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Dissociation.. everything is unreal
Q: I do have panic attacks,
but before they start I get a feeling that nothing is real,
including myself. I sometimes feel as if I am standing behind myself
and it is really frightening. I can also feel really dizzy which
only makes everything worse. I do panic, but I panic as a result of
these feelings. No one seems to understand what I am saying. They
think that it is all part of the attack, but it isn't. Stop these
unreal feelings and I won't panic.
A: The research on Dissociation is now speculating that
some people with Panic Disorder, Dissociate first and then panic or
become anxious. A theory we, again, are in complete agreement with.
Another word for Dissociation is Self Hypnotic trance. When
people Dissociate they get a variety of symptoms, including 'out of
body' experiences, not feeling real, seeing their environment
through a white or a gray mist, stationary objects may appear to
move, tunnel vision, sometimes they may feel an electric shock move
through the body, or a 'whoosh' of intense energy. It is quite easy
to induce this state in people who are vulnerable to them. One of
the easiest ways to induce this state is by staring.
When people are driving, they stare at the road ahead or sit and
stare at a red traffic light and without warning they get a number
of the above symptoms. It can also happen watching TV., working on a
computer, reading and many people report fluorescent lights also
help to induce this state. The symptoms are not harmful in
themselves and once people can see how they are doing it, they
lose their fear of them and some people report they now actually
enjoy it when it happens!
If you are not eating properly and/or not getting enough sleep
you become more vulnerable to Dissociation. The American research is
showing that many of us can enter a Dissociate state within a 'split
second.' Recent research is showing that some people can feel quite
dizzy or lightheaded when they dissociate and the fear of what is
happening to them helps to hold them in that state.
I have been working with this theory of Dissociation with very
successful results and I feel it is the major cause for a large sub
group of people with Panic Disorder.
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