josie, I didn't realize that there was actually a depersonalization disorder. I always thought depersonalization went along with panic and was one of the symptoms of it. Most of us who suffer from panic disorder have had that not real feeling. When I had it, my head would get all tingley and my face would go numb and I would feel almost like I had left my body. The reason this happens is because during a panic attack there is decreased blood flow to the brain. A panic attack more then anything else causes the fastest and most complex reaction within the body. Your heart beats faster, more blood flows into your vital organs , but less blood pumps into your arms and legs, which causes that tingley feeling. Your breathing gets harder and your pupils dilate all of this causes you to feel really weird and get the depersonalization feeling. I know this probably won't make you feel much better , but sometimes it helps when you know why you are feeling strange and it has nothing to do with dying or losing your mind it's just basically your body responding to out of whack chemicals.
