Why Does Everything Seem So Surreal After Brain Injury?

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I've received a concussion 5 years ago. Back then everything around me had seemed glamorous and I was the most sociable kid in the class. Everyone around me and everything has had a sense of surrealism. I still feel alienated by the world around me as I feel like I live outside of society and want to return only not to fit in. It honestly has been a roller coaster realizing my work ethic significantly has declined. To me, the concussion faced by many can give them a new life and drive them to question who they are and not mesh well with the society we see today

Since 2006 and a brain injury I have experienced situations similar to the movie the adjustment bureau and star trek next generation parallels season 7 episode 11 almost as if I exist or experience a parallel reality. It now 12 years later and I have come to grips that what we consider life as linear is not what I experience. I would not wish this experience on any one I welcome my return back home one day.

I sustained a traumatic brain injury two years ago now. Woke up from a coma about a week later. Ever since then, I've felt like I woke up in a parallel universe, with people that are the same, but entirely different. I feel as though I'm living in the universe that was created from the smallest slice of a possible outcome; the one where I survived my car crash, and recovered 80% of my processing ability. I feel as though in every other universe, I died. I feel like the parents I remember, exist in a parallel universe where their son died in a car crash, ejected from the windshield. I'm just an anomaly. I don't belong here, and nobody understands.

I am saddened to hear your words, yet can accurately say that I understand them well. In 2009 I fractured my L occipital bone and have not been the same, not for a fleeting second, since. I understand. I cannot offer anything that will be able to alter your state of being, only that I know. You are not alone. Sending sincere thoughts for peace.

I have derealization am I am only 12 years old. I have been having it for about 1.5 months now. It is extremely scary. I am constantly scared. I feel like I am living a dream. It is always the worst once I wake up because I can't prove to myself that I am not in another dream. The thought frightens me. Also I question my existence constantly. I question everything and the thoughts I recieve pannic me. I haven't recieved a concussion that I know of. But I play football and maybe it has something to do with that. Last season I do remember getting hit hard but I haven't got derealization until like a month ago. This season just started and I am playing a little more cautious.

What you should do is reality checks. Count your fingers and if you can’t count your fingers then you’ll know your dreaming, it’s more for comfort.

I know you probably won't see this, but if you do, try to look at yourself in a mirror or read something to prove to yourself that you're awake, neither works in dreams. Sometimes this is the only way I can anchor when it gets intense.

Good luck, I hope it passes!

About 3 months ago I suffered a concussion only about a month and a half after having another concussion. I'm 18 years old and have had 6 concussions in my life and 4 of those are in the past year and a half. The symptoms from the 5 previous concussions were all the same with a headache, some nausea, and maybe some dizziness. However, my last concussion was a lot different. As soon as I got hit in the head, I had a lot of ringing in my ears and had confusion and shortly after, the derealization began to start. I had very bad anxiety trying to dealing with this from that day until around 2 months later. I was desperately searching the internet searching for other people who had this feeling and if it would go away when I came upon this thread. Reading these comments made my anxiety so much worse because I was reading these stories about how their derealization hadn't gone away for years and were still dealing with it and I never thought I would return back to normal. I just want anyone that comes upon this thread with a similar story to mine or anyone with derealization to know that IT CAN go away. For me it took around 2 and a half months for it to really go away. The brain is a slow healing organ and it does not go away instantly like I was and I'm sure you are hoping for. It takes time. I know all you want to do is just stay and inside and not move or go anywhere but BELIEVE ME after a certain amount of time resting, go outside and do things. It's very scary I know because everything feels unreal or like a dream, but you have to do your best to try and push through it. The more you do this the better it's gonna help you. You CAN get better and I know it's very hard to believe that you will, but there are plenty or people out there including myself who have gotten better out there and returned to normal. And for the people who have commented on this thread and have had derealization for years, I have the upmost and tremendous respect for you. It feels like a nightmare every second of every single day and the fact that you all go out and live your lives or even if you don't is incredible. This was by far one of the hardest or the hardest thing I have ever gone through in my life both emotionally and physically. I know how difficult it is to really explain to people how it feels and it's impossible for someone to really understand how it feels unless they have gone through it themselves. So again, the fact that you all choose to go out and live your lives with this is ridiculously brave. I just want to help people that come to this thread understand that their lives aren't over and that there is hope. If anyone ever wants someone to talk to about this or how they are feeling feel free to email me at adam9129129@gmail.com. DONT LOSE HOPE.

Hey there I’m 33 years old and I’m on my 6th week of concussion thers some days were I feel good like I’m recovering and then I’ll get a few days were I feel dizzy again. This is tuff. I feel like I’m never going to get better I don’t feel my self... I Kobe it’s normal to feel like this cause yes this is a concussion. Did you have bad days and good days thank u

Thanks Adam. These posts usually just add to the anxiety because the comments are from people who are in the midst of it but they don't post again when they recover. I am grateful for the hope that you have given me by your comments. Sometimes hope is all you need

Wow this was such an incredible read and very calming. I just came across this thread because I woke up from a nightmare and I tend to have really vivid negative dreams all the time since my brain surgery 4 months ago. Your words are not only profound for 18 but uplifting and very understanding of the people potentially reading it. I appreciate you going back after coming out of DR and making a post!

Thank you. My daughter (17) just recently had a door hit the back of her head last week. Just the corner caught the back of her head as it swung closed.
A year prior she was thrown ftom a horse and had only pain. No nausea a little dizziness but sge was fine.
After this recent injury she started feeling disconnected and neither of us had any idea this happens. Still worried but more at ease now.

I have exactly this, depersonalisation and decentralisation.
I must be in a smaller catergory because I simply do not feel stress.
My focal area of my brain took a hit in a car accident and I suffered a Diffuse Axional Injury and maybe a hypoxia injury. Witnesses said they approached the car and they thought I was dead and after sometime let out a gasp and then they heard me breath. I was out for 40minutes.
A guy described this issue like being stuck in a 70s martial arts movie where the video is grainy and the audio is dubbed and not synced.
I thought this was a spot on description. One of my ears has a really high scratching sound and the my vision also got damaged which most likely explains for a lot of the DP and DC.
I'm basically tired all the time.
Regards Chris/ Australia

I have not felt stress since Saturday but I don’t feel a lot of other simple feelings like happy or sad either. Which I want to feel.

Interesting article and thanks for sharing, Emilie. It reminds me that I felt in a "dream-like" state for years after my accident over 50 years ago- "floating up in the sky", wondering what was real that and I could do ANYTHING!!

Regards craig

www.traumaticbraininjury.wordpress.com​

www.headbraininjury.wordpress.com, etc

PPS

“You’re not disabled (limited) by your disabilities, you are able (enabled) by your abilities.”
 

I am writing a book, on my TBI, which led to anoxia and coma, and so much of my recovery was RECOVERING MY EGO. The ego, I've learned, is so important for us to function on this plane. It separates us from others, it gives us an identity, it's what kids don't have yet. And this funny feeling you're describing.....it might be like what I fett when awakening from coma and for years after - that I wasn't a separate me, I was connected to everything. (I was like a little child.) 

I can't wait to get my book out, the journals I kept during my 20 year recovery. RECOVERY OF MY EGO. In that was held my memories, my gut feelings, etc. It's like your brain work has to be connected a your person, in order to make it work for you. And that identity, is your precious ego. So many Eastern thinkers say get past your ego. Absolutely not! (but that's another discussion topic.)

You seem to be describing a way to "change yourself" in order to fit into a system of "ego" that obviously hasn't worked for a few thousand years?

Stepping back, sitting down and finding "your place" might take a long, long time but scurrying around as fast as you can to "feel good"? Apply that to 6 billion people with such "flare" as you describe we would all be in deep shit. Who would lead, you or my ego? We would have too battle it out I guess see who wins the ego challenge? YIKES more TBI's.

I had 3 aneurysms, 2 CVAs/strokes, craniotomy and part cerebellum removal. I live this exactly. I felt so alone not hearing about anyone with these affects. I'm so sorry you all have gone through this as well.

I am thirteen, and suffered a traumatic brain injury at age 11. No one saw me get it but some classmates, so my parents thought I just hit my head and got a bloody nose. Instead, I was sprinting on a new gym floor, and tripped over someone, and hit my head hard. I don't remember after that, for I had lost consciousness. I rolled and hit my head 3 times. (I know this from classmates later telling me). No doctor could see anything wrong, but I know it was a bad concussion because I had intense confusion after that and could not walk straight for days. Plus, I did not know my way around the school, and happened to gain new musical ability. To this day, I do not feel normal, everything feels so surreal. It is obvious that it won't get better from that after 2 1/2 years from the concussion. Thank you for is article so much. I have finally found some answers to why I feel this way.

Please advocate for yourself and demand cognitive help you can rewire your brain -you can heal -it’s never too late

I can't find the words of appreciation and relief I feel find your site.  I'm in my early sixties and have battled mental illness my entire life, however, at the age of eleven I suffered a head injury that went untreated. A change in my personality/behavior was noted, by teachers and some family members, but nothing was ever done beyond that. I've always had episodes of this feeling of being unhinged or as if I was watching a movie, and always disconnected to what I was seeing. It has been very unnerving and troublesome, I've been misdiagnosed as bi-polar, and now I'm wondering about the diagnoses of clinical depression? I found your site and your experience and others FITS to a tee exactly what happens when I have 'episodes' and now I have something I feel I can explore.  What REALLY as helped me finding you is knowing I'm not "crazy" that this experience is felt by others, it's a real thing.  SO, thank you for sharing what I know is a difficult situation to put out there, bless you and I'll keep exploring.  <3

Hope this helps someone. It can be very bad in the initial stages of recovery. In my first 3 conscience and remembered days, I seriously didn't believe I was in a real hospital even though I had significant physical injuries, as well as a serious concussion. I thought that someone was playing an elaborate practical joke on me, that the hospital room, nurses, doctors, and my physical injuries were all being faked somehow. If you have experienced anything like this after a concussion, you're not crazy. It was because of the brain injury.

i remember waking in hospital and wondering where I was. I expected to wake up in bed and I opened my eyes and was in another room. I had no idea where i was. They had put a sign on the wall in front of me saying that I was In a hospital, I had been in a car accident. thats was good because after reading that and being stoned on methadone I fell asleep.

I had a really bad drug overdose. I was depressed, I took 16,000 dollars worth of methadone and xanax, chased it down with liquor, and laid down to go to sleep. I stopped breathing and choked on my own vomit. Spent a week and a half on life support. When I finally came to, I was asking my mom and dad where my grandpa was, he has been dead since 1988, but I remember having a conversation with him. He told me to get my ass back to my mama it was not my time to go. Since all of that, I have a hard time distinguishing reality from my dreams. It scares me.

It is all too true! It is hard to find work in any skilled profession that accommodates a short work day or less days in a week for those of us with a TBI. Society & the USA economy is built on a 40 hour work week.

If you read this, remember, you are not alone ¡¡¡¡¡¡

Yeah, is true the world and the reality change in seconds and violently, the only thing we can do is adapt to survive and maybe become in something better than we are before.

We are Survivors and extreme strong people that can charge this cross, we can with this.

Best regards from Chile. sorry for my poor English

Wow! I tried to explain this to family and friends after my TBI in 2002! It has diminished through the years especially when I am in nature! Thanks

Relief to have those feelings validated and know that others experience the exact same feelings! Fortunately, I no longer feel like I did when it seemed as though my head wasn't connected to the rest of me.

Thank You for this it is such a comfort to know why. 

So well written. Many people dismiss the after days of a TBI as "nothing notable" because it takes time and reflection to notice that things have gone different.  

It is good 15 years later to have someone finally explain it! theres been a need for a site like this for so long. Thank you to everyone involved.

It is all too true. What is hard is surviving in a world that does not understand, validate and/or accommodate us. Society views 40 hour work week as the norm. Unless you work for yourself, it is difficult at best to find livable-wage employment that allows resting periods to make it through a day. No benefits or health insurance unless we buy them ourselves. Do we eat or have health insurance? Social Security Disability is denied to so many of us even with a lawyer. Many who do get SSD find it hard to make it on 800 month; many do not get much. It is like society does not even see us tho we exist. It's a hard world to survive and navigate on our own but many of us do somehow.

Exactly, after TBI I feel the same:(

I don't know what I want to say; but I understand.

This site has helped me so much, thank you! I have both PTSD and a TBI and many symptoms seem to overlap which is frustrating but knowing i'm not alone or completely  off my rocker helps.
 

I have MS...mostly in my brain & this is exactly how I feel! Thank you do much for this....the MS Society has nothing on it and the only info I could find was about dissociative disorder (psychiatric). I know others with MS feel this well as well...what a Godsend this page is!
This is so very true! ! I wish more people in my life would read this it's so me....
I can relate to some of this! TBI in 12-27-2007

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