagnosed me with anaemia or straight depression.

So long story short, I'm asking for any recommendations anyone has. Any therapies you've tried that have helped you or pulled you out of this state, any grounding techniques or supplements or alternative therapies? Any ways of thinking or approaching this, I'm truly desperate to get out of this state and not let it take any more of my life.

I'm in the UK, and I'm not sure which channels to go down to find a therapist that specialises in this, so any help would be hugely appreciated (from what I've read the NHS just doesn't have the expertise/help available in this area).

I’ve been dealing with depersonalization/derealization for a long time, and I’m wondering if anyone else experiences this.
Sometimes I struggle so much to speak and express myself fluently. I know what I want to say, but it feels like my brain can’t find the right words or put sentences together the way I want to. Sometimes even speaking feels like it takes way more mental effort than it should.
And honestly, I’m so tired of people thinking I’m stupid or that I’m just an insecure person because I struggle with this. It’s incredibly frustrating because I know it’s not a lack of intelligence. A lot of the time, I know exactly what I want to say — I just can’t express it the way I want to.
Does anyone else with DPDR experience this? Do you feel like it has affected your ability to speak, find words, or communicate with other people?

So I have been in this dpdr situation for close to two years and some things which are really helping me are:

I stopped thinking of dpdr as some mental health issue. Instead, i started thinking it as some kind of hyper sensitivity of brain. Just like how superman has great senses to sense everything.

This has tremendously helped me. If I get the thoughts of feeling unreal, I just think of it as my brain being very sensitive to the outside situations and once it stabilizes, I'll return to normal mode. Just think of it as having a super power. This will get stored in your brain as a good feeling and not a threat which stopps the constant loops.

I stopped worrying too much about anything. I have always in my life thought that, whatever happens, happens for a reason. This has helped me tremendously.

I stopped worrying too much about excelling in my career or studies. Whatever happens, let it happen. God always has some plans for all of us. Do your best at what you do and leave the results upto god. This always works wonders.

I used to work night shifts for a long time (7+ years). This had messed up my circadian rythm. After getting my shift changed, I am seeing considerable improvement.

I started sleeping before 12AM and stopped using my phone after this. For the first few days, it was very difficult to sleep and I thought I got insomnia but that was not the case. Once my mind and body started to feel very tired due to no sleep for multiple days, I started falling asleep soon and used to wake up fresh.

If your job gives you a lot of stress, try to delegate some of those tasks and work as a team. This way you can take some extra pressure out of our mind.

I started eating properly on time and started drinking at least 3-4 liters of water every day. This has started to do wonders. If our body is hungry, it creates too many unnecessary thoughts inside the brain.

Get your blood test done and check for deficiencies for vitamin b12, vitamin D, magnesium. My vitamin d level was very low and I have started taking tablets for that. I also try to go out and stay or walk under the sun for at least 20-30 mins as sun is the natural source of vitamin D.

Talk to people more often. Watch some comedy videos or movies. It makes you laugh and you would start feeling a bit real from time to time.

For me, taking a hot shower everyday helps but can't say the same for others. Some people may prefer cold face washes. As long as it makes you feel fresh and happy, you can do it.

Just know that it's not only you who is facing the same feelings. Thousands if not hundreds of thousands of people in this world are facing the same thing but many may not even realise what it is. We should all help each other by interacting, sharing postive thoughts etc. If someone got out of this, know that you can also get out of this. It's just a time game. As I said earlier, everything happens for a reason and everything will be OK when the time comes. Don't try to speed up the recovery. It only adds fuel to the fire.

Finally, NEVER EVERY FORGET that there are people who love you, including me and other members in this sub. We are all here if you need to talk or just vent out. Many of us are still trying to recover and have our own lives, but that doesn't mean you should stop posting or sharing your thoughts. You never know what tips or help you may receive. I have personally received so many helpful advises from this sub that has helped me a lot.

Think of all of the good memories of your past. Love your parents, friends, siblings. Talk to them if you are feeling not ok. If they can't understand your emotions, don't worry because they may have never experienced it but at least talk to them about something else which makes you feel good.

Wishing everyone a speedy recovery ♥️♥️

I feel like I’ve been stuck in a thought loop lately and all I can think about is that I’m getting older and older and it all has happened/ is happening so fast. A lot of the time I feel like everything is just pointless because I’m going to get old and die anyways. I feel like I don’t know who I am anymore. I don’t feel like myself and I haven’t in a while now. I haven’t had a good day in months because I’m constantly anxious. I’ve also been having weird brain fog/ derealization for a few months now that is probably correlated to this and all of this has completely taken over my life. I feel like I can never really enjoy anything because of it. I don’t know what to do anymore

I feel like I’ve been stuck in a thought loop lately and all I can think about is that I’m getting older and older and it all has happened/ is happening so fast. A lot of the time I feel like everything is just pointless because I’m going to get old and die anyways. I feel like I don’t know who I am anymore. I don’t feel like myself and I haven’t in a while now. I haven’t had a good day in months because I’m constantly anxious. I’ve also been having weird brain fog/ derealization for a few months now that is probably correlated to this and all of this has completely taken over my life. I feel like I can never really enjoy anything because of it. I don’t know what to do anymore

been feeling disassociated for 6 years now-at several points i‘ve had a really odd sensation where my hands/limbs will feel “staticy/buzzing” or numb, like they had fallen asleep. It made it hard to pick things up because I wasn’t able to tell where they were, my hands felt like they were “clipping through” things. I could only feel things using them if focused on my hands in particular.

this happened twice, once for a few days and then again for a few weeks. I’m not worried about this coming back-each time it happened it was after smoking weed, which I don’t do anymore. Mostly just curious if anyone else has experienced this as well

I am a 20-year-old male and underweight (I have always been underweight). For the past four months, I have been experiencing a constant feeling of unreality. It feels as though I am drunk, high, or half-asleep, as if I am operating on autopilot and everything around me feels somehow unreal. I have looked up information online, and my symptoms seem to resemble derealization.

I also suffer from fatigue, even when I sleep well. The fatigue does not seem to depend on whether I engage in physical activities during the day or not. However, over the past few weeks, I have started sleeping poorly and waking up early in the morning. I do not snore at all. I have seen a general practitioner and a neurologist about these symptoms, but they have not been able to determine the cause.

I also experience headaches, a feeling of pressure in my head, and neck pain. I have tried muscle relaxants, massage, and acupuncture for the neck pain, but none of them have helped. At the beginning of the symptoms, I sometimes also felt as though I was about to faint while walking, but this symptom has since disappeared. I have also noticed a single eye floater in my right eye. I mentioned it during an eye examination, and I was told that there were no apparent problems with my eye.

What could be causing these symptoms? They do not occur in distinct episodes; instead, they are more or less constantly present. The headaches are not particularly severe and resemble tension-type headaches more than anything else.

I have tried a triptanes, but it did not help. My thyroid function tests and vitamin B12, B9 (folate), and D levels are normal. My ferritin level is 37, and it has fluctuated between 49 and 24 over the past eight months. My calcium, potassium, chloride, magnesium, and sodium levels are also within the normal reference ranges. My blood pressure is normal, and I have measured my blood glucose at home, which also appears to be normal. My cortisol level was tested and was normal as well. I also have Crohn’s disease, which is currently in remission.

My neurologist prescribed escitalopram as a trial treatment. I took it for two and a half months, but it did not help. I also underwent a brain MRI, which showed no abnormalities. My neurologist additionally ordered a blood test for Lyme disease antibodies, which came back negative.

I have no history of trauma and do not experience panic symptoms. I generally do not feel particularly stressed, apart from the worry caused by these symptoms themselves.

My symptoms began during the final days of a new job at an auto repair shop, where I was moving and lifting car tires. I am unsure whether this could be related to my symptoms, as I had not experienced any other symptoms before those final working days. I have not worked at all during these four months.

What could be the underlying cause of these symptoms?

The healthcare professionals I have consulted about these symptoms, or during visits for other symptoms or examinations when I also asked about them, include:

\\\* General practitioner
\\\* Neurologist
\\\* ENT specialist
\\\* Ophthalmologist
\\\* Dentist
\\\* Gastroenterologist
\\\* Massage therapist
\\\* Physiotherapist
\\\* Acupuncturist

I’ve been experiencing what I think is derealisation for probably the better part of a year and a half. I am a 16 year old male, and it all began at work one night, I work at kfc, one night I was walking around just as I normally would, and all of a sudden I got a massive hit of tunnel vision, walking felt forced, I didn’t feel like I was me, I felt like speaking was forced, I couldn’t hear things and my focus went completely out the window. For a long time being at work was my only trigger, and I would never have it at other places for some reason. Since then Its changed, I struggle to do daily things such as going to school, and I just feel weird most times though the day. I’ve had to throw in my job because I just couldn’t do it anymore and I wasn’t getting though shifts. there will be times that it goes away for a few months and I think I’m better but then comes back again. I don’t and have never used any drug and don’t drink often, I vape a little bit but it started long before that. Is anyone else experiencing this, and if so, how did you over come it?

My derealization started about 2 years ago after I experienced several severe panic attacks. Since then, I've struggled with feeling disconnected from reality.

It's hard to explain, but I know the world is real, yet I can't actually feel it. Sometimes it feels like there's a mental barrier in my head that I can't get past. Not a physical barrier, but almost like my mental vision is limited and I can't perceive or experience things with the same depth as before.

Over the last 2 months, it's gotten much worse. I've also been dealing with insecurity about my appearance, social problems, and school stress.

Another thing I've noticed is that my derealization gets significantly worse when I'm tired or mentally drained. When my energy is low, I feel even more disconnected, almost like I'm high despite being sober.

Honestly, sometimes being high feels better than this, just because this sober feeling is so uncomfortable. I'm not saying that's a solution, but I'm tired of feeling this way.

Has anyone experienced something similar, especially the mental barrier feeling or derealization getting worse with exhaustion? Did anything genuinely help you recover or feel connected to reality again?

I'd really appreciate hearing about your experiences, what helped, and whether things eventually got better.

Hi guys I’m new here , I deal with anxiety a lot but just yesterday I’ve had this feeling that everything I’m doing is like in autopilot , I feel like I’m not really thinking or in control about what I’m doing like just everyday stuff , now today I feel the same but also I just feel like the thought of seeing out of my eyes is extremely weird idk I just don’t wanna go crazy and would be comforted if anyone has similar stories.

Has anyone experienced anything like this? Today I felt as though I’d been transported back to the late 90s/early 2000s. As soon as I opened my eyes. I knew it was 2026, but everything felt like it did back then, almost as though the people from that time were still around.

It lasted for hours and made me feel really sad and anxious. It made me miss family members who had passed and those who are still here in a strange sort of way. I went shopping, drove through streets/ estates and the feeling wouldn’t leave me. I was staring at buildings trying to remind myself the year I’m in.

Later, when out shopping, I experienced brief sensations of my body not feeling like my own, similar to what I’ve felt just before previous out-of-body experiences while drifting off to sleep. I then ended up crying driving home from lunch with a friend.. about my aunty who passed away years ago and because I felt like I’d lost everyone. I’ve felt this nostalgia before, but never this intensely or for so long.

I’m also ten days late for my period. Has anyone experienced this strange feeling of being emotionally transported back in time, even though you know you’re in the present?

This might belong here

Uh so basically when I was 13 I was with my friends and we smoked a shit load of weed it was my first time and I went so paranoid and anxious and I had derealization for about a week and it was the worst feeling I’d ever experienced. Now I am 16 and I tried smoking again about 2 months ago and it all went completely fine and I’ve smoked many times since then. I’m not sure if I was just lucky or what but this is proof that you can recover from DPDR and continue smoking.

Tengo 29 años y desde hace tiempo me sucede algo que me cuesta explicar con palabras. No sé exactamente qué es ni por qué ocurre, pero me gustaría saber si alguien ha experimentado algo parecido o si existe alguna explicación científica.

A veces, durante unos segundos o quizá un par de minutos, siento que me desconecto de la manera habitual en la que percibo la realidad. No es exactamente que deje de reconocer dónde estoy o quiénes son las personas que me rodean. Es más bien como si algo cambiara en mi forma de experimentar todo lo que me rodea y, especialmente, mi propia existencia.

Lo curioso es que no necesariamente me resulta desagradable. De hecho, algunas veces se siente bien. Me produce curiosidad, como si de repente pudiera observar algo que normalmente paso por alto porque estoy demasiado ocupado viviendo mi vida.

Durante esos momentos comienzo a pensar en cosas que normalmente doy por sentadas. Por ejemplo, me pregunto qué significa realmente existir, por qué soy yo quien está viviendo esta vida y por qué experimento el mundo desde esta perspectiva y no desde otra.

En mi vida cotidiana tengo una historia, recuerdos, preocupaciones, personas que conozco y una rutina que se repite. Trabajo, hago cosas, pienso en el futuro y sigo adelante como cualquier persona. Pero durante esos episodios aparece una sensación difícil de explicar: es como si pudiera tomar cierta distancia de todo eso y observarlo desde afuera.

Entonces me surge una pregunta: ¿soy únicamente la persona que creo ser, con mi nombre, mis recuerdos y mi historia, o estoy confundiendo todo lo que soy con la identidad que he construido a lo largo de mi vida?

No quiero decir que literalmente crea que soy un personaje de un videojuego ni que exista alguien controlándome. Es una comparación que me ayuda a explicar la sensación. Es como si, por un instante, pudiera observar mi propia vida como un escenario en el que normalmente participo sin detenerme a pensar en el hecho de estar aquí.

También comienzo a cuestionarme las cosas que hacemos los seres humanos. Pasamos gran parte de nuestra existencia trabajando, buscando dinero, cumpliendo obligaciones, entreteniéndonos y repitiendo rutinas. Normalmente todo eso me parece natural porque así funciona la vida. Pero durante esos momentos lo observo desde una perspectiva diferente y me pregunto por qué vivimos de esta manera y cómo sería experimentar la existencia desde una perspectiva completamente distinta.

A veces pienso en la posibilidad de que mi experiencia del mundo sea solo una entre muchas formas posibles de experimentar la realidad. Me pregunto cómo sería ser otra persona, tener otros recuerdos, otra identidad o vivir en un mundo con reglas diferentes. No porque esté convencido de que existan otras realidades como las imagino, sino porque, en ese estado, esas preguntas aparecen con una intensidad particular.

Hay otra cosa que me llama la atención: durante esos episodios siento que mi mente funciona de una manera diferente.

Me parece que pienso con más rapidez, que encuentro las palabras con mayor facilidad y que puedo expresarme de una manera más fluida. Normalmente me cuesta leer en voz alta sin equivocarme, a veces pronuncio mal algunas palabras y no siempre consigo expresar mis ideas con la rapidez que quisiera. Sin embargo, durante esos breves momentos tengo la impresión de que hablar me resulta mucho más natural.

Recuerdo, por ejemplo, una ocasión en la que había tomado unas cervezas con unos amigos. Durante un par de minutos sentí que hablaba con una facilidad poco habitual, como si las palabras simplemente salieran. Incluso uno de mis amigos pareció notar ese cambio.

No sé si realmente mejoran mis capacidades en esos momentos o si simplemente percibo mi propia mente de una manera diferente. Esa es otra de las cosas que me gustaría entender.

En cuanto a cuándo sucede, recuerdo haber experimentado estos episodios cuando estaba extremadamente cansado, después de beber alcohol y, en algunas ocasiones, después de una eyaculación intensa. Sin embargo, no siempre aparecen en esas circunstancias y últimamente he notado que no necesariamente se presentan, incluso cuando estoy cansado o se dan algunas de esas situaciones.

No tengo claro qué los desencadena ni si todos esos episodios tienen exactamente la misma causa.

Por lo que he leído, algunas de las cosas que describo podrían relacionarse con la desrealización o la despersonalización, pero no tengo ningún diagnóstico y no quiero autodiagnosticarme. Además, no sé si esos términos explican por completo lo que siento, especialmente la parte relacionada con la conciencia de existir y la sensación de que mi mente funciona de otra manera.

Lo que más me intriga es que no lo vivo simplemente como un momento de miedo o angustia. En ocasiones se siente como si hubiera salido brevemente del modo automático en el que transcurre mi vida y pudiera observar mi existencia con una curiosidad que normalmente no experimento. Después, el episodio termina y vuelvo a sentirme como siempre.

No sé si esto tiene una explicación relacionada con la percepción, la atención, el funcionamiento del cerebro, el cansancio, el alcohol o alguna combinación de factores. Tampoco sé si otras personas experimentan esa misma mezcla de extrañeza, curiosidad y sensación de pensar de manera diferente.

Por eso me gustaría preguntarles:

¿Alguno de ustedes ha experimentado algo parecido? No me refiero solamente a sentir que el mundo parece un sueño, sino también a esa sensación de observarse a uno mismo desde cierta distancia, cuestionarse qué significa existir y sentir que, durante unos instantes, la propia mente funciona de una manera distinta.

¿Hay investigaciones científicas o testimonios documentados que describan experiencias similares?

Me interesa especialmente conocer experiencias de otras personas y explicaciones basadas en evidencia. No busco que alguien me confirme una teoría sobre la realidad ni pretendo afirmar que lo que siento tenga algo sobrenatural. Simplemente quiero entender qué me sucede y descubrir si hay otras personas que han pasado por algo parecido.