can extreme anxiety lead to extreme "depersonalization"?
I've recently begun treatment for a few long-standing anxiety problems, (panic attacks, mostly) caused mostly by growing up around alcoholism/drug addiction. I am currently taking paxil, and have been given klonopin "just in case," as a pre-caution for the first few weeks of treatment.
It seems that between the drugs, which are a bit disorienting to begin with, and the therapy, which has opened a floodgate of memories and emotions, I have been even more disconnected then I am usually. (I have also recently turned to self-injury as a coping mechanism, which might add to this feeling.) I don't drink or smoke, so I know this isn't a result of drug interactions. I also avoid caffeine.
My question is, how "normal" is it to feel so disconnected from your own body, to the point that it doesn't feel like it belongs to you anymore? (I was partially convinced the other day that my hand belonged to someone else.) And, what is causing this phenomenon to begin with? Is it the drugs? The therapy? The self-injury? The panic? Some messy mixture of it all?
You need to bring these issues to your therapist immediately. Indeed the meds or the therapy plus the meds may be causing these disorienting feelings and the self mutilation (cutting) is worrisome to me if it is a new behavior. Again, your therapist needs a call if you are not going to see her (or him) in the next couple of days.
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duranel - I can understand that you are worried about what you've been experiencing. Trying to figure out what brings on these kinds of experiences is all about timing i.e. when did these events occur. Make a time line for yourself so you can try to establish for you and your therapist what the sequence of events was. Unfortunately, when several new events take place at the same time it is often impossible to determine what causes what.
What you are describing is not "normal" so do not simply try to tough it out for a while. Just as suggested you should notify your therapist immediately and be sure to be forthcoming about the cutting. Cutting serves many functions, as you know, and you do want to let it get out of control because you are now needing it to ground yourself from this disorienting experience.
Rick Wirtz
Rick Wirtz is a Psychologist, not a Psychiatrist. Although the majority of Psychologists are not authorized to prescribe medications or give you specific advice about them, they typically have experience working with patients who take a variety of medications. The response above is not intended to diagnose or treat any medical or mental disorder. Any information given in a post about medication is for educational purposes only and primarily to aid you in having an informed discussion with your own physician.
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