I have been suffering from depersonalization disorder for the past 15 years and turned to NF after learning of several cases in which individuals suffering from the disorder were helped by such treatment. The clinic to which I turned treats patients with qEEG-based, LORETA-based NF, although the software used to this end was developed by them and a company called BeterFly.
Treatment began at the end of May, with three weekly sessions that have now accumulated to 30. The first two months were focused on a single, beta-targeted site; later, I began alternating between this site and a theta-targeted one. While I experienced a slight improvement from the very begining of treatment, it has remained stable and did not progress. At times, I experience a marked temporary deterioration following sessions. Should I contemplate the discontinuation of treatment?
Is the DPD associated with any types of trauma you have received in the past. Many DPD situations have significant childhood trauma.
There is a new term (similar to PTSD), called DTD, Developmental Trauma Disorder. Some neurofeedback + psychotherapy providers are trained in synergistic techniques that combine the neurofeedback with DTD trauma work. It might not be possible to move forward with neurofeedback alone.
One such expert is Sebern Fisher. She has trained other practitioners on her techniques,
Although I endured a kind of minor childhood trauma, if you will, the DPD was triggered directly by a specific, unrelated event that was stressful as it occurred but was of little significance overall. I am unsure whether my history qualifies as DTD, but I would look into it. Thank you for pointing me to this technique. Regarding your second post, it seems that BetterFly is managed by the head of the NF clinic, Rivi Sella; she developed the software herself.
There is another, more benign context in which depersonalization arises. It happens in certain forms of spiritual awakening. Transitioning to what is called non-dual awareness. No self.
Dr. Jeffery Martin has documented this extensively,
He coined the phrase, PNSE, Persistent Non-Symbolic Experience, as a “more scientific” term for non-dual awakening. The main paper on the link above is the one describing the different “locations” people arrive at after non-dual transition. In particular, read about Location 4. It is the form of awakening that could be said to have similarities with DPD.
The ‘location’ descriptions are on page 32+.
A more condensed version of that paper, for non-academics,
BATGAP (Buddha at the Gas Pump) interview with Martin,
I am aware of the claims that depersonalization could be perceived as a higher spiritual state; however, I disagree with such claims in the context of the psychiatric disorder. While I believe that some mental states achieved using various spiritual techniques may have certain characteristics in common with DPD, most of the DPD characteristics are certainly not present, therefore spiritual DP differs from psychiatric DPD. The extensive list of symptoms goes beyond the loss of the self and renders the individual a robotic body with a dysfunctional brain whose cognitive capacities are diminished, and thus basic functioning becomes impossible. This is far from a higher state.