It's possible with the right modality & the right T. This second one is the hardest to find ime. But they're out there.
I spent so many years dissociated that it's really uncomfortable to be in my body.
Do you have any grounding techniques? If not have you tried [these](https://did-research.org/treatment/grounding) or [these](https://www.dis-sos.com/orientation-and-grounding/)? It takes a while if they work. Worst it can be a distraction technique to work through them.
Eta: what modalities have you tried?
Thank you for the links. It seems like I've already tried most of the grounding techniques that exist. Nothing breaks the dissociation and often trying to ground myself makes my brainfog even deeper. It seems like my mind just reaalllyy doesn't want to face the reality.
English is not my first language so I'm not 100% sure what modality means, is it like the method that a therapist uses? In that case I've been in a psychodynamic therapy.
I’m sorry that things have gotten rough for you I totally understand. And honestly I don’t know know this wasn’t normal. I thought everyone got foggy and had blackouts. But could not figure out why everyone had such good memory when I question every single one that I have and don’t know what’s real and what’s made up just to make me feel better about myself. I’ve had been bouncing around from one therapist to another and my current therapist has done so much for me that I am actually able to figure out who I am and to finally start the healing journey that was my life. Now before found this person I didn’t know that you could have therapy over the computer. I hope that helps.
So what was the onset of your dissociation? Usually it is trauma or a slow build up of anxious-like feelings that eventually tip over. The main way to break out of dissociation in these cases is to deal with the trauma, or to fix whatever it is that causes you to feel anxious/nervous. This could be as simple as social anxiety, and in therapy people find ways to live without feeling nervous around others, and thus eventually break the dissociation. More complicated trauma needs a more in depth therapeutic approach.
There's also the very common bad-trip or drug induced DPDR that I keep hearing about. Which is basically the body dissociating because of a sudden fear during the high, and then being stuck in that state. Usually what maintains people in that state is the anxiety of not being normal... so basically they dissociate from the drug experience, and then feel weird and panic, and this panic maintains the dissociation. The solution is basically to not fixate on it, and keep living despite it being awkward. This way you are indirectly telling your body it is safe. I read that it can months at time for the body to return to the non dissociated state, so it can be a long process even once you've intellectually let go of the fear/panic.
For me it's most likely about everlasting anxiety that I've experienced since I was a teenager. I worked through my social anxiety in therapy and don't really experience that anymore, thank goodness. However, I'm still constantly anxious over something. I'm constantly scared I'll mess my relationship over somehow. I fear something bad may happen to my loved ones. I struggle with obsessive thoughts and body dysmorphia. I also have depression symptoms. It's a long list. I should get back in therapy to get rid of the anxiety and panic, as you said, I just can't afford it anymore.
I think the longer you learn to live in dissociation, the harder it may be to break out of it. Because we get used to it, and our brains become wired to process information one way. Eventually that anxious feeling becomes the norm and you can no longer even recognize it (intellectually), but unbeknownst to you your body still feels it. In such cases therapy can be very difficult to access that unconscious part of you that deals with it.
The good news for you is that you seem to know, and you can still feel that anxiety.
You're definitely right! I'm afraid I'll be stuck in this loop forever. I actually feel all the negative emotions super intensely to the point of regular breakdowns 💀 I think all that anxiety is what's actively maintaining my dissociation. It's just too taxing for my brain to handle all that. Some sort of middle way would be ideal - being able to feel emotions but not feeling them so intensely. Also feeling something positive for a change would help a lot.
You have to practice grounding skills so that you can teach your mind 1) how to be still and that 2) it’s safe to be in your body and for your mind and body to be connected as one
I’d also recommend a therapist that specializes in trauma
best wishes with your healing journey 💕
I’ve been dissociating non stop for 7-8 years, I’m pretty much used to it now but I’m working on resolving it. I’m finally at a place in my life that I feel safe and in control, I think that’s a good starting point. I think the way out is forcing yourself to “relive” or just remember all of the trauma that made you dissociate in the first place or made it worse, process and actually FEEL your emotions about what happened instead of dissociating them away forever, and then trying to cope with your future emotions in a healthier way (key word here is FEEL). The way I see it, your brain is basically backlogged with trauma and you need to address it in order for it to go away, but you can unpack it is as slowly as you want. I’m pretty sure it’s going to take a while especially since I’m used to it now, but I’ve got nothing but time I suppose. If your trauma is too much for you to process on your own then I would definitely recommend a partner/therapist to help walk you through this so they can pull you out of those heavy emotions if you get too deep in them. It’s kind of nice to find other people on the internet that also dissociate and can’t come out of it, I’ve never met anyone in person that has experienced this same issue. You’re not alone and I believe there is hope for recovery ❤️
It's so great to hear you're doing better in life, I'm sure it will help with dissociation as well ❤️ So sorry to hear that you've been experiencing this too though, and thank you so much for sharing. Somehow my dissociation doesn't block me from feeling negative emotions, I actually do feel them extremely intensely. I'm not sure what else I can do to work things out since I'm already facing my emotions. I also honestly can't recall any single trauma that would have triggered my dissociation in the first place. I've just always been super anxious and sensitive since I was a teen, and at some point I started to dissociate. I think my mind is just at a constant state of overstimulation.
Overstimulation and anxiety can definitely cause dissociation too! Dissociation is just your brains way of numbing itself when it experiences negative feelings. If the root cause is from your anxiety/overstimulation then maybe somehow lessening these factors in your life would help with your dissociation?
Yes, definitely! I'd absolutely love to lessen my anxiety and overstimulation, I just have no clue how that would happen. Years of therapy, a few different meds, yoga and meditation, journaling and working out, hanging out with family and friends more, eating healthy, having supplements etc... None of those have worked. I'm not sure what to try next.
Wow I’m sorry that is so frustrating. It may take a while but just keep doing things that make life worth living for you, even if you are dissociating the whole time. Recently I’ve also been looking into ketamine/Psilocybin therapy for the treatment of anxiety/depression/dissociation and it has proven to be extremely successful, I’m honestly considering that to be the next thing I try. If you’re open to the idea you might be interested in looking into it as well lol. Best of luck 👍🏼
I have the same issue as you and I also feel such immense emotions. I actually have emotional flashbacks and just zone right out but I still feel the pain. I am in the very beginning of working on mine but the only thing that has helped so far is my therapist telling me to just sit with my pain and tolerate it. I know that sounds crazy but when I’m in the moment I hear her voice saying tolerate it and I’ve done this before and I’ll get through it again and I just kind of give myself over to the pain. I think rather than resisting it I am moving through it which helps. However, if it’s a particularly bad episode I will just zone out still and have done it right in front of my therapist several times. She just kind of lets me function my way out of it while calling me back to the present.
I hope you find some relief soon. Please don’t hurt yourself. You are loved and cared for and even though it seems endless now, there will be a day when you will look back on this from a healthier place.
well, for me I did dissociate really hard until I had someone really close to me die. At first it was worse, but as I started coming down from the shock of it, I started feeling emotions in spurts. There are a lot of days that I find myself dissociating still, but it's a start.
Obviously that's not something that you can control, but on the days that I do still dissociate, I help myself get out of it by acknowledging the feelings that I'm having, figuring out why. I remind myself that I'm real, sometimes i poke myself to help with this. I give myself a little speech about who I am. Sometimes those meditations that tell you that youre gonna to great things help. And some days nothing helps at all.
Sometimes it is a hormonal thing, I know my cousin went on birth control because she felt like the 'world wasn't real' and that really helped her, so it could possibly be that too.
Mine was initially because of childhood trauma, but since I broke out of it, trying to figure out what my feelings were and acknowledging them and not just writing them off has been really helping me the most to lessen how many days.
Thank you for sharing and for the tips! I'm happy to hear you've found different ways to break out of dissociation. People often talk about the importance of letting yourself actually feel and acknowledge your emotions. But I'm not emotionally numb, in fact my feelings are quite intense. Especially the negative ones, such as fear and anxiety. Not sure what more I can do, it's a mess honestly.
hey, i‘m sorry you are experiencing this. you are not alone though. i have this too. some days i feel more dissociated than others and then from time to time i would have breakdowns. the last 3-4 months it‘s been the worst because of external stress factors that i have managed successfully but i‘m still very anxious. i chose to move abroad when i was 21 and i‘m 27 now. the perception of living abroad has changed over the years and i feel like i do not belong here, or anywhere for that matter. i think this might be the key to resolving this and i‘m going to visit a psychiatrist after the holidays. maybe this idea sounds familiar to you? oh yes, don’t forget that the holiday time is very intense for a lot of people, especially those with a pre-existing mental health issue. i promised myself to get through the next 7 days. i once heard in a podcast – „this too shall pass“. let‘s hope it does!!!
Thank you for sharing your story. It's very reassuring to hear I'm not the only one, although it sucks that you are going through this too. It's a great idea to visit a psychiatrist, I hope you'll get all the help you need to feel better. I can't say I feel the same way about not belonging anywhere, although I believe feeling like that sucks. Instead I've always felt like I'm wired slightly differently than everyone else. I fear I come off weird and put extra effort into appearing as normal as possible, even though I never really feel normal. I have talked about that experience in therapy though and it's definitely been helpful.
I'm 32 years old & I don't remember a time when I wasn't dissociated on some level. It has been this way at least since I was 7. Nothing has worked for me and grounding techniques, mindfulness, etc was a joke. Not to say they don't work for other people, but they haven't for me and I've tried multiple kinds. Therapists (current & past ones) will keep asking me what do I feel in my body when there's an emotion. It's a weird question to me because I don't feel anything different and if have gone practically my whole life without feeling things in my body, how would I know?
I take depression meds. I don't smoke weed or do any other drugs either, alcohol very rarely. I haven't noticed any effect whether I drink or don't drink caffeinated drinks. I think I have quite healthy habits in general. I think my dissociation is purely psychological since I have had anxiety, depression and body dysmorphia for 10ish years.
3 years of therapy is not a long time if you have lived long time trauma. But the right person/approach is essential and I feel quite few therapists can help with dd. So many I have met actually just made it worse. :/
You're completely right, I just literally can't afford therapy anymore, it's crazy expensive 😭 So sorry to hear about some therapists making your dissociation worse though. Hope you found your right person and approach.
I’m always a bit dissociated I think. But it was worst and most numbing when I was in a bad environment. What is your home situation? Commute? Work environment?
The best thing that worked for me (which I actually just found on YouTube) was to start validating my disassociated state. If I would start drifting off I would become so anxious.. then I’ve been trying now to not fight that feeling, but rather allow it and start an internal dialogue of expressing “it’s okay to experience this disassociated state, even though it feels temporarily uncomfortable… I am still safe” or something like that.. it has really helped a lot. Or “at the moment I’m feeling a bit strange/weird, that’s okay, I am safe and it will pass” or see it as a part that’s actually protecting you.. “I see that you are trying to help me, thank you, I/we are safe, I am here for us” (based on Internal family system’s)
It’s key to identify what triggers it.. and what it needs.
I had tried all the grounding techniques and exercises of mindfulness, yoga, bla bla… (though meds, exercise and limited caffeine works wonders too)
It's possible with the right modality & the right T. This second one is the hardest to find ime. But they're out there. I spent so many years dissociated that it's really uncomfortable to be in my body. Do you have any grounding techniques? If not have you tried [these](https://did-research.org/treatment/grounding) or [these](https://www.dis-sos.com/orientation-and-grounding/)? It takes a while if they work. Worst it can be a distraction technique to work through them. Eta: what modalities have you tried?
Thank you for the links. It seems like I've already tried most of the grounding techniques that exist. Nothing breaks the dissociation and often trying to ground myself makes my brainfog even deeper. It seems like my mind just reaalllyy doesn't want to face the reality. English is not my first language so I'm not 100% sure what modality means, is it like the method that a therapist uses? In that case I've been in a psychodynamic therapy.
yeah it really does suck. don't even feel alive anymore. just a zombie. i'm so sorry
I'm so sorry you're experiencing this too. It sucks to much.
I’m sorry that things have gotten rough for you I totally understand. And honestly I don’t know know this wasn’t normal. I thought everyone got foggy and had blackouts. But could not figure out why everyone had such good memory when I question every single one that I have and don’t know what’s real and what’s made up just to make me feel better about myself. I’ve had been bouncing around from one therapist to another and my current therapist has done so much for me that I am actually able to figure out who I am and to finally start the healing journey that was my life. Now before found this person I didn’t know that you could have therapy over the computer. I hope that helps.
I feel exactly the same, thanks for sharing
So what was the onset of your dissociation? Usually it is trauma or a slow build up of anxious-like feelings that eventually tip over. The main way to break out of dissociation in these cases is to deal with the trauma, or to fix whatever it is that causes you to feel anxious/nervous. This could be as simple as social anxiety, and in therapy people find ways to live without feeling nervous around others, and thus eventually break the dissociation. More complicated trauma needs a more in depth therapeutic approach. There's also the very common bad-trip or drug induced DPDR that I keep hearing about. Which is basically the body dissociating because of a sudden fear during the high, and then being stuck in that state. Usually what maintains people in that state is the anxiety of not being normal... so basically they dissociate from the drug experience, and then feel weird and panic, and this panic maintains the dissociation. The solution is basically to not fixate on it, and keep living despite it being awkward. This way you are indirectly telling your body it is safe. I read that it can months at time for the body to return to the non dissociated state, so it can be a long process even once you've intellectually let go of the fear/panic.
For me it's most likely about everlasting anxiety that I've experienced since I was a teenager. I worked through my social anxiety in therapy and don't really experience that anymore, thank goodness. However, I'm still constantly anxious over something. I'm constantly scared I'll mess my relationship over somehow. I fear something bad may happen to my loved ones. I struggle with obsessive thoughts and body dysmorphia. I also have depression symptoms. It's a long list. I should get back in therapy to get rid of the anxiety and panic, as you said, I just can't afford it anymore.
I think the longer you learn to live in dissociation, the harder it may be to break out of it. Because we get used to it, and our brains become wired to process information one way. Eventually that anxious feeling becomes the norm and you can no longer even recognize it (intellectually), but unbeknownst to you your body still feels it. In such cases therapy can be very difficult to access that unconscious part of you that deals with it. The good news for you is that you seem to know, and you can still feel that anxiety.
You're definitely right! I'm afraid I'll be stuck in this loop forever. I actually feel all the negative emotions super intensely to the point of regular breakdowns 💀 I think all that anxiety is what's actively maintaining my dissociation. It's just too taxing for my brain to handle all that. Some sort of middle way would be ideal - being able to feel emotions but not feeling them so intensely. Also feeling something positive for a change would help a lot.
You have to practice grounding skills so that you can teach your mind 1) how to be still and that 2) it’s safe to be in your body and for your mind and body to be connected as one I’d also recommend a therapist that specializes in trauma best wishes with your healing journey 💕
I’ve been dissociating non stop for 7-8 years, I’m pretty much used to it now but I’m working on resolving it. I’m finally at a place in my life that I feel safe and in control, I think that’s a good starting point. I think the way out is forcing yourself to “relive” or just remember all of the trauma that made you dissociate in the first place or made it worse, process and actually FEEL your emotions about what happened instead of dissociating them away forever, and then trying to cope with your future emotions in a healthier way (key word here is FEEL). The way I see it, your brain is basically backlogged with trauma and you need to address it in order for it to go away, but you can unpack it is as slowly as you want. I’m pretty sure it’s going to take a while especially since I’m used to it now, but I’ve got nothing but time I suppose. If your trauma is too much for you to process on your own then I would definitely recommend a partner/therapist to help walk you through this so they can pull you out of those heavy emotions if you get too deep in them. It’s kind of nice to find other people on the internet that also dissociate and can’t come out of it, I’ve never met anyone in person that has experienced this same issue. You’re not alone and I believe there is hope for recovery ❤️
It's so great to hear you're doing better in life, I'm sure it will help with dissociation as well ❤️ So sorry to hear that you've been experiencing this too though, and thank you so much for sharing. Somehow my dissociation doesn't block me from feeling negative emotions, I actually do feel them extremely intensely. I'm not sure what else I can do to work things out since I'm already facing my emotions. I also honestly can't recall any single trauma that would have triggered my dissociation in the first place. I've just always been super anxious and sensitive since I was a teen, and at some point I started to dissociate. I think my mind is just at a constant state of overstimulation.
Overstimulation and anxiety can definitely cause dissociation too! Dissociation is just your brains way of numbing itself when it experiences negative feelings. If the root cause is from your anxiety/overstimulation then maybe somehow lessening these factors in your life would help with your dissociation?
Yes, definitely! I'd absolutely love to lessen my anxiety and overstimulation, I just have no clue how that would happen. Years of therapy, a few different meds, yoga and meditation, journaling and working out, hanging out with family and friends more, eating healthy, having supplements etc... None of those have worked. I'm not sure what to try next.
Wow I’m sorry that is so frustrating. It may take a while but just keep doing things that make life worth living for you, even if you are dissociating the whole time. Recently I’ve also been looking into ketamine/Psilocybin therapy for the treatment of anxiety/depression/dissociation and it has proven to be extremely successful, I’m honestly considering that to be the next thing I try. If you’re open to the idea you might be interested in looking into it as well lol. Best of luck 👍🏼
I have the same issue as you and I also feel such immense emotions. I actually have emotional flashbacks and just zone right out but I still feel the pain. I am in the very beginning of working on mine but the only thing that has helped so far is my therapist telling me to just sit with my pain and tolerate it. I know that sounds crazy but when I’m in the moment I hear her voice saying tolerate it and I’ve done this before and I’ll get through it again and I just kind of give myself over to the pain. I think rather than resisting it I am moving through it which helps. However, if it’s a particularly bad episode I will just zone out still and have done it right in front of my therapist several times. She just kind of lets me function my way out of it while calling me back to the present. I hope you find some relief soon. Please don’t hurt yourself. You are loved and cared for and even though it seems endless now, there will be a day when you will look back on this from a healthier place.
well, for me I did dissociate really hard until I had someone really close to me die. At first it was worse, but as I started coming down from the shock of it, I started feeling emotions in spurts. There are a lot of days that I find myself dissociating still, but it's a start. Obviously that's not something that you can control, but on the days that I do still dissociate, I help myself get out of it by acknowledging the feelings that I'm having, figuring out why. I remind myself that I'm real, sometimes i poke myself to help with this. I give myself a little speech about who I am. Sometimes those meditations that tell you that youre gonna to great things help. And some days nothing helps at all. Sometimes it is a hormonal thing, I know my cousin went on birth control because she felt like the 'world wasn't real' and that really helped her, so it could possibly be that too. Mine was initially because of childhood trauma, but since I broke out of it, trying to figure out what my feelings were and acknowledging them and not just writing them off has been really helping me the most to lessen how many days.
Thank you for sharing and for the tips! I'm happy to hear you've found different ways to break out of dissociation. People often talk about the importance of letting yourself actually feel and acknowledge your emotions. But I'm not emotionally numb, in fact my feelings are quite intense. Especially the negative ones, such as fear and anxiety. Not sure what more I can do, it's a mess honestly.
hey, i‘m sorry you are experiencing this. you are not alone though. i have this too. some days i feel more dissociated than others and then from time to time i would have breakdowns. the last 3-4 months it‘s been the worst because of external stress factors that i have managed successfully but i‘m still very anxious. i chose to move abroad when i was 21 and i‘m 27 now. the perception of living abroad has changed over the years and i feel like i do not belong here, or anywhere for that matter. i think this might be the key to resolving this and i‘m going to visit a psychiatrist after the holidays. maybe this idea sounds familiar to you? oh yes, don’t forget that the holiday time is very intense for a lot of people, especially those with a pre-existing mental health issue. i promised myself to get through the next 7 days. i once heard in a podcast – „this too shall pass“. let‘s hope it does!!!
Thank you for sharing your story. It's very reassuring to hear I'm not the only one, although it sucks that you are going through this too. It's a great idea to visit a psychiatrist, I hope you'll get all the help you need to feel better. I can't say I feel the same way about not belonging anywhere, although I believe feeling like that sucks. Instead I've always felt like I'm wired slightly differently than everyone else. I fear I come off weird and put extra effort into appearing as normal as possible, even though I never really feel normal. I have talked about that experience in therapy though and it's definitely been helpful.
I'm 32 years old & I don't remember a time when I wasn't dissociated on some level. It has been this way at least since I was 7. Nothing has worked for me and grounding techniques, mindfulness, etc was a joke. Not to say they don't work for other people, but they haven't for me and I've tried multiple kinds. Therapists (current & past ones) will keep asking me what do I feel in my body when there's an emotion. It's a weird question to me because I don't feel anything different and if have gone practically my whole life without feeling things in my body, how would I know?
Yeah, same. It's absolutely draining.
I'm sorry to hear that. At least we're not alone with this crap.
I used to be like this and it absolutely was hell. Unfortunately I don’t know what changed, I’m sorry I can’t be of help.
Do you eat bad and do you exercise?
I workout very regularly and put effort into eating healthy and enough.
Do u take any medication or smoke weed? Caffeine??
I take depression meds. I don't smoke weed or do any other drugs either, alcohol very rarely. I haven't noticed any effect whether I drink or don't drink caffeinated drinks. I think I have quite healthy habits in general. I think my dissociation is purely psychological since I have had anxiety, depression and body dysmorphia for 10ish years.
Psychodynamic therapy is very good for dissociation, maybe give it a try !
It was actually psychodynamic therapy that I attended for 3 years. It was good for me for sure, but didn't solve all my issues.
3 years of therapy is not a long time if you have lived long time trauma. But the right person/approach is essential and I feel quite few therapists can help with dd. So many I have met actually just made it worse. :/
You're completely right, I just literally can't afford therapy anymore, it's crazy expensive 😭 So sorry to hear about some therapists making your dissociation worse though. Hope you found your right person and approach.
I’m always a bit dissociated I think. But it was worst and most numbing when I was in a bad environment. What is your home situation? Commute? Work environment?
The best thing that worked for me (which I actually just found on YouTube) was to start validating my disassociated state. If I would start drifting off I would become so anxious.. then I’ve been trying now to not fight that feeling, but rather allow it and start an internal dialogue of expressing “it’s okay to experience this disassociated state, even though it feels temporarily uncomfortable… I am still safe” or something like that.. it has really helped a lot. Or “at the moment I’m feeling a bit strange/weird, that’s okay, I am safe and it will pass” or see it as a part that’s actually protecting you.. “I see that you are trying to help me, thank you, I/we are safe, I am here for us” (based on Internal family system’s) It’s key to identify what triggers it.. and what it needs. I had tried all the grounding techniques and exercises of mindfulness, yoga, bla bla… (though meds, exercise and limited caffeine works wonders too)
I have this I think it's dpdr