# Advice, causes of DP, and Stress relief methods.



## dope (Aug 31, 2016)

*All of my advice - in one thread.*

Hello! So quite a while ago I made a topic in which I said that if you wanted any advice or support you could message me, but I realized that not everyone likes to message, and also I don't want to make people wait for their advice. I mean, the reality is that I can't hang around this site everyday. I've got stuff to do, and I can't just drown and self pity everyday. So, I decided to make this so that this would be on this forum forever, and this could potentially reach more people than the other thread I've made.
Also I was having a couple issues with messaging people. Just little stuff that I don't want to experience. I won't mention what it is exactly, but I guess that people need so much support that they overshare. Now that isn't a problem, but at least do it with someone who knows you in real life. In the end I'm just another person on the internet who's looking to help people, but that doesn't have all the answers unfortunately.

If you need immediate help, here's some suicide hotlines: http://www.dpselfhelp.com/forum/index.php?/topic/54170-crisis-suicide-hotlines/

*Disclaimer:*

*I'm not* a real doctor. I'm only telling you what worked for me and this does not come from a professional. This is not guaranteed to help you, so if you truly need help I'd recommend for you to go to an hospital or a psychiatrist.
Also, none of this is meant to cure you right away. These are only aids that help you. If some stuff doesn't work for you remember that not everyone is alike, meaning if something doesn't work for you, something else surely will.
Also, if talking about DP, anxiety, PTSD, depression and etc triggers you, be careful reading this.
Read this at your own risk.

*Table of contents:*

1) My theory on what this is;
2) Causes for DP;
3) Stress and anxiety relief methods and what helps me with DP, relaxation techniques.

*1) My theory on what this is;*

Ok, so for the longest time I've been thinking about this, truly. Keep in mind this is *only* a theory;
I think it stems from either heightened anxiety and stress, or trauma. Or PTSD. Let me explain: Your brain has suffered so much that it decides to completely shut down and disconnect just so you won't stress or feel pain anymore. It's your brain's way of helping you, even though it doesn't help at all, but it's not a death sentence. I don't believe in any way, shape or form that this is a disorder. For me, this is only a symptom from either anxiety, trauma, PTSD, etc. It can be a chronic symptom, and if you have it 24/7 (like me) yours is probably chronic. But chronic doesn't mean forever. It's harder to cure, but that doesn't mean that it's not curable.

*2) Causes for DP;*

These are for me, the biggest causes for DP. For safety though, I'd recommend that you'd get all of your levels checked. It's rare that DP has anything do with levels, at least from what I've seen, but there's always a chance, and to be honest, better safe than sorry.
Blood pressure, sugar levels, anything!

*1) Weed*

Weed is the main culprit of DP/DR. Not only that, it's a drug. For me, no matter how "soft" (if that makes sense) the drug is, it's still changing your state of mind, therefore, it's not good for you to take it, or better, you're not meant to take it. I know this also comes down to personal opinion, but that's just my view and I really believe in it.

Weed contains THC, as you may or may not know, and THC is a *mind altering* chemical, and weed has also other compounds.

"Most people use marijuana because the high makes them feel happy, relaxed, or *detached from reality*."

Source: http://www.webmd.com/mental-health/addiction/marijuana-use-and-its-effects#2

And, also: "Smoking pot can also have less-pleasant effects on your mind and mood, too. You might have:


*A distorted sense of time*
Random thinking
*Paranoia*
*Anxiety*
Depression
*Short-term forgetfulness*"

"Research shows a link between marijuana use and mental health problems like* depression, anxiety, suicidal thoughts, short-term psychosis, and schizophrenia*. While *it's not clear* if marijuana causes these conditions, it can make them worse."

Source: http://www.webmd.com/mental-health/addiction/marijuana-use-and-its-effects#2

"Marijuana overactivates parts of the brain that contain the highest number of these receptors. This causes the "high" that people feel. Other effects include:


altered senses (for example, *seeing brighter colors*)
*altered sense of time*
changes in mood
impaired body movement
difficulty with thinking and problem-solving
*impaired memory*
hallucinations (when taken in high doses)
delusions (when taken in high doses)
psychosis (when taken in high doses)"

Source: https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/marijuana

As this part of the post is only focused on weed, I'm not going to speak about drinking or smoking cigarettes, but I'd advice for you to search their effects.

If you want more details on weed:

1) http://www.webmd.com/mental-health/addiction/marijuana-use-and-its-effects#1
2) https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/marijuana

*2) Anxiety, Depression, Stress, or PTSD*

As I've explained above, all of those things affect why you have DP. Or how bad it is. If you have any of those problems going to a professional would be a great idea.

*3) Maladaptive Dreaming and avoidance from pain and your problems*

"What is maladaptive daydreaming?

Maladaptive daydreaming is a psychiatric condition. It was identified by Professor Eliezer Somer of the University of Haifa in Israel.

This condition causes intense daydreaming that distracts a person from their real life. Many times, real-life events trigger day dreams. These events can include:


topics of conversation
sensory stimuli such as noises or smells
physical experiences

This disorder is not part of the new edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-V). It doesn't have any official treatment. But some experts say it is a real disorder that can have real effects on a person's daily life."

Source: http://www.healthline.com/health/mental-health/maladaptive-daydreaming#overview1

Maladaptive Daydreaming is literally daydreaming conversations, events, anything to escape discomfort. Discomfort like a social setting that you don't feel comfortable in, so you daydream about a story to escape being there, or maybe being bored in a class (boredom is discomfort) and you daydream to escape the boredom of being there.
That looks a lot like ignoring reality, does it not? You're literally disassociating on purpose to escape discomfort.

The avoidance of pain part, is thinking that your problems aren't that bad, and that they don't need fixing or healing, because someone else has it worse than you, or maybe you think it's nothing, and you end up never actually solving any problem.
Any problem, no matter how small or big, needs to be solved. That's why it's called a problem.

I realized I had all of these patterns of avoidance of pain and discomfort. It took me a while to realize how avoidant I was of these things. What made me realize all of this was an amazing video, here's the link: 




Also check out her channel. She helped me a lot. Seriously, a lot.

*3) Stress and anxiety relief methods and what helps me with DP, relaxation techniques.*

*1) Journaling*

Keeping up a diary. I know it may seem silly, but it's so good. You can put in there everything you're feeling, all of your unedited thoughts, everything that has been bothering you. Obviously you don't have to do all of that "Dear Diary" crap.

It's almost like cheap therapy, really. It really makes you know yourself and your brain better. It's very, very good! I very rarely see anyone mentioning journaling, and it's such a shame, honestly, because it's one of the best tips I have.

There's a lot of different journals, and there's a specific one called positivity journal. Speaks for itself. You can use that journal to completely feel it up with stuff that motivates you, people you like, just stuff you like overall. I think that would be a good idea. That way every time you feel down you can come back to that journal and just flip through to get inspired again.
You can put absolutely everything in there. Small positive things that make you happy. Maybe you saw a pretty butterfly and it made you happy! If you look for the beauty in life, you will see it. And if you write it down, you'll never forget it.

Also, there's a lot of good journaling prompts online for anxiety and depression, see if you like any of those.

Here's a list of prompts:

1) https://www.bustle.com/articles/156986-7-journal-prompts-that-will-help-tackle-anxiety
2) http://thefocusonyou.com/20-journal-prompts-anger-anxiety

Journaling is such an outlet. It's just a space that's purely yours. You can put there all of the messed up thoughts that come up with DP. You get to write them down, but you also get to judge those thoughts and really brake them down to why you're having them, if there's any evidence if thoughts like "Is the world going to end?" to exist.

You can do self-reflection on your actions. You can just become a third person (well, I mean it's not like you really need to do too much to become a third person with DP) and analyze yourself as if you were someone else. Whatever you did wrong, you can go over ways of what you can do to make it better and to improve yourself next time.

You can pick them up whenever. You can tell them everything, like a non-judgemental close friend. Journals are your friends. You can do anything you want with them, you can literally just scribble on the page, rip the whole thing apart if you're mad.

Also, even though this has absolutely nothing to do with DP, anxiety or depression, it's just fun to go back to a journal you wrote a year ago. It just makes you happy when you look at them and you see how much you've evolved.

The benefits of Journaling, if you want to check them out:

1) https://penzu.com/journaling-benefits
2) http://www.appleseeds.org/100_journaling.htm
3) http://www.jenmorriscreative.com/how-journaling-can-change-your-life

*2) Art*

Yes, art! Art is a very good way to relax and let your mind wonder. For me, the best way to use art to calm my mind and relax myself is getting a piece of paper, turn off all of your electronics, get some paint, turn on music you like, and just paint on the whole page. It's absolutely awesome. It just calms you down. It's the no1 thing I do when I need to relax.

There's also something called "art therapy". I think you can guess what it is with the name. It's very good, truly.

Here's some exercises you can do:

1) 2) https://www.expressiveartworkshops.com/expressive-art-resources/100-art-therapy-exercises

I'd recommend also printing out mandalas and coloring them in, or some kind of intricate design that helps you concentrate on what you're doing, brings your awareness back to reality.

Here's some printables:

1) https://www.thebalance.com/free-mandala-coloring-pages-4027232
2) http://www.supercoloring.com/coloring-pages/arts-culture/pattern

*3) Meditation*

"In today's rush, we all think too much - seek too much - want too much - and forget about the joy of just being" - Eckhart Tolle

Meditation, like mindfulness and very simple meditation like trying to only focus on breathing. Here's my favorite ones (there's a whole lot more though, you just have to search):

1) Mindfulness: https://bebrainfit.com/mindfulness-meditation-anxiety

2) Body Scan: https://www.mindful.org/beginners-body-scan-meditation

It helps to distract yourself from all those horrifying thoughts. It's awesome and a lot of people claim that it saved their lives. For me, when a panic attack is about to start, when I feel myself getting nauseous and my muscles getting stuck, when I feel the panic well up inside me, about to get out, I know what to do: Get some guided meditation on youtube, and just meditate. Calms me down right away. It's a very good practice.

Benefits of meditation: http://liveanddare.com/benefits-of-meditation

*4) Exercise*

It gets your blood pumping! All of the stress is released, you forget your problems because you have to focus on the task at hand. It grounds you, connects you to your body. I know with DP exercise really seems quite impossible - for me even thinking about exercise makes me afraid. Afraid because when I get outside, it almost seems as if I'm going to faint at any moment. It's not being afraid of going outside, but my disconnection makes me feel that way. I'm not 100% sure why, but it's that way for me. But it all mostly has to do with my anxiety as well, because that's how anxiety makes you feel.

Benefits for exercise: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/27/mental-health-benefits-exercise_n_2956099.html

*5) Healthy living*

And, for the last one, healthy living. If your body isn't healthy, why do you expect your mind to be?

Healthy sleep schedule - Keeping a regular sleep schedule is very important. That's why I have DP in the first place! I didn't sleep for a very, very long time and I had a panic attack. And the rest is history.
Make sure to have at least 8 hrs of sleep everyday. It's a requirement to function well. You have to give your brain a rest, too.
Also, at least one hour before you go to bed, make sure to get some no-electronic time.
If you have a bad time sleeping, that's essential because if the light from your phone or computer is shining on your eyes, your brain thinks it should be active.
Read a book, listen to some music, meditate, journal, just anything to make you relaxed and that helps you prepare for your sleep.

Eating healthy - No matter how bad you want to eat junk food, it's not good for you. It takes healthy eating for your body to function well. It's just how it is.
Stuff like drinking water, eating vegetables, eating a lot of fruit, don't drink shit drinks like coca-cola and stuff like that. They have so much sugar, and sugar is honestly such a drug. Seriously: http://metro.co.uk/2014/11/24/sugar-is-killing-us-heres-why-and-how-you-can-give-it-up-4926123/

*6) Feel life*

When I mean "feel life" I mean focus on your surroundings and on how everything feels. At night, when you're going to sleep, notice how your sheets go from being cold to hot in a couple minutes. That's your body heat. That's your alive body igniting heat! 
Feel how the sheets feel on your skin. Let your back sink into your mattress, feel how soft and comfortable it is.
Put your hand in very cold water just to feel it! Get your hand in warm (not hot, obviously be careful not to burn yourself) water just to feel it!
Get music you can connect with, blast it and dance like crazy! Feel how hot and tired you get, and how your heart gets faster, but how fun it is!

"Research shows that listening to soothing music can lower blood pressure, heart rate, and anxiety. "Create a playlist of songs or nature sounds (the ocean, a bubbling brook, birds chirping), and allow your mind to focus on the different melodies, instruments, or singers in the piece," Benninger says. You also can blow off steam by rocking out to more upbeat tunes -- or singing at the top of your lungs!"

Source: http://www.webmd.com/balance/guide/blissing-out-10-relaxation-techniques-reduce-stress-spot#2

Put on sad films just to cry! Put on happy films just to laugh. Search up dogs that were abandoned so you can cry when they are adopted and are happy again!
Anything that can help you connect with your emotions (emotions, that yes, are still there). Anything at all that makes you feel like a human all over again, even if it is laying in the sun and feeling how warm it is on your skin.
Enjoy the texture and taste of each bite of food. When you're walking, feel the wind on your face.

And lastly, something that isn't advice for DP, help. Help everyone. If you have advice, you should share it, and you should help people with it. Everything that you find out about DP, anything that helps you, share it because who knows, it might help someone.

Other helpful links (these can be topics or videos, or extra links (mostly extra links), anything really that doesn't have a place in the other things):

https://www.livingwell.org.au/mindfulness-exercises-3/
http://www.dpselfhelp.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=73218
http://www.dpselfhelp.com/forum/index.php?/topic/18880-read-this-if-you-want-to-recover/
http://panicend.com/
https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/96/3e/26/963e268fcb1a1b4728cf2f4bd305df37--daily-meditation-meditation-benefits.jpg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WbgfzP_ixxs=1s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AKWZd6dXMYc=1s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JanZW-l1ct8=1s




https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JBdyQ5PcQGA&t=1s
http://www.dpselfhelp.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=52947





https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50CWQrgi5FQ





http://nperov.com/health/get-rid-derealization-depersonalization-mindfulness-aproach/





That's all! If you have any more advice, please do comment with it bellow and I'll make sure to add it in. 
I hope you guys like this! I spend hours on this, but it's worth it.
Also, I might edit this as time goes on.

Any question message me ^^


----------



## pisces092 (Aug 17, 2017)

Thank you SO much for posting this!


----------



## dope (Aug 31, 2016)

pisces092 said:


> Thank you SO much for posting this!


No problem


----------



## dope (Aug 31, 2016)

Bump


----------



## dope (Aug 31, 2016)

Bump.


----------



## dope (Aug 31, 2016)

Bump! Sorry for bumping so often, but I've made a lot of edits to this post today.


----------

