When Nyle began feeling disconnected from reality, he turned to The Dorm for support. Today, he is building his own business from scratch.
Presenting Problems
Nyle had previously engaged in mental health treatment for his anxiety, depression, social phobia, and PTSD. As a common defense mechanism against trauma and a marker of dissociative PTSD, dissociation usually manifests as derealization, or feeling as if the world isn’t real, and depersonalization, or feeling as if oneself isn’t real — Nyle came to The Dorm looking for increased support after experiencing these derealization and depersonalization symptoms, and the heightened levels of anxiety that came with them.
Treatment and Life Goals
At The Dorm, Nyle aimed to:
- Decrease his symptoms of derealization and depersonalization, which manifested for him as feeling as if he was not living but only observing his life’s events.
- Increase social confidence and social skills.
- Learn skills to help cope with lingering derealization symptoms and to stop him from falling into deep depression.
Treatment Plan and Recovery Journey
Individual Therapy
In individual therapy sessions, Nyle’s therapist used the following modalities to assist with various presenting derealization, depersonalization, and PTSD symptoms:
- Mindfulness, to ground him in the present moment.
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), to help him combat his maladaptive thoughts around his derealization symptoms.
- Eye Movement Desensitization Therapy (EMDR), an evidence-based therapy conducted in a structured format, created to decrease PTSD and anxiety symptoms.
Clinical Coaching
Nyle’s clinical coach worked with him to build closer relationships with his friends, providing him with Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) skills that help with effective interpersonal communication and role-playing social scenarios with him to combat his social anxiety.
Parent Coaching and Family Therapy
Parent coaching was a large part of Nyle’s overall treatment journey. Nyle’s parent coach primarily worked with his mother in learning how to best connect with Nyle using various DBT skills, such as the GIVE skill — be Gentle, act Interested, Validate, and use an Easy manner with your conversation partner.
Group Therapy
During his time at The Dorm, Nyle was involved in multiple groups, including:
- Men’s Process Group, where he had the opportunity to connect with peers and safely delve into gender-specific social, emotional, and health issues.
- DBT Skills Group, which helped him build on skills learned in coaching with other Dorm clients.
- Meditation Group, to further assist with grounding him in the face of his derealization and depersonalization symptoms.
Community Clubhouse
The Dorm’s community model was extremely beneficial for Nyle’s social phobia, building close knit relationships right in his treatment space and taking skills learned into his life outside treatment. Nyle was an active member of The Dorm’s music club, channeling his creativity into a new hobby. Nyle could rely on The Dorm as a touch point, always having someone to talk to, whether client or clinician.
Nyle Today: Outcomes
After over 18 months of treatment with The Dorm, beginning at a higher level of care and slowly phasing down as he transitioned back to his regular life, Nyle has been passionate about building his own business and works part-time to support his passion. Though he still occasionally experiences moments of derealization and depersonalization, grounding techniques and other coping strategies learned at The Dorm are able to quickly pull him back into the present moment. He feels supported by his friends and family and has a strong sense of community with those he works with.
