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Depersonalization - a feeling of being outside your body

Depersonalization is a feeling of unreality or  depersonalization is a feeling of being outside your body.

Depersonalization can be a syndrome or a symptom of  mental disorder.

The patient feels that his or her body is unreal, is changing, or is dissolving; or that he or she is outside of the body.

Depersonalization as a symptom may occur in panic disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), borderline personality disorder, acute stress disorder. The patient is not given the diagnosis of depersonalization disorder if the episodes of depersonalization occur only during panic attacks.The symptoms and sensations of depersonalization:

• like being a robot
• going crazy
• unreal
• unattached
• a spectator
• having mechanical actions
• unusual feelings
• being outside your body
• observing your actions from a distance
• dizziness
• dreem like
• cartoon like
• behind glass

What causes depersonalization disorder?

Depersonalization disorder often is triggered by intense stress or a traumatic event-such as abuse, war, disasters,  accidents, or extreme violence.

How is depersonalization disorder treated?

-Medication- antidepressant or anti-anxiety medication

-Creative therapies - the patient explore and express his or her thoughts and feelings in a safe and creative way

-Psychotherapy

-Family therapy - teach the family about the disorder and its causes and help family members recognize symptoms of a recurrence

-Cognitive therapy - This type of therapy focuses on changing dysfunctional thinking patterns

The prognosis for recovery from depersonalization disorder is good. Most patients recover completely, particularly those who developed the disorder in connection with traumas that can be explored and resolved in treatment.

However, without treatment to work out the underlying problems, additional episodes of depersonalization can occur.