Our psyche is so deep and multifaceted that there is no end to its study. Only scientists will deal with one riddle, it throws up new ones. So, relatively recently, derealization has appeared in the list of problems that psychology deals with. This term was introduced at the end of the last century, and the first description of such a phenomenon was made in 1873 by the psychiatrist M. Krisgaber. During this time, the symptoms of derealization and the causes of its occurrence have been well studied and developed effective treatment methods. However, derealization remains one of the most interesting phenomena in psychology, causing a lot of scientific debate and discussion.
Derealization: what is it?
It is easy to understand this term if we recall that the prefix "de" in many words means opposition, cancellation, absence, exclusion. For example, encryption - decryption, mobilization - demobilization. That is, derealization means opposition, the exclusion of reality.
In medicine, this term is explained as such a state of the human psyche in which the perception of the surrounding reality is disturbed, and the ordinary world and the simplest everyday things begin to be seen from a completely different angle. Some experts associate derealization with depersonalization, calling it allopsychic depersonalization, while others do not see a big difference between these two states. Confirmation of this point of view is that many of the symptoms of derealization and depersonalization are identical. As such, this condition is not considered a disease. Doctors are more inclined to believe that this is a unique protective mechanism of the human psyche that helps to maintain stable brain function in certain extreme situations that develop in life.
Symptoms
Few people in their life did not happen events that could “unsettle”, plunge into despair, lead to mental disorders. But not everyone under the weight of circumstances began derealization. Or maybe we all have this phenomenon, we just don’t know about it? To understand, you need to know the symptoms of derealization. In this condition, changes occur in the perception of such things:
- colors;
- sounds;
- smells;
- time;
- space;
- touch;
- surrounding objects;
- daily activities;
- his "I".
That is, a person sees all this, feels, understands, but not as always. The most interesting thing is that those suffering from derealization are absolutely adequate and are well aware that they are as if lost in space and in reality. This exacerbates their mental disorder. Sometimes the symptoms of derealization can be “deja vu” or its opposite - “never knew anything like this”.
The difference between derealization and other mental illnesses
According to medical statistics, about 3% of the world's population suffers, to one degree or another, from derealization. In patients with schizophrenia, this is one of the main signs of the disease. Symptoms of derealization are observed in almost every drug addict who is “under the dose”.
Nevertheless, this state of mind has differences from diseases similar to it. So, with derealization, visions of nonexistent objects or actions do not arise, as with hallucinations. Also, there are no illusions about the visible and the audible. Dereazization differs from schizophrenia in the absence of any mania, mental automatism of obsessions.
Causes
It is almost completely proven that residents of megacities are more susceptible to derealization than small towns and villages. Numerous studies of this problem revealed that suspicious, impressionable, anxious and overly emotional people most often have derealization.
The reasons for its occurrence are as follows:
- transferred stress;
- regular lack of sleep, work, as they say, for wear;
- deprivation (suppression of the desires of large and small);
- the inability to implement the plan;
- depression, loneliness;
- taking psychotropic drugs;
- panic caused by extraordinary events;
- some diseases (vegetovascular dystonia, neurosis and others).
Derealization and cervical osteochondrosis
In some diseases, a mental disorder such as derealization, with cervical osteochondrosis, for example, can also be observed. This disease is characterized by damage to the intervertebral disc in the cervical spine. Often this leads to pinching of the nerve endings and blood vessels, which, in turn, contributes to the appearance of symptoms of derealization. Cervical osteochondrosis is provoked by: incorrect position of the head on the pillow, neck injuries, stoop or scoliosis, regular forced holding of the neck and head in uncomfortable poses (for example, at work). If derealization is associated with cervical osteochondrosis, the patient is prescribed appropriate treatment. The patient’s psyche is restored.
Derealization in childhood and adolescence
Children, even those who are absolutely healthy, often experience symptoms of derealization, such as seeing the world differently, identifying themselves with some kind of animal, representing their body (arms, legs, head, and so on) not as they really are. There is nothing dangerous here, it’s just that the child is learning how to perceive the surrounding reality.
More dangerous if derealization occurs in adolescents. It can cause the same reasons as in adults. The following are also added to them:
- The process of becoming the personality of young people;
- high criteria for self-esteem;
- the study of the anatomy of your body and the emergence of suffering, if something is not like the others;
- instability of the psyche not yet strengthened.
If there is a suspicion of derealization, the teenager should be examined by a therapist, prescribe treatment and give recommendations that may vary in each case.
Description of sensations during derealization
Based on many years of experience, psychotherapists note in patients a feeling of derealization that the patients themselves characterize as a veil, or fog, obscuring the world from them. Some patients feel like under water, so everything seems to them vague and changeable. Almost always, people want to overcome unpleasant obstacles and return to the familiar world.
Another sensation in derealization is the unusual perception of people. So, there are patients who think that people around them have become like mannequins or robots, that there is nothing alive in them.
The sense of derealization often changes the perception of objects. It seems to the patient, as if things themselves are constantly trying to catch their eye, becoming intrusive.
Frequently recorded complaints of patients are also altered perceptions of some or all sounds, even their own voices, and in some patients their own bodies. Sometimes it seems to patients that his body has disappeared somewhere, and they ask those nearby to feel, touch, whether their arm or leg is in place.
In general, sufferers of derealization perceive the whole world differently. So, cases have been recorded when patients compared reality with lunar landscapes. It seemed to them that everything froze, everything plunged into silence, stillness and a deadly ice void.
Diagnostics
It is not as easy to establish derealization syndrome as it seems, because its symptoms have rather fine lines of differences from some mental illnesses. Ideally, a diagnosis of derealization should include:
- anamnesis;
- examination of the patient and clarification of all his sensations by the doctor;
- use of clinical scales (Nuller, Genkina);
- x-ray;
- ultrasound;
- EEG sleep;
- laboratory tests, as the amount of serotonin, norepinephrine, some acids is disturbed during derealization).
The study of the disease in each case should be subjective (clarification of the patient whether there are similar cases in his family, whether he has experienced similar symptoms before) and objective (interrogation of relatives and friends).
In addition, the doctor should check the patient's reflexes, the condition of his skin and physiological characteristics. Almost always, derealization sufferers are somewhat inhibited, slowly respond to questions asked, often want to isolate themselves. People who have changed the perception of sounds are constantly listening, and those who have feelings of shroud and fog, squint, peer into the surrounding space.
Nuller scale
This is the most commonly used diagnostic method. With its help, find out the degree (score) of the severity of derealization. The Nuller Scale is a questionnaire listing all known symptoms of a given condition. Each symptom, in turn, includes several manifestations. The patient fills out a questionnaire, noting his feelings. After that, the doctor counts the "scores". If there are up to 10, then the degree of derealization is mild, if up to 15, then medium, up to 20 - moderate, up to 25 - classified as severe derealization. How to get rid of this condition? For patients who “scored” from 18 points, doctors are advised to go to hospital. During attacks of derealization, Nuller, a famous psychiatrist and scientist, suggested introducing a fixed dose of diazepam to the patient. This drug relieves the attack in about 20 minutes. In especially difficult cases, this same drug is also used for diagnosis.
Treatment
It is often asked if the diagnosis of “easy derealization” is made, how to get rid of it and is it possible to do this at home? Doctors advise in this case to eliminate the causes of the problem (normalize sleep and all loads, improve nutrition). It is also recommended to change the situation - take a vacation, leave at least a week somewhere in a new place, meet new people. At home it is very useful to take a contrast shower, rub the body well with a towel, and even better - get a massage course, regularly take walks in the fresh air, go in for sports.
If severe or moderate derealization is diagnosed, treatment is carried out medically and in a hospital. Patients are prescribed antidepressants and tranquilizers in combination with a complex of multivitamins, psychotherapeutic courses, and special physiotherapy procedures are conducted.
Often derealization is not independent, but only a syndrome that accompanies more serious diseases, so self-medication can only exacerbate the problem. With the correct diagnosis, derealization is treated simultaneously with the underlying disease. The forecast in each case is individual.
Prevention
Unfortunately, no one is safe from extraordinary events that can burst into life and plunge into a state of shock, causing severe stress. But everyone can strengthen their nervous system, psyche and the body as a whole on a daily basis in order to be able to withstand troubles and easier to tolerate. Ways to strengthen everyone is well known. It:
- practicing sports;
- daily walks in the fresh air;
- balanced diet;
- The correct mode of the day.
In order not to cause derealization syndrome, it is very desirable to be able to live happily, regardless of one's status and financial situation. This means that you need to have some kind of hobby (hobby) that helps the soul to relax from everyday life, not to become isolated, to communicate with friends, to allow yourself to change the atmosphere at least once a year. For this, it is not necessary to travel abroad; you can also travel around your native land.