ĭepersonalization and derealization are not separate phenomena. Even though most diagnoses occur in adulthood, the average age of onset for depersonalization disorder is 16.Studies reveal that approximately 50 percent of the population will have an episode of depersonalization and/or derealization over the course of their lifetime, although most will develop no psychiatric disorders.While rates of diagnosis are lower, experts estimate that about seven percent of the population will experience symptoms consistent with a dissociative disorder each year.

In any given year, between one and two percent of the adult population in the United States will have depersonalization/derealization disorder, which represents three-to-four million people.

Dissociative states can cause substantial alterations or breaks in consciousness that compromise functioning and produce high levels of stress and anxiety.ĭepersonalization, derealization, and other symptoms of dissociation are not familiar to most people, but they are still relatively common in youth and adults: Without treatment, their frequent forays into twilight zones of consciousness will leave them feeling stressed, frightened, and overwhelmed, reducing their ability to function and putting them at the mercy of their troubling symptoms.ĭepersonalization/derealization disorder is one of three dissociative disorders recognized by the psychiatric profession. But for those who develop true depersonalization/derealization disorder, their inability to remain grounded in reality can become chronic and uncontrollable. Transitory episodes of depersonalization or derealization are experienced by a wide range of people and may represent a natural adaptation to stress, fatigue, or unpleasant memories or sensations. The altered perceptions of a person with depersonalization/derealization disorder create a bewildering sense of separation between a person’s consciousness and their own minds and bodies (depersonalization), or between their conscious awareness and the outside world (derealization). It is officially classified as a dissociative disorder, based on its capacity to produce dissociative states of mind.

Depersonalization disorder, which is also known as depersonalization/derealization disorder, is a mental health condition that causes a sharp and confusing break with reality.

Ocd depersonalization