# I need a word \[for being "out of it"\]! **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 7, 2018, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-word-for-being-out-of-it/810196 "2018-03-07T19:03:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2018, 10:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-word-for-being-out-of-it/810196/21 "2018-03-08T10:14:07Z")
> [@DavidwithanR](#): > > Some of the terms already suggested have very specific meanings that don’t match the situation. (Fugue, for example - you can look it up if interested.) I did look it up. Says it’s a synonym of “stupor”. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2018, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-word-for-being-out-of-it/810196/22 "2018-03-08T12:54:12Z")
> [@Banksiaman](#): > > Obviously you went through a horrible episode, and the wealth of vague and mean-spirited terms that we can offer reflects on the very poor understanding or empathy our society has about mental health issues generally. If you had asked about your bank account or car trouble we would have very precise terminology and exact diagnoses. I think we lack information, not empathy. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2018, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-word-for-being-out-of-it/810196/23 "2018-03-08T15:41:25Z")
Why exactly does it need a name? Is it for medical or legal papers? ---
**Author:** ![SmellMyWort](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea5d25/32.png) [@SmellMyWort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmellMyWort)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2018, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-word-for-being-out-of-it/810196/24 "2018-03-08T16:30:10Z")
It’s usually used in reference to military action, but “shell shocked” seems like it might work. ---
**Author:** ![DavidwithanR](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/3bc359/32.png) [@DavidwithanR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DavidwithanR)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2018, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-word-for-being-out-of-it/810196/25 "2018-03-08T19:05:38Z")
> [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#): > > I did look it up. Says it’s a synonym of “stupor”. > **[Dissociative fugue](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fugue_state)** > > Dissociative fugue (/fjuːɡ/ FYOOG), formerly called a fugue state or psychogenic fugue, is a rare psychiatric phenomenon characterized by reversible amnesia for one's identity in conjunction with unexpected wandering or travel. This is sometimes accompanied by the establishment of a new identity and the inability to recall personal information prior to the presentation of symptoms. Dissociative fugue is a mental and behavioral disorder that is classified variously as a dissociative disor After re... The source where you looked it up is true but very vague. In fugue there is always severe temporary amnesia - people in a fugue state generally forget who they are, where they came from, and so on. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2018, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-word-for-being-out-of-it/810196/26 "2018-03-08T22:36:18Z")
I am not a mental health professional, so I may be missing the correct term. It does sound kind of like what I’ve heard called dissociation, but that word has multiple meanings, so that may be confusing. I think if you said you were catatonic, that might get the idea across. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2018, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-word-for-being-out-of-it/810196/27 "2018-03-08T22:43:14Z")
> [@SmellMyWort](#): > > It’s usually used in reference to military action, but “shell shocked” seems like it might work. That’s long fallen out of use in military contexts, I believe, and has been replaced where appropriate by post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2018, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-word-for-being-out-of-it/810196/28 "2018-03-09T00:02:52Z")
See posts #12 and #18.🙂 ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2018, 6:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-word-for-being-out-of-it/810196/29 "2018-03-09T06:14:53Z")
I vote for “in shock” for what O.P. described. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2018, 6:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-word-for-being-out-of-it/810196/30 "2018-03-09T06:19:17Z")
Shock is it. ---
**Author:** ![The\_wind\_of\_my\_soul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecc23a/32.png) [@The\_wind\_of\_my\_soul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_wind_of_my_soul)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2018, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-word-for-being-out-of-it/810196/31 "2018-03-09T19:36:39Z")
The textbook definition of catatonic is “unable to move or control your movements as a result of illness or shock.” [Cite](https://www.onelook.com/?w=catatonic&ls=a) on the right side of the screen, MacMillan Dictionary. I know I’m not the first person to suggest that word, but nobody else has actually provided the dictionary definition. What you described sounds exactly like catatonia. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2018, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-word-for-being-out-of-it/810196/32 "2018-03-09T20:24:06Z")
> [@The\_wind\_of\_my\_soul](#): > > The textbook definition of catatonic is “unable to move or control your movements as a result of illness or shock.” [Cite](https://www.onelook.com/?w=catatonic&ls=a) on the right side of the screen, MacMillan Dictionary. I know I’m not the first person to suggest that word, but nobody else has actually provided the dictionary definition. What you described sounds exactly like catatonia. In your cite there is a list of words similar to catatonic. Surely the OP could find a descriptor for his/her needs, here. ---
**Author:** ![SmellMyWort](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea5d25/32.png) [@SmellMyWort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmellMyWort)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2018, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-word-for-being-out-of-it/810196/33 "2018-03-09T20:31:00Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > That’s long fallen out of use in military contexts, I believe, and has been replaced where appropriate by post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). I think the OP is looking for something more specific than PTSD, which encompasses a wide range of symptoms/manifestations and seems to be a longer-term condition. According to its page on wikipedia, shell shock has largely been replaced by a condition called [combat stress reaction](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Combat_stress_reaction), which is a military specific term. The non-military term seems to be [acute stress reaction](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acute_stress_reaction) (or disorder), with shock, psychological shock, or mental shock listed as synonyms. According to its wikipedia page: > [@](#): > > The DSM-IV specifies that ASD must be accompanied by the presence of dissociative symptoms, which largely differentiates it from PTSD. So it seems to me that the OP was suffering an acute stress reaction that manifested as catatonia as defined by **The wind of my soul**. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-word-for-being-out-of-it/810196.md?page=1)