It's called derealization, and it's a protective mechanism the brain uses to remove itself from painful stimuli, which typically manifests alongside a sense of

It's called derealization, and it's a protective mechanism the brain uses to remove itself from painful stimuli, which typically manifests alongside a sense of anxiety, although obvious anxiety is not always present. Yours is likely triggered by an underlying need for control, which is usually satisfied by understanding the world around you in-depth. You can control what you can understand. When you come to a question with no satisfying answer, the sense of control is broken and your brain perceives it as a threat, which causes derealization, thereby removing the painful stimuli that the thought is causing. All of this happens at a subconscious level. Many people with PTSD have this feeling of derealization on an almost constant basis, as their brains are hypervigilant and tend to perceive harmless stimuli as potentially painful and/or threatening.