Dissociating

[December]

Recently I've been having a lot of trouble staying in reality. It's not so bad that I am not aware of it, it's more that I don't feel like my body is a part of me and that I am somewhere other then where I am. I've had a lot of trouble focusing and remembering things and have been in a general state of anxiety and panic all week.

Is there anything any of you do to help keep yourself from dissociation or having a panic attack? Because I am not sure what's been going on in my head lately or how to stop it, since it's so much worse than before.

[Syvelocin]

My psychologist thinks I'm borderline psychotic, so I can share a bit of what she suggests.

-Get your nutrients. Take a multivitamin, get your omega 3, 6, and 9, B vitamins, and iron most of all.
-Exercise. It keeps you in your body and is good for the mind. Taking a nature walk is a good one.
-Get off the computer, turn off the TV. If I am on the computer too long, I start feeling dissociative and even paranoid. I don't know the science behind that though.
-Do anything grounding. Take a hot bath, or a cold shower. If you're into creative things, do that. I play piano and it's a good activity to keep me thinking and in my body.
-Listen to some appropriate music. By appropriate, I mean that I don't think certain types of music would help the dissociation. I have a lot of synth music that just feels dreamy and numb, something like that I can't imagine would help. But pick something you are really connected with it and just listen to it. The lyrics, the voice. Discern the instruments from each other, pay attention to every element of it. Maybe that's just me, but I find it helps along with other activities.

[georgiamay]

I find that exercise works really well. Sometimes I do 100 sit ups when I feel like I might disassociate, and when it gets to the "I CAN'T DO ANYMORE" stage, I know I've grounded myself, and I won't disassociate.

You might have to try a few things until you find something that works for you, it could be anything that's grounding, and it helps if it's something that you enjoy. I'm a bit of an exercise freaks, so it really works for me.

If you have a close friend that you can just call up and have a conversation with, that could ground you. I don't mean having a deep conversation, I just mean calling them for a chat. It's just a thought though, it's worked for me a few times.

[Nevermore]

Exercise is great way to dissociate. Also shocking yourself. Dumping a bucket of ice water on your head will shock you out of it, or perhaps Getting a friend to scare you. My psychologist said that describing objects around you is a grounding technique. Focus on something, go out and have fun. Oh and if you feel dissociative TV and computer are NOT good ideas. However I use the computer to talk to people so I'm not the greatest at that. If you want anyone to talk to I'm here for you!

[December]

Thanks to all of you for your great advice. I am going to start to try the things you have suggested, and see how things go from there. When I am home, playing piano definitely helps, and track practice is usually a good time for me. I'll just have to see what works for when I can't do those things. Thanks again for the advice :).

[dreamsofsomeday]

I hope you're able to conquer your dissociation. I have dissociation problems, too, and I know they are absolutely terrible to deal with.

[December]

Thank you, I hope you are able to overcome this too :)

[HandheldOutlaw]

As everyone else has said, exercise helps me a lot as well.
Another thing I do is keep a hard object in my pocket. When I feel I am going to dissociate, I press the object hard against my leg (not hard enough to do any harm, so a sharp object is not a good idea) and focus on the sensations.
Hope this helps.

[Spook]

Dissociation is basically memory loss or "amnesia" related to your sexual abuse.

Who said anything about sexual abuse? :confused:

Anyways, what always helps me when I am anxious is a long hot shower. It really gets your mind off things, and kind of wakes you up. I feel alot better afterwards. :)