Overcoming Depersonalization Disorder: A Mindfulness and Acceptance Guide to Conquering Feelings of Numbness and Unreality

by Katharine Donnelly PhD, Fugen Neziroglu PhD, ABBP, ABPP, Daphne Simeon MD (Foreword by)

Overview

When you have depersonalization disorder, nothing seems real. You may feel detached from reality, even from your own thoughts, as though you are going through the motions of living without ever being truly connected to your experiences. Whether your depersonalization developed after a traumatic experience or is something you've always lived with, this book can help you reconnect with life again.

Overcoming Depersonalization Disorder can help you diagnose the type and degree of your depersonalization disorder, come to understand why it developed, and cope with your symptoms using practical skills drawn from acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), and mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT).

Ready to feel real again? Put the practical skills in this book to work in your life right now and start reintegrating yourself back into the world and reconnecting to your own vibrant thoughts and feelings.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781608820429
Publisher:	New Harbinger Publications
Publication date:	06/03/2010
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	192
File size:	764 KB

About the Author

Fugen Neziroglu, PhD,  ABBP, ABPP, is a board-certified cognitive and behavior psychologist and leading researcher in the treatment of anxiety disorders, obsessive-compulsive spectrum disorders, trichotillomania, hoarding, body dysmorphic disorder and hypochondriasis at the Bio Behavioral Institute in Great Neck, NY, where she serves as director. She is also the coauthor of Overcoming Compulsive Hoarding, When Your Child is Cutting, and has been featured on the TLC show, Hoarders. Her books have been translated to various languages.

Foreword writer Daphne Simeon, MD, is associate professor of psychiatry at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City. She is director of the depersonalization and dissociation program at the Beth Israel Medical Center in New York.

Table of Contents

Foreword vii

Acknowledgments xi

Introduction 1

1 What Is Depersonalization? What Is DPD? 7

2 Why You Can't Think Your Way Out of DPD 21

3 Why Depersonalization Disorder Develops 33

4 Understanding Conditions Related to Depersonalization Disorder 47

5 Depersonalization from an Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Perspective 63

6 Using Acceptance and Commitment Therapy 79

7 Using Dialectical Behavior Therapy Strategies 97

8 Using Behavioral Strategies 123

9 Other Treatment Options 141

10 Frequently Asked Questions 155

Recommended Reading 171

References 173

Editorial Reviews

Detachment and avoidance behavior can be understandable and even helpful reactions to discomfort and psychological pain, but chronic behavior of this type constitutes depersonalization disorder (DPD), which affects about two percent of the population. Research psychologist Neziroglu and behavioral therapist Donnelly, both of the Bio-Behavioral Institute, describe this disorder, tracing its causes from trauma to drug abuse and other problems and outlining treatment strategies. Four DPD patients are used to illustrate the wide-ranging characteristics of the illness, including detached and robotic behavior, spaced-out feelings, inability to concentrate, and memory difficulties. They advocate behavioral therapy and acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), incorporating ideas on mindfulness and psychological flexibility. Assessment tools, exercises, and inspiration are also provided, along with alternative treatments, reference materials, and an informative Q&A section. VERDICT A sensible and readable research-based self-help tool, which provides a viable alternative or complement to the pharmacological treatments for mental illness in vogue today. The book should be both comforting and challenging for DPD patients, families, and counselors.—Antoinette Brinkman, MLS, Evansville, IN

Library Journal