A preliminary evaluation of repeated exposure for depersonalization and derealization.

Weiner et al. (2013) ran a small before-and-after study with anxious adults. All volunteers felt chronic depersonalization or derealization.

For one week, each person did daily interoceptive exposure. They breathed through thin straws, spun in chairs, and stared at bright lights. These tasks trigger the same dizzy, unreal feelings they feared.

After seven days, six of seven dissociation items dropped. The total score fell too. No extra therapy was given.

The brief home program cut the sense of being outside one's body or living in a dream.

Oser et al. (2021) built on this idea. They added mindfulness and used cardiac patients. Anxiety sensitivity fell there too. The combo looks safe and quick.

Geckeler et al. (2000) sounds gloomy: one third of claustrophobia clients saw fear return after exposure. Yet Elliot's adults kept gains without follow-up. The difference is time frame. S et al. checked one week later; Elliot stopped at post-test. Long-term tracking is still needed.

Smith et al. (2020) warn that old avoidance can creep back. They suggest ACT skills to catch relapse early. Pairing Elliot's brief exposure with ACT defusion drills could make the wins stick.

If you treat adults with panic or PTSD, dissociation can block progress. A one-week home exposure package is easy to add. You can script the tasks, have clients log scores, and see if the unreal-feeling barrier drops. No extra office visits required.