# Why is it that some people can recover so fast and others take years?



## Rogue Bullies (Jun 1, 2010)

I am just wondering if anyone knows the actual science behind it. For example my dad said he thinks he had DP from having a panic attack on weed in his 20's. However he said it only lasted about 2 weeks to a month and he was over it. He didn't even know what the odd feeling was, but now that I have it from the same thing he can relate the feelings of it. However why do some people who have DP take years to get over it and someone like my dad can be cured in just a few weeks? Does it matter how or why you got it? Is it just the way some people go about it that makes it last longer? Just curious to see if anyone has any more info on it.

Thanks


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## sonnl (Apr 15, 2009)

I dont think theirs any one reason, just like theirs no one cure.


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## Rogue Bullies (Jun 1, 2010)

It just seems crazy to me that some people take so long to get over it and others can be over it in less than a month. Its a weird issue thats for sure.


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## sonnl (Apr 15, 2009)

It is, but dont let it discourage you. Ive had it for a little over a year, but its finally going away.


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## Hoopesy (Dec 8, 2009)

We all have our own theories but in the end nobody really knows for sure. It's frustrating to see someone have it for a week or 2 then they are fine when you are months into it. No point in getting worked up over it though, all we can do is try and search for our own way out one day at a time.


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## Rogue Bullies (Jun 1, 2010)

I have had it only a little over 3 weeks. I feel I am able to handle it better then I did at first and it seems to be getting better over all day by day (sometimes I got through a rough spell of it depending on the day). I have no idea if I am close to recovery or not or if I am just getting use to it. I am trying not to let it get me down although it does sometimes.


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## Hoopesy (Dec 8, 2009)

Rogue Bullies said:


> I have had it only a little over 3 weeks. I feel I am able to handle it better then I did at first and it seems to be getting better over all day by day (sometimes I got through a rough spell of it depending on the day). I have no idea if I am close to recovery or not or if I am just getting use to it. I am trying not to let it get me down although it does sometimes.


Yeah the first couple of days are bad for everyone. But it's good that you are getting a grip on it early on. Just keep focusing on the small improvements you see each day and not the full recovery. It's good to keep recovery in mind but if we obsess over the finish line we just expect it to come right away and we forget the steps on the path it takes to get there.


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## Guest013 (Apr 26, 2010)

I think it depends on how much you obsess over your DP. People who can't stop thinking about how bad their DP is continue to have DP for a long period of time. People who ignore it and go on with their life, quickly stop noticing their DP and then it disappears all together. I obsessed over my DP for almost 2.5 months. Then I finally just stopped paying attention to it. Now it's been 4 months and its gone.


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## sonnl (Apr 15, 2009)

i dont think its 'not thinking about it', im not saying it doesn't help, but its not the only solution.


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## Rogue Bullies (Jun 1, 2010)

My dad said he just told himself it was just from the drug that made him feel weird and he would be back to normal soon. It was over in about 2 weeks. He has a strong mind though. Obsessing about it doesn't help for sure, but you would think after a year or so you would get use to the feeling of it and stop. It may also depend on how much stress you still have etc.

Since mine is drug related I am hoping it wont take long to cure up. I am just going to try not to worry about it and get on with life. Its actually pisses me off and I just say FUCK IT!


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## dreamingoflife (Oct 22, 2006)

I don't believe thinking about it keeps it around and ignoring it makes it go away. It helps to live a productive life if you don't obsess over it and if your one of the lucky ones it will go away but I have had it for 4 years and there have been times in those 4 years I just lived life and ignored it but it was still there in the background. I will say that thinking about it all the time will make it a lot worse from experience though. I just think our bodies are all different and handle things in different ways so we don't recover the same. The answer to your question is defiantly a mystery that we will never know but I know from my own personal experience that moving on and ignoring it doesn't work for me.


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## guest1234 (Mar 23, 2010)

dreamingoflife said:


> I don't believe thinking about it keeps it around and ignoring it makes it go away. It helps to live a productive life if you don't obsess over it and if your one of the lucky ones it will go away but I have had it for 4 years and there have been times in those 4 years I just lived life and ignored it but it was still there in the background. I will say that thinking about it all the time will make it a lot worse from experience though. I just think our bodies are all different and handle things in different ways so we don't recover the same. The answer to your question is defiantly a mystery that we will never know but I know from my own personal experience that moving on and ignoring it doesn't work for me.


It took me 4 and a half years to get over it. And I do think that obsessing about it and thinking about it all the time made it stick around longer. Some people are just generally more chilled out and less obsessive and less introspective than others. I really do think it is as simple as that.

Definitely working and focusing as much as possible on other things have been key parts of my recovery.
For me also understanding the mechanism was instrumental in my recovery as I am that kind of person who has to understand something to accept it.

Check out my post stickied at the top of this section if you're interested in learning more about the mechanism of it.


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## septimus (Jun 1, 2010)

dreamingoflife said:


> I don't believe thinking about it keeps it around and ignoring it makes it go away. It helps to live a productive life if you don't obsess over it and if your one of the lucky ones it will go away but I have had it for 4 years and there have been times in those 4 years I just lived life and ignored it but it was still there in the background. I will say that thinking about it all the time will make it a lot worse from experience though. I just think our bodies are all different and handle things in different ways so we don't recover the same. *The answer to your question is defiantly* *a mystery that we will never know* but I know from my own personal experience that moving on and ignoring it doesn't work for me.


Now that's no way to think about it, mister(or miss). 
For some it may be more difficult to accept and cope with, as we all have different histories and obsessive habits. It depends on when you allow to let that safety blanket go. That friggin' itchy wool blanket.

I fully agree with guest1234.


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## Xerei (Feb 17, 2010)

Rogue Bullies said:


> I am just wondering if anyone knows the actual science behind it. For example my dad said he thinks he had DP from having a panic attack on weed in his 20's. However he said it only lasted about 2 weeks to a month and he was over it. He didn't even know what the odd feeling was, but now that I have it from the same thing he can relate the feelings of it. However why do some people who have DP take years to get over it and someone like my dad can be cured in just a few weeks? Does it matter how or why you got it? Is it just the way some people go about it that makes it last longer? Just curious to see if anyone has any more info on it.
> 
> Thanks


absolutely everyone that I know that have recovered from DP just stopped thinking about it / stopped caring about it, and voila it was gone.
Like...My friend got a job and kept himself busy, he didn't think about it, and suddenly he noticed it wasn't there. I was outside skating and stuff, suddenly I noticed it wasn't there. Another mate that I know stopped fearing it, questioning it etc, and that way it was gone.
It appears it's THE way to get rid of it, but it don't go away as soon as you stop thinking about it, it takes a little while. You can't expect it to be gone the moment you stop thinking about it, of course it gets weaker/disappears then, but only for a short while, the longer you stop fearing it/thinking about it, the higher the chance is it will be gone. Try, you'll see =)


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## York (Feb 26, 2008)

Part of it HAS to be biological, as I've had it three times and every time it's been different. This time I got it after giving birth, and it struck like lightning, and it was so so bad, I can't even describe it. It didn't get better until I started taking magnesium and saw a reflexologist after thirteen months, my thinking was the same all along.
In the beginning, I seriously felt like I was in my old hose, and like I was a lot younger, that things were totally unfamiliar, that I had no soul... This was a hundred times worse than the first two times which had the more "classic" dp symptoms.

I actually made a list of what was same the last time in my life and what was different, trying to figure out why I'm still dp'd (as I guess my personality is basically the same). One of the differences was pregnancy, obviously, and another was, this time I've taken drugs. Another thing was last time I got to sleep as much as I wanted, this time I can't.


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## Dyna (May 13, 2010)

Was this your first pregnancy?


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## Interested (Mar 14, 2010)

Rogue Bullies said:


> I am just wondering if anyone knows the actual science behind it.


I am not a doctor or scientist obviously, but my guess is that it has to do with the amygdala. My opinion is that dp is anxiety related and hence is brought about by the amygdala. So the recovery probably depends on how serious the perceived threat or fear is. If the perceived threat is not able to be resolved easily then dp can hang around for a long time. This would explain why some people can overcome dp by distraction methods, but other may find this harder to do as the amygdala is more active

This doesn't mean people who have had it a long time can't recover - I am hopeful of finding a way still







Also others have said they have been able to solve it using methods in this thread which is hopeful!

I suspect this is what is going on, but this is just my opinion


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## DiscoStick (Dec 13, 2009)

I've had mine for at least 13 years.
I'm 18.

I'm thinking age of onset might affect everything


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## Speechless (Nov 23, 2009)

It's not about IGNORING it per say, it's about accepting you will have DP temp. and at the same time getting shyt done in your life. I also think that the less your fear DP as time goes by, the more of a chance you have for recovery.


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## Rogue Bullies (Jun 1, 2010)

Interested said:


> I am not a doctor or scientist obviously, but my guess is that it has to do with the amygdala. My opinion is that dp is anxiety related and hence is brought about by the amygdala. So the recovery probably depends on how serious the perceived threat or fear is. If the perceived threat is not able to be resolved easily then dp can hang around for a long time. This would explain why some people can overcome dp by distraction methods, but other may find this harder to do as the amygdala is more active
> 
> This doesn't mean people who have had it a long time can't recover - I am hopeful of finding a way still
> 
> ...


That makes since. Thanks for your post


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## abovetherim (Dec 18, 2009)

Many of us who suffer from Depersonalization have gone through years where we have no idea what is wrong with us. I had depersonalization for seven years until I figured out it was a real mental condition. I have come to the conclusion that Depersonalization is much harder to cure when you have had it for many years.

I started a medication called Zyprexa that is supposed to fully cure me after six months. It has been three months and I feel anywhere from 15-25 percent cured. I believe Depersonalization is worse in people like me who have OCD (Obbessive Compulsive Disorder). I am starting to think that once my OCD goes away my DP will go away as well.

Everyone is different which means recovery times will be different.

Goodluck to all my fighters out there


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## insaticiable (Feb 23, 2010)

abovetherim said:


> I believe Depersonalization is worse in people like me who have OCD (Obbessive Compulsive Disorder). I am starting to think that once my OCD goes away my DP will go away as well.


I, too, suffer from Obsessive Compulsive DIsorder and agree that DP is worse in people like us, because we have the tendency to over obsess and dwell on the DP more rather than non OCD people. My previous psychiatrist mentioned the same statement you made that ''once the OCD goes away, your DP will go away as well.'' She believed that once I got all my symptoms and rituals under control, that I would begin to see a big improvement in the DP, and perhaps have it disappear altogether. I've started to slowly grasp this idea, but I still have a difficult time finding a distinct correlation between DP and OCD.


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## DeadManWalkin (Jul 28, 2010)

I got DP from a panic attack i had when i was high. The panic attack had nothing to do with the high, but that i thought i had pneumonia(it's a long story). But i have been feeling great after about maybe 3 months with DP. I found that what made me feel better was accepting the fact i had it and understanding that it is not harmful to you. Once i understood this i stopped paying attention to it. It was still there but now that i have stopped focusing on it i feel i am near recovery(with the assistance of a pill called l-tryptophan). I think it's just a matter of when you realize you must not focus on it or even think about it. find ways to be distracted find things to do. Go on a bike ride or a walk if your not into that sort of thing.


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## nix (Feb 27, 2010)

DeadManWalkin said:


> I got DP from a panic attack i had when i was high. The panic attack had nothing to do with the high, but that i thought i had pneumonia(it's a long story). But i have been feeling great after about maybe 3 months with DP. I found that what made me feel better was accepting the fact i had it and understanding that it is not harmful to you. Once i understood this i stopped paying attention to it. It was still there but now that i have stopped focusing on it i feel i am near recovery(with the assistance of a pill called l-tryptophan). I think it's just a matter of when you realize you must not focus on it or even think about it. find ways to be distracted find things to do. Go on a bike ride or a walk if your not into that sort of thing.


Tryptophan is something like antidepressant, I guess, becuase it is for serotonin in brain.


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