Depersonalization

Depersonalization is the frustration of mentality connected with absence or disturbance of self-perception. The patient perceives the thoughts, feelings and actions with feeling of observations from outside and alienation. This frustration often is a symptom of a mental disease.

Reasons and symptoms of depersonalization

Depersonalization of the personality is connected with other diseases of mentality and the central nervous system. Panic frustration, depressions, stresses, schizophrenia and bipolar disorders are the most common causes of depersonalization.

The disease can carry, both short-term, and long character. Long and heavy depersonalization can lead to a suicide.

It is possible to carry to the main reasons for depersonalization:

• strong mental shock, stress and depressed case;
• serious mental illness, including psychosis, schizophrenia, maniacal syndrome, etc.;
• neurologic disturbances;
• inborn pathologies of the central nervous system;
• frustration of mentality under the influence of physical injuries.

Depersonalization of the personality can act as the protective mechanism during the emergency situation requiring the bystry solution or action without emotions. In that case the state is temporary and is not pathology.

Biochemical and neurologic disturbances can lead to a long state which is caused by disturbances in functioning of serotoninovy and opioid receptors, failures in functioning of a hypophysis and adrenal glands.

Symptoms of depersonalization are the following mental conditions and feelings of the patient:

• full or partial deleting of perception of own personality and her devil;
• lack of emotions and involvement into vital processes, events, etc.;
• emotional indifference to close and surrounding people;
• the darkened perception of reality (without sound and color perception);
• indifference and lack of perception of music, art and nature;
• bad memory;
• decrease in sight and hearing;
• loss of tactile feelings and disturbance of sense of smell;
• depression, melancholy and sincere exinanition;
• perception of own body and its parts as automatic machine, inanimate and impersonal object;
• feeling of slowness of time and events;
• lack of figurative thinking;
• loss of orientation in space and time;
• absence painful, flavoring and thermoesthesia.

At a stress symptoms of depersonalization of the personality are the angedoniya, detachment and isolation. Under the influence of emotional pressure the neurochemical homeostasis is broken that leads to blocking of emotions and a depression. Sensitivity of receptors is broken, perception of reality and the place of the personality in it is distorted. The long condition of depersonalization leads to cascade disturbance of receptor system.

Types of depersonalization of the personality

In psychiatry and neurology depersonalization is classified on autopsikhichesky with disturbance of perception of own personality, external with disturbance of perception of reality, and also on somatopsychic with disturbance of perception of the body and its bodies.

As development and the reason depersonalization of the personality is divided into the following types:

• easy disturbance of consciousness with the slowed-down or incomplete perception of the personality and acts;
• the loss of individual specificity and social isolation which is followed by lack of personal outlook (thoughts, views, etc.) and impersonality;
• anestetichesky depression with an emotional prituplennost or full insensibility.

Depersonalization treatment

Treatment of depersonalization is begun with elimination of the reasons of frustration and symptoms of mental diseases. The psychiatrist and the neurologist have to find interrelation between depersonalization and uneasiness, and also other pathological manifestations.

At the strong attacks of panic and alarm which are followed by uncontrollable acts of the patient appoint tranquilizers (Phenazepamum, Adaptol, Bellataminal, etc.), antidepressants (Amitriptilin, etc.) and neuroleptics (Sonapaks, Etaperazin, etc.).

The attending physician needs to choose for the patient with a syndrome of depersonalization of the personality drugs with high anticholinergic effect, and also to appoint the medicamentous therapy directed to removal of alarm and maintenance of a normal mental state.

If at the patient disturbances in functioning of opioid system of a brain are observed, then perform treatment of depersonalization by means of drugs antagonists of opioid receptors, such as Naltrexone, Naloxonum, etc. The combination of anticonvulsive medicines and inhibitors of serotonin will be the most effective.

The USA and some countries of Europe carry out treatment of depersonalization by means of high doses of nootrop with antioxidant effect, such as Cavintonum, Tsitoflavin, Meksidol, etc.

Medical researches established that use of anticonvulsant drugs at a syndrome of depersonalization of the personality has contradictory character. At cancellation of these drugs patients often have a feedback syndrome, and disease symptoms which were shown to a course of treatment return. Neuromediator chaos which arises after Anafranil's cancellation and other anticonvulsant drugs has a heavy current, demands the long and strengthened treatment.

At depersonalization at early stages to patients appoint drugs with a weak promoting effect, including caffeine and Phenaminum. It is in certain cases reasonable to appoint a rate of MAO inhibitors, but it is better to exclude reception of neuroleptics.

As additional therapy at a syndrome of depersonalization appoint regular sessions at the psychiatrist, physical therapy, massage, physiotherapy exercises and special procedures for sensitivity recovery.