How to Stop Derealisation: A Guide to Reclaiming Reality

Derealisation can make a familiar room look distant, flat or strangely artificial. Sounds may seem muffled, time can feel distorted and the world may appear dream-like. Although you may know that your surroundings are real, they do not feel real in the usual way.

This can be deeply frightening. You may find yourself repeatedly checking your surroundings, searching symptoms online or wondering whether you are losing touch with reality.

There is no instant technique guaranteed to stop derealisation. However, grounding, reducing the surrounding anxiety and responding with less alarm may help the experience settle. Persistent or unexplained symptoms should also be discussed with an appropriate healthcare professional.

What to do when derealisation happens

When the world suddenly feels unreal, your mind may rush to find an explanation. That urgent search can increase fear and make the sensation more prominent.

Begin by naming what is happening:

“My surroundings feel unreal at the moment. This may be derealisation. I do not have to solve everything immediately.”

You do not need to convince yourself that the feeling is pleasant or unimportant. Naming it simply creates a little distance between the sensation and the frightening conclusions your mind may be drawing from it.

Orientate yourself to the present

Place both feet on the floor and notice the pressure beneath them.

Then state three ordinary facts about your current surroundings:

• “I am sitting in my kitchen.”

• “It is Tuesday afternoon.”

• “I can hear traffic outside.”

Simple facts can help redirect your attention from questions about whether reality feels correct towards information about where you actually are.

Use your senses

Grounding techniques are intended to reconnect attention with the present. They do not work identically for everyone, and they should not become another test you feel compelled to perform perfectly.

You could try noticing:

• five things you can see;

• four physical sensations;

• three sounds;

• two smells;

• one taste.

Describe details rather than merely counting them. Notice the colour and shape of an object, the texture of your clothing or the temperature of a drink.

Other possible anchors include holding a textured object, wrapping yourself in a blanket, listening carefully to a familiar sound or feeling the support of a chair beneath you. The mental health charity Mind includes sensory grounding among its suggestions for coping with dissociation.

Let your breathing remain gentle

Panic can change the way you breathe, sometimes contributing to dizziness, tingling and a greater sense of unreality.

Avoid repeatedly taking enormous breaths in an attempt to feel normal. Instead, allow the breath to remain comfortable and let the out-breath become slightly slower if that feels manageable.

If concentrating on breathing makes you more anxious, leave it alone and use another form of grounding. There is no requirement to use a particular technique.

Choose one ordinary activity

Derealisation can pull all your attention towards monitoring how the world looks and feels. A simple activity can give some of that attention somewhere else to go.

You might:

• make a warm drink;

• wash a mug;

• fold some clothes;

• take a gentle walk;

• water a plant;

• listen to a familiar piece of music;

• speak with somebody you trust.

  
  

Choose something undemanding. The purpose is not to force the sensation away but to remain connected with ordinary life while it passes.

Try to reduce repeated checking

It is understandable to keep asking:

• “Does everything look normal yet?”

• “Do I feel real now?”

• “What if this never stops?”

• “Does this mean I am losing control?”

  
  

Unfortunately, repeatedly checking can keep attention fixed on the experience. Searching for perfect reassurance may provide momentary relief before uncertainty returns and demands another answer.

You might acknowledge the question once:

“I am frightened because things feel unreal. Repeatedly testing the feeling is not helping me at the moment.”

Then gently return to an activity or something in your surroundings.

What is derealisation?

The NHS describes derealisation as feeling that the world is unreal. People, places and objects may seem lifeless, foggy or unfamiliar.

Derealisation is a form of dissociation. It can last for a short period or recur over a longer time. Experiencing it does not by itself confirm that somebody has a dissociative disorder.

People experiencing derealisation usually retain an awareness that their surroundings are real, despite the powerful feeling that they are not. This distinction can be reassuring, but a website cannot assess an individual person or diagnose the cause of their symptoms.

You can read more in the NHS explanation of dissociative disorders.

Derealisation and depersonalisation

The two terms are closely related but describe different experiences:

• Derealisation concerns your surroundings. The external world may feel unreal, distant, foggy or dream-like.

• Depersonalisation concerns your sense of yourself. You may feel detached from your body, thoughts, emotions or actions.

They can occur separately or together. Either experience can be associated with anxiety, panic, severe stress or traumatic experiences, but other explanations may also need to be considered.

Why anxiety can make the world feel unreal

Anxiety narrows attention towards possible danger. During panic, changes in breathing, dizziness, a racing heart and intense monitoring of physical sensations can make ordinary perception feel unfamiliar.

Once the unfamiliar feeling is noticed, fear may intensify:

1. The world feels strange.

2. You worry that the sensation means something terrible.

3. Your anxiety rises.

4. You monitor your surroundings more closely.

5. Everything feels even less natural.

Reducing this cycle of fear and checking can sometimes help derealisation settle.

The relationship is not always straightforward. Poor sleep, prolonged stress, grief, trauma, illness, medication changes and substance use may also be relevant. You can read more about the relationship between anxiety and unreality in When Anxiety Makes the World Feel Unreal.

Longer-term ways to support yourself

If derealisation keeps returning, it may help to look beyond what happens during the episode.

Notice possible patterns

Keep a brief record of:

• when the experience happened;

• what was occurring beforehand;

• sleep and stress levels;

• caffeine, alcohol or recreational drug use;

• medication changes;

• how long the experience lasted;

• what appeared to help.

The aim is to identify patterns, not to monitor yourself continuously. Stop tracking if it increases checking or anxiety.

Protect basic routines

Regular sleep, meals, hydration and gentle movement will not cure every episode, but they may reduce some of the strain surrounding it.

Pay attention to whether lack of sleep, high caffeine intake, alcohol or recreational drugs appear to make symptoms more likely. If symptoms began after changing prescribed medication, speak with your GP, pharmacist or prescriber rather than stopping it suddenly.

Make room for underlying feelings

Sometimes derealisation appears during periods of emotional overload. It may be connected with anxiety, loss, conflict, burnout or experiences that have been difficult to process.

You do not have to uncover a hidden trauma or discover one perfect explanation. Becoming curious about what your mind and body have been carrying may be more helpful than treating derealisation as an enemy that must be defeated immediately.

When to speak with a GP

Arrange an appointment with your GP if derealisation:

• is new or unexplained;

• happens repeatedly;

• lasts for long periods;

• is becoming more intense;

• affects work, relationships or ordinary activities;

• began after medication or substance use;

• is accompanied by other concerning physical or psychological symptoms.

A GP can consider physical health, medication, sleep, substance use and mental health rather than assuming that anxiety is the only possible explanation. They may also refer you for an appropriate mental health assessment.

Seek urgent medical advice when symptoms are sudden or severe, particularly following a head injury, substance use, fainting, severe confusion or new neurological symptoms.

Can counselling help?

The NHS states that talking therapies are often recommended for dissociative disorders. Counselling or psychotherapy may help somebody explore the experiences and pressures underlying feelings of disconnection and develop ways of responding when they occur.

I am an integrative counsellor grounded in person-centred and psychodynamic approaches. I do not diagnose dissociative disorders or provide a specialist derealisation treatment programme.

My approach offers space to explore anxiety, emotional overload, relationships, shame, previous experiences and the wider context in which derealisation occurs. If your symptoms suggest that medical assessment or more specialised support may be appropriate, I will be honest about the limits of my role.

I offer online counselling for adults across the UK, as well as in-person and walk-and-talk counselling in Cheltenham.

Does derealisation mean I am developing psychosis?

Derealisation does not automatically mean that somebody is experiencing psychosis. People with derealisation commonly recognise that their surroundings feel unreal rather than believing that the world has literally changed.

However, a general article cannot determine the cause of an individual experience. Seek an appropriate assessment if you are uncertain about what is happening, feel severely confused, are experiencing things other people do not, or are finding it difficult to distinguish your perceptions from shared reality.

Is derealisation permanent?

Experiences vary. Derealisation may last briefly, appear intermittently or persist for longer periods. It would be misleading to promise that it will always disappear quickly.

Many people do recover or experience considerable improvement with appropriate treatment and support. Seeking help is particularly important when symptoms persist or restrict daily life.

Should I fight the feeling?

Trying to force derealisation away can sometimes increase monitoring and alarm. Completely ignoring persistent symptoms is not necessarily appropriate either.

A balanced response is to acknowledge what is happening, use grounding if it helps, continue with a manageable activity and seek professional advice when the experience is recurring or disruptive.

Getting urgent support

Call 999 or go to A&E if you or somebody else is in immediate danger, you have plans to harm yourself or another person, or you feel unable to remain safe.

For urgent mental health support that is not an immediate emergency, call 111 and choose the mental health option if you are in England, Scotland or Wales. In Northern Ireland, you can call Lifeline free on 0808 808 8000.

A gentler way forward

Derealisation can feel convincing and deeply unsettling. You do not need to shame yourself for finding it frightening or force yourself to feel normal immediately.

Begin with something small: name the experience, feel your feet against the floor and describe one ordinary thing around you. When the immediate alarm settles, consider what support your mind and body may need.

If you would like somewhere calm and non-judgemental to explore what has been happening, you can contact me or book a first counselling session.