The participating self is composed of body, thoughts, feelings, memories, and emotions. Depersonalization, an experience in which the perception of the self is altered, is sometimes accompanied by derealization, an experience in which perception of one's environment is altered. Shapes and sizes of objects may change, or objects may disappear altogether. Persons experiencing depersonalization frequently report an especially distinct separation between the observing self and mental activities. When these mental activities are cognitive in nature, the affected individuals complain that it seems as if they are not doing their own thinking, imaging, or remembering because they can observe an independent flow of these phenomena in their minds.
Depersonalization also occurs in the nonclinical population.
Dixon observed that over half of his college student subjects could recognize descriptions of depersonalization as something they had experienced. When one takes into account the high incidence of depersonalization, in both the clinical and the nonclinical populations, it is not surprising that many authors postulate an organic basis or substrate for its occurrence. Psychoanalytic writers on depersonalization have emphasized the defensive function of this experience. The subjects sat for 30 minutes gazing at the vase and were then interviewed regarding their experiences. The obvious depersonalization and derealization experiences reported by Deikman's novice subjects while meditating are strikingly similar to the experiences reported below by my more experienced informants outside of meditation.