Lots of good answers here for you already, Kandyce, so I hope you found what you were looking for.

My own story:
I started seeing ‘Reality’ differently than my brothers, parents and friends at a very early age. By 5, I already sensed this whole thing was an illusion, and at 6 I noticed I could look at any object or person and see “through” them, i.e., see that they were not solid at all but made up of millions of constantly-in-motion tiny particles. Somehow for me, these discoveries were accompanied by pleasant, “knowing” feelings rather than anxiety.

But in my teens, the dream/illusion nature of what we call reality pushed its way more & more into my consciousness, and I went through an extended period where I often felt I couldn’t tell the difference between whether I was walking through our ‘waking’ reality,’ or perhaps still asleep and dreaming everything. Psychologists and their Diagnostic & Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM–5) have ‘diagnoses’ for this like ‘depersonalization disorder’ and ‘derealization.’

Scared the bejeezus out of me, and I definitely thought I might be ‘going crazy.’ Even spent extended months with a psychiatrist to see if he could help me feel ‘normal’ again. Fortunately, this psychiatrist was also a long-time Zen meditator, and he helped me clarify that what was actually happening wasn’t ‘de-realization,’ but Realization, seeing through the illusion of what we call the solid, waking reality.

Both he and my Indian guru (yes, I already had one of those 🙏 in my teen years) encouraged me to do the one thing the ego would be most terrified of: dive into it, instead of trying to stop it. Let go into the ‘awareness’ that nothing was actually real, including this illusory self-contained “me” that was perceiving it and letting go. Quite a frightening prospect, especially for one at the ‘beginning’ of making the most out of his ‘future life in this reality,’ as most of his teenage friends were planning.

For me, there really wasn’t a choice. This ‘awakening’ was happening, and I was either going to let go into it, or resist it and “go crazy.” Fortunately, both the shrink and the guru assured me they would be right there to ‘hold my hand’ through it, and although it took several years to ‘ease into it,’ I just surrendered to it. Very soon I realized our true nature and realized that:

-Both ‘self-control’ and the ‘personal self’ that supposedly has this control are illusions, Life just unfolds as it does, so I might as well let go. This discovery of the totally-liberating power of letting go was like Tolle’s discovery of the ‘power of Now,’ and it’s the main action (inaction, actually) I teach to all my students.

-Everyone’s unfolding is totally unique, obviously, so not much point in comparing your story and unfolding to mine. You may ‘awaken’ later in life with little anxiety or fear. You may have some interim ‘awakenings’ and just prior to full Self-Realization, you may die of cancer. You may never be interested in the ‘awakening path,’ and therefore have no reference for these kind of out-of-the-ordinary experiences & feelings other than the Western psychological model, in which case you may go in & out of psychiatrists & institutions all your life.

It’s out of “our” hands. There is no “you” that’s ‘going crazy’ or even ‘going sane’ and realizing the Truth of Reality. It’s already done. You Are That. Let go.