Depersonalization-derealization disorder

Depersonalization-derealization disorder, often abbreviated DPDR, is a dissociative disorder in which a person has persistent or recurrent feelings of depersonalization, derealization, or both. Depersonalization is a sense of being detached from oneself, as if watching one's own thoughts or body from outside, sometimes with a loss of control over them. Derealization is a detachment from the surroundings, so that the world seems foggy, dreamlike, surreal or visually distorted. The disorder is thought to arise largely from interpersonal trauma, especially emotional abuse and neglect in childhood, although brief episodes are common after intense stress, anxiety or panic attacks. Diagnosis is reserved for cases where the symptoms persist and cause marked distress or interfere with social or occupational life. Once thought rare, it is now estimated to affect roughly one to two percent of people at some point.