Depersonalization — The Experience of Detaching from Oneself.

🧠 Depersonalization — The Experience of Detaching from Oneself

Depersonalization is one of the mind’s self-defense mechanisms, activated when facing extreme stress, trauma, or fear.
People experiencing it often feel as though they have “stepped outside their body,” observing themselves from the outside.
The world around them may appear unreal — dreamlike, distant, or as if seen through a movie scene.

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🔬 Scientific Findings and Research Evidence

King’s College London (Dr. Anthony David, 1997)
Using fMRI scans, researchers found that:

• The prefrontal cortex (the brain’s reasoning center) becomes overactive.
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• The limbic system (the emotional center) becomes underactive.🔍 This indicates that the brain suppresses emotional responses to protect itself from overwhelming fear or traumatic memories — creating sensations of emotional and physical “numbness.”

Harvard Medical School (Simeon & Abugel, 2006)
Reports show that people who have had near-death experiences or survived traumatic events (e.g., accidents or assaults) often experience acute depersonalization because the brain temporarily disconnects from emotional input to escape suffering.

Yale University School of Medicine (Medford et al., 2005)
During episodes of depersonalization, the temporo-parietal junction (TPJ) — which manages spatial self-awareness — becomes dysregulated.
This malfunction produces the sensation of floating outside one’s body or viewing oneself from above.

University of Cambridge (Sierra & Berrios, 1998)
Proposed that depersonalization represents an “emotional shutdown” mechanism, allowing the brain to keep functioning in situations too distressing to process, such as witnessing traumatic events.

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💡 Summary

Depersonalization does not mean “insanity” or “psychosis.”
It is a protective reaction — a signal that the mind and body are shielding themselves from deep psychological overload.

It can occur temporarily in anyone during severe stress, exhaustion, accidents, or after using stimulants.
However, if symptoms persist or interfere with daily life, professional treatment such as grounding therapy or Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is recommended.

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📚 References

Sierra, M., & Berrios, G. E. (1998). Depersonalization: Neurobiological Perspectives. Biological Psychiatry, 44(9), 898–908.
Medford, N., Sierra, M., Baker, D., & David, A. S. (2005). Understanding and Treating Depersonalisation Disorder. Advances in Psychiatric Treatment, 11(2), 92–100.
Simeon, D., & Abugel, J. (2006). Feeling Unreal: Depersonalization Disorder and the Loss of the Self. Harvard University Press.