Have you ever had an experience where you didn't know where you were?

I do that alot any more I will start out doing something and then wonder what I am doing and have totally forgot everything its like a space cotinuin you just seem to gap a part of time and I think its just totally lost not sure but it leaves you with a sense of emptyness for a moment and you have to recollect thoughts to try and figure out what you were doing or about to do.I understand very well what you went through now imagine it being apart of every day life.

I stay on the road quite a bit, and I find that when I am driving my thoughts sort of drift from topic to topic. I am able to drive, follow all the rules of the road, make whatever traffic adjustments that are needed in order to avoid accidents and incidents...however, their is a part of me that is focus on other things. I could be thinking about where I am going, what I need to pick up at the grocery store, an upcoming birthday or whatever. And sometimes I am so wrap up in those thoughts, I will approach a light, look around and ask myself, how in the heck did I get here, I will be following the right route, but I become so absorbed in other thoughts, that I don't consciously keep track of my present location. I think we just have too much going on in our lives sometimes...it would be great to be able to take a vacation from our thoughts...SS

It is scary when this happens and it did happen to us many years ago. We were driving back home after holidays but due to bad weather, rain, an accident (not us), punctured tyre etc we were behind schedule by about 24 hours. So one night we decided to drive through the night but is was extremely foggy. My husband was driving and I was navigating but we got lost and it took us about 100km to realise it. So we changed drivers and off we went back to where we should be going. After that it was obviously auto-pilot situation as I cannot remember returning home although we did take it in turns to drive, about an hour at a time due to the very foggy conditions plus being tired. I have no idea what time we arrived back home but our son later informed me it was around lunch time and that a couple of hours later I left to return to Melbourne for work the following day. Even today I cannot remember much past a certain time, and nor can my husband, but we managed to get home safely all the same. I don't think we panicked at all but yes it had been an awful trip, we had booked a motel but didn't arrive there and then they wouldn't refund the money so we kept on going. Just pulled up every now and then for a bit of a nap, walk around etc. After that trip I vowed and declared that never again would we go anywhere in a hurry or drive for more than a couple of hours at a time without a break. You are right caribe in that stress can make a person disorientated and even if they know the area well, it can be forgotten under extreme stress. Then if the person has a panic attack, the whole matter can be exacerbated.

I haven't had an experience like that, but it sounds scary. I would panic, too. I wonder what caused that to happen to you. Have you ever talked to your doctor about the phenomenon?

yeah mam,i grew up in a provincial town with a small commercial district,it happened when it was my first time in this big city(manila)i was in the middle of a commercial districts lots of buildings,i was 18y/o then,i was amazed on what i was seeing so i walked around the place...looking at these big tall buildings...i was so amused that i forgot where i was...i ended up asking people wheres the way to a place where i can ride a bus on my way to my uncles place...i was lucky there was this old guy on his way home and he lives on the sam place or area where my uncle lives...lesson learned after that?always carry a map if you dont know the place...hehehe.peace

Once I was riding my usual route when i decided to turn and check out some new roads. It turned out that it really is new! I indeed have not been on those roads before and I dont know where I was. But since it was still morning, I just kept on riding. It turned out that I knew the place, but only by name. I didnt know how to get out. So, I just followed the highway and pray that it wont lead me further out. Soon I was back to roads I knew. I didnt have a scare though

Oh yes, I developed a medical problem a few years ago, where I was taking some really nasty medication. It made me confused and forgetful and disoriented. Well I got lost coming home one day, I was less then a 1/2 mile a way, and I couldn't remember how to get home, I pulled over and lost it. A cop came up and asked me the problem, he then asked for a breathalyzer test. Someone had to come and get me. After that I was not allowed to go anywhere alone, my son was 14 at the time, poor kid had to go everywhere with me.