# 100% Recovered - The TRUE CURE - Read, then never come back EVER AGAIN!



## jamesmac1985

I am going to keep this post as short and factual as possible. First cause I haven't opened a DP forum in many years now, and I don't want to. Leaving all those online resources behind is what started my journey to recovery. I will not come back on this forum to reply to any question. I said goodbye to DP & DR and don't want to get back to them.

I am simply sharing this post today, because this is the post I wish I had read when I was at my worse, and I just realized how grateful I am to be able to enjoy life now.

Kepp in mind that 99% of the people who recovered from DP and DR never come back on forums.

*NO MATTER HOW BAD YOU THINK YOU ARE MESSED UP, YOU CAN AND WILL RECOVER. PERIOD ! How I know? Cause I FULLY (100%, not 99%... 100% !) RECOVERED from multiple bouts with DP and DR, and have been COMPLETELY free from them for years now.*

*Important*: The following information is ONLY my opinion, based on my personal experience. I am not recommending nor advising anything here, just sharing what worked and didn't work for me.

And sorry for my english, it's not my native language.

*MY STORY*

I always had been a VERY anxious child (OCD, Generalized anxiety, etc.) But I never really showed it to anyone so I never had any counseling or treatment or whatever.

At 18, I was very depressed because of stuff happening in High School for months. Got very drunk one night with friends and woke up feeling super High and "not in touch" with my surroundings. Was super hard to explain that sensation. I still can't really.

During the following weeks, I did ALL medical exams you could imagine. Everything came back good. But I knew this wasn't my normal state of perceptions (I would watch my hands be "what the F* is this, I feel high but I have been sober for weeks! I must have fried something in my brain. It must be a brain degenerative disease, etc."). I freaked out for weeks.

*What saved me?* I had exams to enter a University in Europe. At the time I was 100% sure I would never be able to study, I had zero focus and I felt High all the time. But guess what, I started studying for the exams, I met a girl and little by little, I *FORGOT *about my condition. Studying and falling in love took my attention away from the DR and DP. Then after I pass my exams successfully, I realized "Damn, I'm back to normal".

I was free of DP & DR for 4 years, thought about it once in a while but it didn't have any effect on me. And I repeat, I had NO MORE SYMPTOMS. It was GONE.

At 22, my girlfriend broke up with me. She was the most important person in my life. I started to spiral down hard into depression and anxiety, restarting partying and drinking in a non-healthy way. I felt the anxiety building up in my body. And one day BOOM, I wake up with full blown DP & DR gain. Keep in mind that at this point I still didn't know what DP or DR were. So here we go again, medical tests, etc. Same thing, everything came back clean.

Problem is this time, I had no goals or no one to take my focus away from my ANXIETY.

I started searching like crazy online to try to understand what the F* was happening to me again. Then I found out about DP & DR. At first I thought "Bullsh*t, stress can't do that. I have been stressed since I'm born and I've always been fine." Then little by little I started to accept the idea that stress (cortisol + adrenaline) can indeed ACCUMULATE in the body, until one day it's too much to handle and BOOM you got DR and DP.

I spent THOUSANDS of hours researching (*DO NOT DO THAT!*) and I started to OBSESS about my symptoms. I got freaked out by the people who were saying "I have been like this for 10 years, etc.". It only added more anxiety to the mix. I would feel relieved by some stories then the next one threw me into full panic mode.... *DO NOT get freaked out by story of 10 years sufferer... These people have been and are still on forums, which means they never took the first step to get better which is never search about DP & DR angain and go live your life. How can they heal if they remain in this negative anxiety loop???*

I spent almost a year being DP & DR during this bout until one day I though "F*ck it, there's no point living like this. Two solutions : I end myself, or I stop thinking about it and live my life even if it's a diminished life". I also thought "so many people are in wheelchairs, etc and they live their lifes. So why couldn't I live mine? Even if my brain is crippled. Plus, since I'm crippled now, then let's do some awesome stuff that I would have been scared to do before. If I die doing them, then so what. Better to go down having fun!".

I booked a ticket for a fitness camp, left everything behind, then started skydiving, motorbike riding, Kitesurfing, etc. My parents told me that I was doing a mistake, that I should remain home and get treatment. I basically told them to F*ck off. I've been trying their way for a year and it didn't help me at all. Plus, it's MY life!

*I closed all my browser tabs, deleted all my bookmarks, etc. and never came back on any forum*. I restarted living, having fun, etc. It was *EXTREMELY hard at first*, cause the thoughts of DP & DR were with me *ALL the time, every second of the day.* But little by little, as I was engaging in more activities that required my full attention (sky diving, etc.) the thoughts started to disappear a little bit.

Until one day, they were just gone, and I was back to normal again.

I was FREE again from DP & DR for 3 years.

Then 3 years, later: bad break up (again...!), had no more fun in my life, had to work in a job that I didn' like, family issues, etc. And... BOOM again. Woke up with DP & DR. Only this time, I knew what to do : restart having fun and do not care about my condition. Took 3 weeks to get rid of all the symptoms.

I have now been COMPLETELY free from any sort of DP & DR for 4 years +. Sometimes I think about it "what if DP & DR come back? How am I feeling today?", but it happens very rarely (maybe once every 6 weeks) and the thoughts have literally ZERO power over me, so they can't engage me and take me down in the loop anymore... I know treat them like any stupid thought that any human have on a daily basis but disregard immediately cause they don't make sense.

DP & DR can come back BUT they will only come back as long as you are scared by them. The day you genuinely don't give a F*ck anymore, the thoughts will pas through your mind and no stick in there.

*IMPORTANT POINTS THAT I WANT TO MENTION:*

*DP & DR are ANXIETY SYMPTOMS*. If you have been medically & mentally checked and cleared, meaning doctors told you you only have anxiety, then be confident that you only have Anxiety, nothing more. It was very hard to accept for me but once I accepted it, my journey to recovery started. Reduce your anxiety level and those symptoms will disappear.

*IF YOU ARE ASKING YOURSELF IF I HAD THE SYMPTOMS AS YOU ARE HEAVING... OH YES!* I had every and any symptom you can imagine! Hell, I even started having symptoms just by reading them on some forums!

So stop asking yourself if you're different, if your case is worse than others, if someone else has the same symptoms... you simply have ANXIETY and when you are in a SENSITIZED state like that, every fearful thought that can pass by your mind will start to OBSESS YOU. You're like a giant magnet for negative thoughts and emotions right now. So STOP looking for reassurance, stop looking for anwsers,* the answer is simply to LIVE*.

*DP & DR are the symptoms of an OVER SENSITZED STATE*. When we are stressed, stress hormones start flowing our bodies. Normally, as we calm down, these hormones are eliminated from our organism little by little. DP & DR appear when we got so stressed that these hormones got overproduced and physical DP/DR symptoms suddenly appear. If we cooled down, those symptoms would leave as the hormones would level down with time. Problem is DP/DR symptoms are so scary that we freak out and keep on adding new stress hormones in a body that is already over-saturated. And here the VICIOUS cycle auto fuels itself. Know that to stop these DP/DR symptoms, the only thing we have to do is to&#8230; RELAX so the stress hormones go back to normal level.

*How to you reduce your Anxiety level:*

*STOP RESEARCHING ABOUT Anxiety or DP or DR*. Get the F*ck off your computer, never open a website or a forum about DP or DR ever again and go do something that requires some focus. RESTART LIVING, that's the key. If you feel you can't live because of all the symptoms, then *FAKE IT UNTIL YOU MAKE IT!*

By pushing yourself to live even if you don't enjoy it, you're telling your brain to restart a normal and more healthy functioning process. As long as you are searching for Info, for a cure, for people to relate to, etc. you are FUELLING your anxiety and therefore your DP & DR.

*DO NOT EVER read another DP/DR story or even google it. Leave this forum and never come back!*

*TELL YOUR THOUGHTS TO F*CK OFF*. Everytime you are having a thought "I feel weird, I still got DR or DP right? tell your mind to sh*t up and take your attention back to what you were doing". It will be VERY hard at the begining but trust me, little by little it will become much easier.

*DO NOT CHECK your symptoms!* Do not give them any attention. This is CRUCIAL, stop cheking!

*My experience:*

*Did I take any pill? [Once again, the following is ONLY my opinion, based on my personal experience. I am not recommending nor advising anything here, just sharing what worked and didn't work for me]* I went to see a psychiatrists and multiple doctors, cause I thought I was Schizo or Bipolar or something at some point. I thought "it can't be only anxiety, no way. I must be mentally ill".

They all confirmed that it was ONLY anxiety. That's the only good thing those "Professionals" did for me. They didn't not help me whatsoever except trying to push antidepressants into my throat (which I some point accepted to take and realized that it was only making things worse for me) and making my wallet lighter of 100 dollars per session. So yes, I tried pills and ditched them after few weeks. They didn't help me at all, quite the opposite. They made me feel foggy and dizzy and numbed my emotions (well, what's was left of my emotions...)

*DID THERAPY HELP?* In my case, It never helped at all and was in fact counterp-roductive. Why? Cause it kept me in the Anxiety loop by talking about it, analyzing it and looking for solutions to cure it instead of just trying to forget about it (which is the KEY to recovery). I repeat,* if you want to CURE ANXIETY/DP/DR, then STOP LOOKING FOR CURES. The only cure is to move on and stop thinking/talking/researching about it!*

*Did I take any supplements?* YES, I tried dozen of supplements. They did NOTHING for me. Why? Cause I had Anxiety! It's not CURED by pills. It's cured by gently bringing back the thoughts pattern of your mind to a normal and healthy way of functioning.

One exception tho : Have your *Vitamin D* level checked! I was very low in Vitamin D and it's linked to greater risks of depression and Anxiety. As soon as I started getting some sun, my Vitamin D level got back to a healthy level and I felt instantly better.

A good *Healthy diet* has also been beneficial for me. I cut sugar too. Less headaches, more energy to work out, etc. Eat well, but don't spend your money in PILLS, they are not the solution. The solution is in YOU LIVING YOUR LIFE.

*My brain was LYING to me*. I felt my LIFE WAS OVER but that was a LIE. Realize that your brain is on Figh-or-flight mode, it perceives everything as a threat right now. It will take every fear that you have and make you believe it's the truth. IT IS NOT! Your brain is lying to you right now. Accept it.

*The concept of "FLOW"*. Basically, FLOW is when you are so focused onto something, that you forget all the rest, you even lose the notion of time. That's what happens when you do surfing, or boxing, or making love, or playing an instrument, even when you play video games.

Your brain is so focused on the task that all the rest disappear. You want to *MAXIMISE your moments of FLOW as much as you can*. The more you will be in a FLOW state, the more your anxiety will go down, the more your DP & DR thoughts will quite down. So go find something that you used to love doing, or any challenging activity that you would like to do and DO IT. *I repeat, even if it's nearly impossible at first, keep trying and you will improve until you are 100% CURED.*

I don't recommend using computer or TV to try to enter a FLOW state. They always made me more anxious and they don't make you connect to your body. Doing a physical activity was always 100x more beneficial for me.

*STOP LOOKING FOR CURES!!* *The cure is to forget about DP/DR ad Anxiety in general*. I know it feels impossible right now cause you think about it every second of your day. But trust me, over time, you'll start thinking about it for only 1 every other second, then you'll stop thinking about for few seconds, then few minutes per day, then sometimes for hours&#8230; Until someday, you don't care anymore about it.

That's it. *YOU WILL RECOVER if you get off from your computer and force yourself to live. It will take time, it won't happen overnight. It took me months during my first bouts. But much less during my last one, cause I knew what to do then. Now you know what to do too!*

*You will get there, I promise. Remember, FAKE IT TILL YOU MAKE it! Now go living and NEVER COME BACK looking for more info, for a cure or for some reassurance. Everytime you will fall for that reassurance compulsion, you will fuel your ANXIETY again and delay your progress. So be strong, and never come back EVER AGAIN!*


----------



## whataraindyday

But what about DP/DR and psychosis? I can't let that thought go...


----------



## forestx5

May the "Flow" be with you!


----------



## compound

I belive the OP. I did not read all of it, but recover from dizziness blurred vision and visual snow like symptoms is possible. It is most likely subconcious stressors and anxiety. You might have some lingering symptoms, but they will be trivial. Full recovery is possible, I belive.


----------



## Ahungerf

Jamesmac1985 what about light sensitivity? Did u have this? Did it fade? I feel like I can get distracted and super busy w life but the moment I pick up a glimpse of the sun shinning it creates that instant dreamlike detached state. Just stepping outside no matter how consumed I am with things it’s just impossible not to notice how the sky is too bright and creates this artificial backdrop... did u have bright lights cause the dreamlike feeling? Happens at night too with a bright moon out... sky seems to create a disconnected feeling all around me


----------



## Ahungerf

It’s been 2 years since a bad weed high and I’ve read countless times just move on, accept it, stop giving a fuck, I KNOW I need to do this but my brain won’t set it down! Why won’t it click in my head to just stop this shit already and move on!! It consumes my thiughts from the time I wake up no matter what I do or don’t tell myself to think about... how did it FINALLY CLICK for you and you could just move on? No matter what I read or do my brain won’t just switch this shit off!!!


----------



## seb029

I'm exactly like you Ahungerf. I want, i need to move on but for a lot of reasons, my brain reminds me of my condition (like you bright lights but also if im feeling numb, angry for no apparent reason, feeling tense, my brain reminds me, "hey, you have dp/dr, remember ?"), it's really frustrating. I'm in constant loop, "groundhog day" mode but in my head.

Now, i'm trying to really forget i have this condition in the first place, live like "i feel fine and all is well" sort of. I'll see where it goes...But if someone has a better idea, i'm all ears. The "accept dp/dr and move on" technique doesn't work at all for me, or i don't understand how to do it, that's possible too.


----------



## MyBattle

He said he would not answer questions...

I get why this is SO hard to do it is 99% impossible for me too but I do believe he is right, I mean there is no cure anyway so basically this is it for now, if you have other mental issues. Like me I am hypochondriac always had low self esteem/identity issues, I am in benzowithdrawal which latches extreme fear to any threat. Read it takes years to heal from that. I got dp'd because I smoked weed in the withdrawal so my brain was already sensitized. Takes years to heal from that too if you heal.

Right now have agoraphobia which is insane from all this shit, I cant fix this right now like the OP said. But if you are not dealing with all the shit I have I suggest you try this. I would.

maybe once a month I can go outside and do something and distract and there is less DP I know it i true. But I also know that it is brutally hard..

I know its right but unfortunately I don't have the strength atm to do this. If you do TRY IT


----------



## jamesmac1985

Ahungerf : As I said in my post, I got almost ALL the symptoms you can imagine or read online. Of course I had those vision/light issues. At some point, I was at the gym staring at the lights and wondering "WTF is wrong with my eyes"...

To all the others, please understand that I don't need to be rude, I just want to help you. But when you say "I tried to move on, it's not working, etc...". It's BS, how do I know you didn't really try to move on...?? Cause you are on this forum right now!

The very first fundamental step towards recovery is to leave those forums and not come back, stop looking for information, stop looking for cures and reassurance. You don't realize it but coming on those forums, talking about DR/DP, researching about it, ooking for a cure, etc. are COMPULSIONS. You think doing this reassures you or make you feel better, but it only keeps you in the Anxiety vicious cycle.

So when you say "I tried to move on..." I'm sorry, but if that was the case, you would not be on this forum commenting on this post. It's as simle as that. If you can't take the first smallest step (which is again, to stop any research, talk, etc about DP/DR), then how do you expect to walk towards full recovery?

Trust the process, trust the fact that thousands of people have recovered, you're no different, you can recover too but only if you take a leap of faith and follow the steps.

I too, thought at some point that I would never recover. I thought I was the only exception that would never be able to feel better. I was wrong and you are too. You're not an exception and thus you can recover too.

That's it guys, I'm sorry but I'm leaving this forum for good now.

Good luck to you all!


----------



## bartholomew1013

There is no one true cure...That is your experience. That's it. You are discrediting everyone else's experience that was different from yours. There are people who do not suffer from anxiety who have it. It's a symptom of anxiety, PTSD, lack of sleep, lyme disease, seizures, chemical imbalances, the list is endless. A symptom. I'm recovering with nootropics. I have no anxiety or depression, live a full life. I've had periods of DP/DR while sipping a pina colada on the Mexican Riviera...for months. I know many people who have been "cured" from various methods. Exercise or therapy or nootropics or anti-depressants. I know someone who had it from a Vitamin D deficiency. That's it. Had blood tests done, was put on a huge amount of Vit D, and in 3 days was out of it. Some people like myself, come here either to share what is working for them or to hear what is working for others. I'm not obsessed with it at all, if anything I just lived with it for years and ignored it or even tried to find a cure for myself. There is quite a bit of research out there showing the chemical imbalances in the brain. The brain will not always respond to "ignoring" it.


----------



## Sb1234

Did you symptoms include existential thoughts and feelings? Sorry just have to ask once and then absolutely taking your advice. THANK YOU


----------



## Dancing_master

I need ur help. I super agree with ur recovery post. Problem is, I took SSRI for a year for DPDR, and now I am scared it permanently harmed me. Because I cannot feel emotions anymore, and sex drive last 2 months went away (got off drug 8 months ago). Maybe it could be because of the DPDR and stress? But I cannot shake it. I wish I just did what you did and never take SSRI then I would forget DPDR fine... please respond plssssss


----------



## Psyborg

Dancing_master said:


> I need ur help. I super agree with ur recovery post. Problem is, I took SSRI for a year for DPDR, and now I am scared it permanently harmed me. Because I cannot feel emotions anymore, and sex drive last 2 months went away (got off drug 8 months ago). Maybe it could be because of the DPDR and stress? But I cannot shake it. I wish I just did what you did and never take SSRI then I would forget DPDR fine... please respond plssssss


did you stop the ssri abruptly / too fast without lowering the dosage over many months ? (I did . and not only once )


----------



## PerfectFifth

The following may contain a hint of sarcasm:

Wow, kudos to you! You've beaten all the scientists of the world who haven't been able to reach a consensus and find a cure for this. You've found an infallible one-size-fits-all cure! Forget the prior 137 true cures; this one is the actual True Cure™, TC.



> *DO NOT get freaked out by story of 10 years sufferer... These people have been and are still on forums, which means they never took the first step to get better which is never search about DP & DR angain and go live your life. How can they heal if they remain in this negative anxiety loop???*


So to all sufferers of chronic DPDR, it's all your fault! You're a piece of sh*t for not curing yourself! No matter if you have zero anxiety. The author of TC knows these things. I mean, he's found the cure through introspection, and no one else here has done introspection. Every human is identical, after all, and there can be no more than one cause for DPDR symptoms. Hence, TC™!


----------



## Dancing_master

Psyborg said:


> did you stop the ssri abruptly / too fast without lowering the dosage over many months ? (I did . and not only once )


yes both times I kind of did it "fast" but it was what the doctor recommended, but even slower than that though. Took zoloft 8 month went of it in like 2 months maybe less, then took escetalopram for 4 months and got off that in a few weeks but I was on a low dose for that. Zoloft was 50mg most of the time.


----------



## Psyborg

Dancing_master said:


> yes both times I kind of did it "fast" but it was what the doctor recommended, but even slower than that though. Took zoloft 8 month went of it in like 2 months maybe less, then took escetalopram for 4 months and got off that in a few weeks but I was on a low dose for that. Zoloft was 50mg most of the time.


I did it a lot faster which made me feel like shit

I dont think you have done any damage to yourself with taking them


----------



## Dancing_master

Psyborg said:


> I did it a lot faster which made me feel like shit
> 
> I dont think you have done any damage to yourself with taking them


then why is it after i started taking them my emotions went away, i got anhedonia and strange depression (depression left when i got off drugs btw..) and all my dreams are always have bad feelings. and it seems other ppl who take this drug also experience similar.


----------



## Psyborg

Dancing_master said:


> then why is it after i started taking them my emotions went away, i got anhedonia and strange depression (depression left when i got off drugs btw..) and all my dreams are always have bad feelings. and it seems other ppl who take this drug also experience similar.


your body/mind just dont seem to tolerate the meds well . or maybe it was the wrong meds . thats normal I think


----------



## yoloking123

Im gonna be honest, i feel a lot calmer after reading this, but its so hard to relax and just not care. The brain simply just doesn't want to respond to me. Its so tuff


----------



## djones8477

So being in a relationship helped it or just hurt it?

I mean I know it made the shit come back but can it make it go away also?


----------



## Sabby

You can get better. I've had this for 6 months now and don't fear it anymore. I'm going to have some fun and get back to living. I do believe that is the cure.


----------



## Want2lifeagain

Hello how are you


----------



## Sabby

Thank you for sharing.


----------



## Want2lifeagain

Sabby said:


> You can get better. I've had this for 6 months now and don't fear it anymore. I'm going to have some fun and get back to living. I do believe that is the cure.


Are free from dpdr ? How long you have dpdr?


----------



## Ameenlatifcure

Habibi, force urself to remember and think, you’ll break out the disorder ur in believe me.


----------



## C8H11NO3

it reads to me like the OP is still suffering from the effects of DP/DR... it sounds like embracing it worked for them but DP/DR can be part of a wider diagnosis (eg. Parkinson’s) so it doesn’t sound like a great idea to ignore symptoms. 

Troublingly (to me), when my own writing is like the OP’s, it means I’m teetering on the edge of a psychotic break. The OP said they wouldn’t return to the forums, so I hope they continue to do well!


----------



## leminaseri

C8H11NO3 said:


> it reads to me like the OP is still suffering from the effects of DP/DR... it sounds like embracing it worked for them but DP/DR can be part of a wider diagnosis (eg. Parkinson’s) so it doesn’t sound like a great idea to ignore symptoms.
> 
> Troublingly (to me), when my own writing is like the OP’s, it means I’m teetering on the edge of a psychotic break. The OP said they wouldn’t return to the forums, so I hope they continue to do well!


what are you talking?


----------

