Depersonalization: Debunking Part II

In the spirit of debunking... Depersonalization is a phenomenon often observed in schizophrenic individuals, where the person becomes confused about self/nonself boundaries. This passage from Patricia Churchland's "Brain-Wise" (2002) might offer some insight into so-called "out of body" experiences:

"Certain drugs can also trigger depersonalization phenomena. Surgical patients given the anesthetic ketamine, for example, are susceptible to depersonalization effects. A patient awaking from ketamine anesthesia may be convinced she is dead or possessed or separated from her body or separated from her own feelings. Similar depersonalization effects may also occur in subjects who have taken phencyclidine (PCP) or LSD. These effects have prompted some researchers to wonder whether some of the so-called 'out of body' and 'near death' experiences of patients who are otherwise asymptomatic might have fundamentally the same neurophysiological origin as disturbances caused by ketamine or LSD."