derealization

so i just realized that i’m having panic/anxiety attacks related to derealization. basically i think about existing and being my own being that only i control and no one else. then i start to panic and i just did that about half an hour again. i then start to worry that i don’t want to be here which has been leading into suicidal ocd because i’ve never actually been suicidal (and am NOT). i get really bad nausea when these attacks happen and it’s really scary because then my emetaphobia gets triggered. does anyone have techniques about how to ground yourself and calm down when you feel it coming?

Username: AntoniOcdAntoniOcd

Date posted: 25w ago

I’ve had dizzying existential thoughts, although it didn’t become an obsessive anxiety in my case. But as a kid I do remember having to get used to the awesome/overwhelming realization of having the power to act in such consequential ways. Thoughts like what stopping me from impulsively running across these train tracks now… could I make it? Scared me because I too had no wish to risk dying! Not sure if this is similar to the thoughts bothering you now. But here’s a simple grounding exercise I like: Name 5 things you can see; 4 things you can hear (you could make a sound, like knock on wood) 3 things you can feel 2 you can smell 1 you can taste. Just a way to get out of the tunnel vision of mental space and be aware of the simple reality you’re in.

Username: flowerpetalsflowerpetals

Date posted: 25w ago

@AntoniOcd thank you for this! i actually did that exercise earlier this afternoon and i did notice it helped a little bit. i’m going to look into more mindfulness techniques and hopefully that will help a little bit

Username: khloe!!khloe!!

Date posted: 25w ago

@AntoniOcd I love the 5,4,3,2,1 technique! Great for anxiety attacks.

Username: khloe!!khloe!!

Date posted: 25w ago

I like to put ice cubes on my lips and neck. Heres the thing tho, when i used to do these techniques, i used to think the feeling would IMMEDIATELY go away. (and not to worry you, cause for you, it might.) But for me personally, i was always a person who it was harder to ground, so if you try the techniques and they don’t immediately work, try not to panic or get discouraged. It takes time and patience sometimes. Aside from that, you can also try to talk to immediate family/friends/partners if you can. And if you have any pets, like kittys, doggys, any other animal, try to get some cuddle time. Animals have great energy frequencies that can calm our anxiety. Its amazing. I hope you feel better, and i hope these work. If they dont, like i said, dont get discouraged! I know its scary, ive been in a dissociation episode for a while, i know how it feels. Try to relax my friend. Im here to vent/chat!! 😊😊🙏💖💖

Username: flowerpetalsflowerpetals

Date posted: 25w ago

@khloe!! i really appreciate this!! when i feel myself getting panicked, i actually do put a cold pack on my neck. it’s doesn’t work right away and sometimes it doesn’t work at all, but it does do a little. i was doing fairly well at college in regards to derealization. i think because i have so much time over the summer, anxiety and everything along with it gets worse and i feel so overwhelmed all the time. but thank you so much for the support and helping me not to feel alone 🫶🏻🫶🏻

Username: Ocdsucks44Ocdsucks44

Date posted: 25w ago

This is exactly what I have been feeling! I have been obsessed with the thought of nothing being real and my ocd will keep me thinking about it all day leading to panic attacks. The best thing that I’m trying to do is accepting that I have these feelings and that thoughts are not reality, and try to find grounding tips that help me. Also the more you worry about feeling a certain way it will cause you to now be afraid of the feeling and your body sees it as danger which causes you to get anxious, but if you start accepting the feeling and taking away the danger your brain has linked to it, instead try to find something positive out of it to convince your brain that it’s not something to panic over. It’s been slowly helping me cope so I hope it can for you too. We are strong and in this together, we can get through it!

Username: flowerpetalsflowerpetals

Date posted: 25w ago

@Ocdsucks44 i’ve been doing better at accepting these thoughts, especially with my harm thoughts. however i definitely have tough times because i will constantly tell myself that if i’m not anxious or worried then that must i want it or believe it. i also get the occasional existential thoughts and they really freak me out. especially last year when i was really struggling with my harm thoughts. it’s just really touch to see through all the obstacles ur mind throws at you. but i too believe we’re strong enough to make it past it and we’ll be so unbelievably proud that we did it!

Username: maryel04

Date posted: 1y ago

Obsessing over reality

I have been going through a really hard time lately in regard to my existential ocd. Not only that but my health anxiety has been horrible. What I wanted to bring up to see if a conversation could be had was my derealization. I have been having severe random bouts of derealization that are genuinely starting to feel debilitating. The best way I can describe it is I get sick to my stomach when I think about life, being alive, I convince myself im in a dream, that im stuck in a time loop and nothing around me is real and that ive been making up my entire life. With this also comes the intense feeling that everything has already happened before, its like deja vu but almost worse. I will be in moments lately and every single thing feels like it already happened, then that spirals into me believing nothing is real and im stuck in some kind of dream. Everything feels familiar, everything had already happened, sometimes stuff feels so familiar it genuinely will make me start to throw up because im so scared. Can someone please have a discussion with me and just let me know if theyve felt this way, what I should do, and if itll ever get better? Im genuinely convinced life will feel this way forever and im never going to be okay with being alive again and it genuinely makes me feel insane and so terrified. Thank you.

Username: anonymous55

Date posted: 40w ago

existential ocd

how to stop existential ocd? I developed dpdr (depersonalisation and derealisation) from this. my toughts are horrible I can't even explain them. I think no one can understand this, just people who also go trought this. everything I think about turns into a horrible existential crisis and I loose connection with my body I see myslef from 3rd position, everything goes blurry and U can't hear properly. I feel so disconnected from reality. sometimes I just feel like I don't have to do anything or I can do anything because I don't even exist, nothing is real. I literally saw a car coming my way amd i had a tought it doesn't matter I can go through the street because I'm not real, i dont exist, so i did that and then later I realised what happened and im really scared now of what I am capable to do. how do I stop this? I'm on meds but I don't think they work, I've also tried many different therapists but I don't feel comfortable with anyone and nothing seems to work

Username: beincreative

Date posted: 25w ago

DPDR & Existential OCD

Been really struggling with existential OCD since I’ve been dealing with derealization due to high stress levels. I constantly ruminate on how weird it is that we exist. I often ponder solipsism, too. Sometimes I convince myself I am the only person that exists and so I start to try to test that theory by asking questions to my family/friends and trying to predict their answers. I find this ridiculous intellectually but it’s a compulsion I can’t seem to stop. I find existential themes particularly distressing due to the fact that these ideas are unfalsifiable for the most part. Every day I wake up in a dissociated state, constantly feeling this awful dread about existence and how strange it is and how alone I feel in it even though I am not alone technically.

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