It contains...

Six different tests used by psychologists to diagnose DPDR

Overcoming Depersonalisation and feelings of Unreality - a book written by several experts in depersonalisation disorder that includes some of the latest research about dissociative disorders.

The Stranger in the Mirror - a book by M.Steinberg a renowned expert in treating dissociative disorders

A meditative audiotape especially for DPDR

Several Cognitive Behavioural Therapy worksheets

Links to several other self-help resources including video and audio content, additional books and a forum for people with DPDR.

Link here at Mega

https://mega.nz/folder/JBpWVSTb#Ad6Mdz9xvO5oGUMOSJNxow

There is such little information about dpdr compared to other more common disorders like anxiety and I have still yet to meet a health professional that I haven’t had to explain the disorder to. Because of the general inaccessibility to DPDR resources and treatment, I have decided to compile some free resources, most of which were recommended to me by my psychotherapist. I wish I had access to all of these when I first started experiencing depersonalisation, so I hope this will be helpful to some people!

The key to beating agoraphobia in my experience is a combination of:

ssri medication

sensory accommodations (noise cancelling headphones /earplugs, comfy clothes and fidgets)

distractions (listen to music/an audio book, fidget, go on your phone etc)

make a routine (eg take the same route everytime, sit in the same spot, listen to the same playlist, just make things feel a bit more predictable)

baby steps (doing everything a bit at a time ideally with someone else supporting you)

voice your fears (talking about all my irrational fears stops them from swirling around in my brain as much)

plan around your fears if you can (eg I'm scared I will get too anxious on the bus and have to get off so I check all the major bus stops along my route and plan with someone that can meet me or send an uber to these if I need)

beat your avoidance patterns (I don't need to feel perfect, have good weather and have everything have gone right in my morning to try something out of my comfort zone bc that's insane lmao)

being kind to yourself/positive self talk (I know it's often hard to recognise/change it, but how you react to an event will impact how you feel about it in the future. At the bare minimum be kinder to yourself if you don't meet your goals or fail at something. Progress can just be slow sometimes and being kind to yourself will help in the long run)

• Would cover my ears at loud noises

• I didn’t like to speak, many days I wouldn’t talk to anyone at school and would only reply to teachers. I was called shy because of this but in reality when I’m overwhelmed it often feels painful/exhausting to speak.

• Collected facts on things I liked and would memorise strings of information for fun, some things I memorised were Pokémon, dialogue in movies or flags

• Found it difficult/wasn’t interested in joining in with other kids as a very young child. I sadly got sort of punished by teachers for playing alone even though I was very happy alone

• Needed time to observe people before speaking with them. Was mistaken for shyness but in actuality I needed to analyse people before I could understand how to interact with them

• Because I copied people more than usual, I would say very adult sentences a lot that apparently freaked my parents out lmao

• Had difficulty at hairdressers and dentists, would try to get up and walk off

• Would hide under my bed or in other small-dark spaces when I was overwhelmed or when other people were at our house

• I had a very strong sense or morals and would get irrationally upset if I was wrongfully told off or accused of lying

Neither of us can do small talk, we both miss social cues, forget to ask questions back, the conversation is either infodumping or completely silent

I've had agoraphobia ever since I developed depersonalisation/derealisation disorder a few years back. My dissociation is down to a low level now and only seems to trigger when going places on my own and travelling far from home. I've tried watching videos and reading books on agoraphobia but everything is about dealing with the panic WHICH I DON'T HAVE. Even when I was seeing a therapist she said I didn't meet the criteria for agoraphobia because I didn't have the correct physical symptoms and the CBT I did for anxiety was useless since nothing in it applied to me.

If anyone knows of any books, papers, videos?? literally anything that mentions this please send them my way

Wanted to Describe this experience a bit more in depth

Typical Agoraphobia symptoms:

increased heart rate

sweating

shortness of breath

shaking/trembling

tingly or numb hands

nausea or stomach pain

feeling doom or dread

general sense on unease

racing thoughts

My agoraphobia symptoms:

numb

disoriented

foggy vision

stiff/frozen

feeling like I need to be still/can’t go any further/can't speak

feeling in slow motion

feeling like my familiar surroundings are unfamiliar

feeling detached/distant

empty mind, confusion, struggling to think of what I’m meant to doing or where I'm going

reddit threads on r/agoraphobia where users describe similar experience to mine:

https://www.reddit.com/r/Agoraphobia/comments/1c37ajx/anyone_else_have_problems_dissociating_due_to/ (“I dissociate so badly it's hard for me to function and I end up paralyzed. When I'm forced to leave the house I'm so inside myself I can't hold a simple conversation or pay attention to things around me fully.”)