How can 20 minutes fly by when you’re catching up with a friend, but feel incredibly slow if you’re waiting in line? It all comes down to perception. The seconds measured by a clock and the time felt in someone’s body are often completely different. In the rare condition known as tachysensia, a person experiences a temporary distortion of time and sound, during which they get the “fast feeling” that everything is moving more rapidly than it actually is.
When Tachysensia Becomes Part of Your Identity
Living with tachysensia over time can lead to a fusion of identity and diagnosis. You may find yourself thinking "I am tachysensia" rather than "I have tachysensia." This identity fusion has significant consequences:
- Reduces motivation (why try if this is just who I am?)
- Increases shame and stigma internalization
- Makes recovery feel like losing part of yourself
- Limits how others see you (and how you see yourself)
Reclaiming a Multidimensional Identity
Your identity is vastly larger than tachysensia. A powerful exercise: complete this sentence 20 times with anything other than your struggles:
"I am someone who ___________"
Values, roles, relationships, interests, history, capabilities — all form your identity.
Tachysensia as One Chapter, Not the Whole Story
Narrative therapy offers a powerful reframe: tachysensia is one story in a much larger life narrative. You are the author, not the character defined by struggle.
Externalizing the problem: Practice talking about "Tachysensia that visits me" rather than "my Tachysensia." This linguistic shift creates psychological distance and agency.
Building Identity Beyond Tachysensia
- Invest in relationships that see your full self, not just your struggles
- Pursue interests unrelated to mental health — art, sport, learning, creativity
- Find meaning — purpose larger than symptom management provides identity anchor
- Contribute to others — giving to others builds positive identity components
- Celebrate growth — document how you've changed, overcome, adapted
The Strengths That Tachysensia Builds
Many people find that navigating tachysensia develops genuine strengths: deep empathy, resilience, self-awareness, creativity, and a hard-won wisdom about what matters in life.