Dissociative disorders
What is depersonalisation-derealisation disorder?
'Depersonalisation' means feeling detached from yourself, observing yourself and your feelings and thoughts as if they belong to someone else you are watching in a movie. Some of the typical symptoms are:
- out-of-body experiences
- loss of feeling in parts of your body
- distorted views of your body
- unable to recognise your image in a mirror
- a sense of detachment from your emotions
- feeling like you are watching a movie of yourself
- feeling like you are unreal
'Derealisation' means seeing other people and the environment around you as dream-like and unreal. Objects may change in shape, size or colour. Typical symptoms are:
- feeling like a normal environment is unfamiliar
- a sense that what is happening is unreal
- feeling detached from the world
- a perception of objects changing shape, colour, size
- feeling that people you know are strangers
Youmight experience one or both of these problems if you have been diagnosed with depersonalisation-derealisation disorder, and will probably be aware that these experiences aren't reality.
Episodes of depersonalisation or derealisation may last just a few moments and come and go over many years, or may be ongoing.
Medically Reviewed by a doctor on 21 Dec 2018
Introduction
A dissociative disorder is a mental health condition that alters a person's sense of reality
What is dissociative amnesia?
Someone with dissociative amnesia will repeatedly have periods where they cannot remember information about themselves or about events in their past life. They may also forget a learnt talent or skill
What is depersonalisation-derealisation disorder?
'Depersonalisation' means feeling detached from yourself, observing yourself and your feelings and thoughts as if they belong to someone else you are watching in a movie. Some of the typical symptoms
What is dissociative identity disorder?
Dissociative identity disorder, or 'multiple personality disorder', is the most extreme of the three types. If you've been diagnosed with dissociative identity disorder, you may feel uncertain about
What's the cause?
Many people with a dissociative disorder will have experienced a traumatic event in the past. Often, this traumatic event will have been physical, sexual or emotional abuse suffered during childhood,
What are the some of the associated conditions?
Someone with adissociative disorder may also suffer from: post-traumatic stress disorder depression mood swings anxiety and panic attacks suicidal tendencies and/or self-harm headaches
How are dissociative disorders treated?
If you have been diagnosed with a dissociative disorder, a mental health specialist will want to ask you more questions about how you are feeling and find out whether you suffered any trauma in the pa
Subscribe
Ask the doctor
Rate this article
Find products