Hi mick
I've only ever experienced a couple of episodes of derealisation. One went for quite a while and the other lasted only a few hours. Derealisation can be so disorienting but I'm sure I don't have to tell you that. I suppose it depends on what perspective you're coming from, if you're looking to better understand it and why it happens. From a psychological perspective and the perspective of 'disorder' and the disorder it creates in life through to it being an actual goal some people work toward achieving within certain spiritual practices, sometimes with the help of natural drugs (aka tripping) you could say it's an altered state of consciousness from either perspective. When you don't want it to happen, it's absolutely horrible and can be pretty terrifying, not having any control over it.
If you've ever seen 'The Matrix', I think this is one of the best way to describe derealisation to someone. Which world is real? The world of the matrix or the one outside of it? Of course, I'm not saying we live in a simulation it's more so a matter of trying to figure out what is actually real.
From the perspective of it simply being 'an altered state of consciousness', we can experience various altered states of consciousness, sometimes without even realising. As a gal who's familiar with depression, I would say when I'm depressed I'm in an altered state, highly conscious of everything that's depressing. I will see everything that's depressing, hear it and even feel it. I'll feel every heartbreaking thing a person says to me. When I move out of that state, I'll see everything that's uplifting, hear everything that's uplifting and feel everything that's inspiring. The question is 'What alters the state?'. Certain triggers, certain shifts in perspective, certain chemical/biological shifts, sleep deprivation etc etc.
With derealisation, I found 'grounding' to be key. Mundane or routine activities have grounded me out of such a state. Do you have any strategies or practices for grounding you out of episodes of derealisation?
The expert you choose to help you better understand it will be based on how you wish to understand it. A psychologist will offer you one take on it. A spiritual counselor will offer you another. A psycho spiritual practitioner will offer a couple of different takes on what derealisation is.
