Dissociation & Depersonalization: First Steps When You Feel "Not Present"

The state where the sense of presence fades, where "the heart feels like it isn't yours," where there seems to be glass between you and life — this is the experience of disidentification. Dr. Saulitis stresses: this state is not a verdict but a signal. It can be worked through, and often there are quite correctable causes behind it. This brochure is about the very first steps.

First — see a specialist to understand the cause

If the feeling of non-presence and detachment persists constantly, the first step is not self-treatment but a professional's outside view. One needs to look at exactly what triggers these "mild dissociations": behind them may stand asthenia, exhaustion, or something of that kind. This isn't to frighten you, but to find the point you can actually influence.

"This is a reason to see a psychiatrist, to look at what's causing these mild dissociations of yours."

"Maybe one needs to check — some asthenia, or you've overworked, or something of that series. This can be corrected, and everything is fine."

Don't rush: betting on neuroplasticity and epigenetics

The doctor insists: the main thing is not to rush. Change rests on two key words — neuroplasticity and epigenetics. This means brain and body rebuild gradually, not in a single leap. He describes disidentification as a real next step in development — but a step that happens over time, not at the flick of a switch.

It's normal that it's hard to accept

There are things that are simply hard to accept at once. The doctor speaks honestly about his own experience: "you read a book, then toss it out the window, then pick it up again." This is a normal process. Part of the resistance is the post-shock phase, the phase of denial, a classic of post-traumatic stress. Understanding this in itself reduces anxiety: you aren't "doing something wrong," you are going through a natural stage.

Start with yourself: what can I do in my own favor

The first practical question sounds like this: what can I do in my own favor? This covers the most basic things — establish a rhythm, nutrition, sleep, stop overloading the body with substances. This is the "seed of action": if you've done at least something yourself, you've already planted that small seed — and then it's enough simply not to get in its way as it grows.

This is not about giving up anything or cutting ties. On the contrary: once you begin to put yourself in order, you become more selective, and an environment that suits you better appears.

Practice

A calm checklist of first steps (without rushing):

1. Notice it and don't panic. Recognize the state of non-presence as a signal, not a catastrophe.
2. See a psychiatrist to look at the cause — asthenia, exhaustion, or something else that can be corrected.
3. Set the base: daily rhythm, sleep, nutrition; reduce unnecessary load on the body.
4. Plant the "seed of action" — do something yourself, however small, and then don't get in its way.
5. Give yourself time — relying on neuroplasticity, accept that the rebuilding happens gradually.

If you're "not ripe yet" — that's also normal

The doctor is honest: recommendations work when a person is ready for them. "If you've already suffered enough — follow the recommendations; if not — one must give the person time." Return to these steps when you feel ready. Knowledge is needed, because "people without knowledge simply suffer" — and the first step out of the state of non-presence begins precisely with understanding that this can be worked with.