[SolomonOrlando]

I really don't know where to put this, all of the other sub-forums don't seem to cover what I'm going to say, nor have I ever seen anyone even mention this thing I have. This feeling usually happens when I'm outside in a place that's fairly unknown to me. It's incredibly difficult to describe so, please, bear with me as much as possible here.

I was walking outside tonight, just around my neighborhood. I usually walk a couple of blocks, but I was feeling pretty overwhelmed so I ended up going farther than I usually do. I turned around a corner that I was not very sure of, my surroundings were new considering I had not been there at all prior to me turning that corner. That's when things get odd. It's as though new surroundings trigger this thing inside of my head, it's this dizziness or blur that sweeps over me, I even sometimes have chills. For example, I looked at a dark garage in someone's backyard. Right when my eyes glanced over it, that blur hit me and everything became incredibly obscure - it was as though I totally left my body for a moment.

I kept walking, but it would seem that everything I looked at turned into this incredibly uncomfortable experience that made me light-headed and dissociate. It's happened all throughout my life, especially when I head to places I haven't seen before. It usually goes away within a couple of seconds, but it's still something weird that I cannot understand.

Anyone else experience this? Anyone have insight? Google's turned up nothing for me so far.

[SnakeCharmer]

It sounds like a variation of Jamais Vu, which is the opposite of Deja Vu.

In psychology, jamais vu is the phenomenon of experiencing a situation that one recognizes in some fashion, but that nonetheless seems very unfamiliar.

You look at something you should recognize -- a garage, a tree, a street light, a car -- and it suddenly turns strange and unknowable.

I don't know if anyone has figured out exactly what causes Jamais Vu and Deja Vu yet. Jamais Vu is much less common than Deja Vu. That's why people don't know about it.

I've experienced both since childhood, along with a frisson that shakes my senses. With Deja Vu, it's a thrill, even a sense of delight. With Jamais Vu it's a frisson of fear, confusion, even revulsion, a cold chill. It can pass quickly or last as long as an hour.

For me, Jamais Vu usually happens in familiar circumstance. Deja Vu usually happens in an unfamiliar place or with unfamiliar people. It's not odd that your experience happens in unfamiliar places, but that would add, for me, another level of confusion. I accept it as a quirk in my brain and wait for it to pass. So far, nothing bad has ever happened because of it.

Does that sound as if it might be what you're experiencing?

[Xenon]

Depersonalization/derealization might be another possibility. I've had that before and it was really disturbing. I can't tell based on your description if it's the same thing you're experiencing. You can follow the link and give it a read, though.

[SolomonOrlando]

Sorry that I haven't gotten back to you all, after you put so much time into your replies. I wanted to say that I appreciate it and putting a word to something that I originally didn't know was cathartic. Jamais Vu definitely seems like it's what I'm experiencing, thanks for giving me more information on it, I would have never known!

Also, Xenon, I've been suffering from Depersonalization / Derealization for almost a year now, so that could be a part of it as well.

[OracleFox]

Originally Posted by SolomonOrlando

Sorry that I haven't gotten back to you all, after you put so much time into your replies. I wanted to say that I appreciate it and putting a word to something that I originally didn't know was cathartic. Jamais Vu definitely seems like it's what I'm experiencing, thanks for giving me more information on it, I would have never known!

Also, Xenon, I've been suffering from Depersonalization / Derealization for almost a year now, so that could be a part of it as well.

You said you've been suffering from depersonalisation for almost a year now, have you been diagnosed with this or medicated at all?
I can relate to you, but not exactly how you feel. I often have panic attacks when Im somewhere unfamiliar or when I know I'm far away from home...
I have been experiencing depersonalisation for a few months now and it has made my life a living hell... very hard to deal with.