Hi Striker,
whilst looking inside the cockpit briefly at my chart and then looking outside again, I got disorientated.
Sorry to hear you became disoriented whilst flying.
Luckily for me a few years ago I was able to take a spin in a "spacial disorientation" simulator at Oshkosh which demonstrated two types of disorientation.
The first I don't recall exactly how it was induced, but I had the overwhelming feeling that the aircraft was spiraling even though the instruments and horizon of the simulator were telling me differently.
The second was MUCH more dramatic. If I recall correctly you first looked straight ahead and the simulator was put in a constant rate of turn. After a period of time the simulator asked you to reach down and press a button. The immediate feeling was like nothing I had experienced before, my brain was telling me I was tumbling and it really took a lot of concentration to convince myself that it couldn't be true. Very uncomfortable.
Now I had the huge advantage of knowing that I was going to be disoriented, you did not. If I had experienced this without forewarning, and in the cockpit of an aircraft, I too likely would have panicked.
Your reaction sounds perfectly normal to me. Think of it this way, you are now luckier than most in that when it happens again you will be prepared.
Recently when my instructor and I were practicing spins I became disoriented again when my instructor told me to check the airspeed. Of course I moved my head rather than my eyes which was a big mistake. The next time I kept my head straight and I moved only my eyes- much better!
(my apologies about the pun "take a spin", couldn't help myself...)
Regards,
Steven in Winnipeg.