Depersonalization/derealization disorder is characterized by periods of feeling disconnected or detached from one's body and thoughts (depersonalization) or your environment (derealization). Individuals living with DPDR often describe it as feeling like you are observing yourself from outside your body or like being in a dream. However, it is important to point out that DPDR cannot be considered a psychotic disorder since individuals diagnosed with it are aware that what they are experiencing is not real.
Depersonalization/derealization disorder can be a sign of other conditions, such as:
- Brain diseases.
- Seizure disorders.
- Psychiatric disorders, such as dementia and schizophrenia.
DPDR symptoms can be mild (short-lived), or chronic; persisting for years. Depersonalization can feel as if you’re observing yourself from outside your body. Depersonalization symptoms include:
- Alexithymia: an inability to recognize or describe emotions
- Feeling physically numb to sensations
- Feeling robotic or unable to control speech or movement
- Feeling unconnected to your body, mind, feelings, or sensations
- Inability to attach emotions to memories or to "own" your memories as experiences that happened to you
On the other hand, derealization can make individuals feel as if they are watching the world behind a veil or that they are in a dream. Derealization can also create distortions in vision and other senses, for example:
- The distance and the size or shape of objects may be distorted
- Elevated awareness of your surroundings
- Recent events may seem to have happened in the distant past
- Surroundings may seem blurry, colorless, two-dimensional, unreal, or larger-than-life or cartoonish
An episode of depersonalization or derealization can last anywhere from a few minutes to (rarely) many years.
Depersonalization can be a rare symptom in several psychiatric disorders and sometimes occurs following experiencing a dangerous situation, like an assault, accident, or serious illness. Depersonalization/derealization as a separate disorder is quite rare. Most of the individuals with DPDR develop it when they are young. The average age for developing DPDR is 16 years. It rarely begins after age 40.
Complete recovery from depersonalization/derealization disorder is possible for many patients. The symptoms usually go away on their own or after treatment that help the person manage the stress or trauma that triggered the symptoms. However, without treatment, additional episodes of depersonalization can occur.
The best treatment option for DPDR depends on the individual and the severity of their symptoms. Nonetheless, psychotherapy, or talk therapy, is usually the treatment of choice for it. Treatment methods for DPDR may include the following:
- Psychotherapy
- Medication
- Family therapy
- Creative therapies (art therapy, music therapy)
- Clinical hypnosis
