Voices

[Gilhelmi]

Not sure where to post this. Not really religion, not social woes, so I flipped a coin.

People scare me sometimes. They repeat history far too easily, even history they should already know about. What am I talking about?

I hear voices. They are as real to me as the posts in this forum. They have taught me love and peace. They have talked me down from being stupid. I can tell there are between 3 to 5 distinct personalities, but all of them 'sing in the same choir', meaning they agree about the major points (though we do have intellectual debates from time to time). Are they Angels? Are they my dead ancestors making sure I live right by God? Are the voices just my own means of decision making, and part of myself, without any supernatural force at play? Who knows, and I do not care. They are my friends, just as my 'real' friends are.

I stress again, they have never tried to tell me to be violent or hateful, NEVER.

Yet, whenever I mention them in conversation (online) someone inevitably suggests I seek mental help. I always ask 'why'. Why should I suppress voices that are no threat to me or others? Why should I go on dangerous psycho-pharmaceuticals that will only lower my quality of life?

This type of thinking reminds me of past tragedies. In the not-to-distant-past, homosexuals (mostly men) were committed to mental institutions for simply being different. Witch hunts played off of suspicions raised about people who did not conform to their communities. Tragic mistakes, all bound to repeat time and time again because no one thinks about these things.

I guess I more want to vent and refine my debate points. Open honest debate brings understanding. We may disagree, but understanding builds bridges of compromise.

[Gravekeeper]

What the heck, I'll wade into this potential minefield.

First, lets scratch off any supernatural input here. Hearing voices is also quite possible without the presence of a mental illness. But it still points to a malfunction of the brain.

When people say "hearing voices" we commonly associate it with mental illness. Specifically, Schizophrenia. However, with Schizophrenia the sufferer may lose control to said voices or is unaware/unaccepting that said voices are even abnormal. Which is the tricky part here. A very large portion of people who suffer from Schizophrenia do not believe there is anything wrong with them and even outright refuse to accept there's a problem at all.

Schizophrenia also doesn't always mean hallucinations or delusions that are what we would think of as "crazy" ( ie violent, maniacal, etc ). Its a malfunction with perception. It can be benign, even seemingly helpful to the sufferer. Those with it can also perceive themselves as being persecuted. So from that perspective, you could be a textbook case of Schizophrenia for all we know.

Schizophrenia is a really complex issue though and a difficult one to assess on a mere web forum. You have also not revealed any other symptoms nor a timeline of when the voices started or if they started relatively minor and have increased over time. All of which would be important information to such a diagnosis.

If we, however, go with the standpoint that you are not mentally ill. Then the problem remains that there is still a malfunction of the brain occurring. Which is a big problem. As the malfunction could be being caused by a serious issue such as a tumor, abscesses or lesions on the brain, any number of sleep disorders or even inflammation of the brain. If this is a long standing issue with you, it could for example be a long standing and undiagnosed autoimmune disorder that's causing persistent inflammation. In which cause the inside of your skull could be a potentially life threatening time bomb that you are ignoring because you find the symptoms to be benign.

Regardless of the cause, leaving it alone and unassessed by the medical professionals that specialize in this kind of thing is frankly unwise if not outright dangerous to your health. You're not going to be medicated and thrown into a padded cell for mentioning you hear voices. Seeing as they seem to be benign in nature and you seemingly are in control of yourself. So you are not ceding any power of your actions to them. Your grasp on reality is also sounds decent enough to be functioning on a daily basis and posting on this web forum.

[Hyena Dandy]

I'm not ruling out the supernatural, that is a possibility. But I think it's important nonetheless to talk to a doctor who specializes in such things. Because you could have something like a tumor that's causing you to hear voices. If such a thing could only be benign, I'd say it likely isn't a big deal what you decide, one way or another. But the biggest concern is, I think, to ensure you don't have cancer or something.

[Gravekeeper]

I'm not ruling out the supernatural, that is a possibility.

No, it isn't.

[s_stabeler]

let's not make this a debate on the supenatural, please.

but yeah, I highly doubt that a medical professonal would section you when you aren't a risk to either yourself or others. It's worth double-checking it isn't something like cancer.

[Daskinor]

This sounds like something on the Schizophrenia spectrum. Schizophrenia is a Dissociative Disorder that covers a wide range of mental disorders that share a common aspect of disorganized thinking, emotions and behaviors.

For people who hear voices its generally a breakdown of your own internal monologue, the talking inside your own head that all people do. The sources of those thoughts get muddled and eventually get attributed to an external source.

Your lucky the voices are nice, most of the time they are abusive. But that fact that you admit they exists is most troubling. Then you become highly susceptible to those crazy random thoughts that enter everyone's head, like "what if I jumped off that bridge".

People who believe the voices are divine tend to have real problems getting help. Since the religious bias of the people around you will greatly affect what you believe is going on. You being a Saint, Witch, Devil etc..

First things first, GET HELP. There could be a serious medical condition going on. Generally hearing voices gets worse until you are unable to function in public. When that happens a whole range of other problems get mixed in, Anxiety, Depression or even Addiction.

I will stress this again. See a Doctor, tell them exactly what is going on, leave nothing out. Whatever help he thinks you need, GET IT. The voices are not real, they are simply aspects of your own thoughts that your mind has identified incorrectly.

[Gravekeeper]

let's not make this a debate on the supenatural, please.

Its not a debate. Suggesting a supernatural origin to someone that potentially has schizophrenia is incredibly irresponsible of Hyena.

[Kuari]

Some people do happen to believe in the supernatural, and I don't mean the Winchester brothers either. Yes, there may be a different reason behind Gilhemi hearing voices, but it is not fair to completely discount it either.

If the voices are not making the OP do violent things then I honestly do not see them harm in them.

[Gravekeeper]

Some people do happen to believe in the supernatural, and I don't mean the Winchester brothers either. Yes, there may be a different reason behind Gilhemi hearing voices, but it is not fair to completely discount it either.

"Not fair"? You can't be serious. It is completely fair and reasonable to reject an explanation for which there is no proof and no scientific basis. Nor has there ever been.

Bringing it up as a possibility, let alone arguing it has equal weight, is amazingly irresponsible and doesn't help Gilhelmi in any way shape or form. As Daskinor has already explained, if this is indeed schizophrenia, suggesting its supernatural in origin or presenting the possibility is basically one of the worse things we can do here.

If its not schizophrenia then its still a medical condition. Which is still, clearly, affecting perception. If it is not a mental condition it is a physical condition and either way, a doctor needs to be involved to ensure Gilhelmi's continued health and well being.

[Kuari]

I am completely serious. Who are you to decide what somebody may or may not believe in? If Gilhemi thinks that there may be a supernatural explanation for it and cannot find a medical explanation for it, then it is up to him to decide what to believe in even if others choose not to believe it.

[telecom_goddess]

You know there is a possibility that there is DID going on (disassociative identity disorder) here. Distinct personalities were mentioned, and it's possible to hear them in your head without them being "out" per se.

It's entirely possible to have this without any actual mental illness. And yes those personalities are just as real as anyone else.

[Gravekeeper]

I am completely serious. Who are you to decide what somebody may or may not believe in? If Gilhemi thinks that there may be a supernatural explanation for it and cannot find a medical explanation for it, then it is up to him to decide what to believe in even if others choose not to believe it.

Gilhelmi has not sought a medical explanation for it nor did he/she put any weight into a supernatural possibility. They merely listed possibilities then basically said they didn't care.

That aside, this is not a matter of religious faith it is a medical matter. Just because you yourself do not understand the symptoms or conditions does not mean they are of supernatural origin. You are, quite literally, doing the exact same thing as suggesting a cold is caused by witchcraft or sleep paralysis is caused by demons.

So unless you are seriously going to sit there and tell me that the last time you were showing all the symptoms of the flu you decided it wasn't the flu, it was Leprechauns? Because that is EXACTLY what you are doing right now.

Furthermore, as I have repeatedly said, making such a suggestion to someone that may be have schizophrenia or even just a neurological condition affecting perception is irresponsible and dangerous of you. Especially if this is indeed on the schizophrenia spectrum. Because such beliefs are part of more severe schizophrenia.

What you are doing is about as helpful as telling a depressed person to cheer up and about as responsible as telling them to jump. This insistence at the supernatural has likely already derailed any possibly positive or productive discussion we could have had with Gilhelmi.

[Gravekeeper]

You know there is a possibility that there is DID going on (disassociative identity disorder) here. Distinct personalities were mentioned, and it's possible to hear them in your head without them being "out" per se.

It's entirely possible to have this without any actual mental illness. And yes those personalities are just as real as anyone else.

DID would require the voices in question to be taking control instead of just speaking and memory issues resulting from it. It sounds like Gilhelmi just has back seat drivers, not people kicking him/her out of the driver seat periodically. With DID the driver keeps changing and each driver would have their own set of memories and motivations. DID is pretty much always co-presents with other issues as well such as depression, anxiety, PTSD, schizophrenia, etc. It doesn't exist in a vacuum. Gilhelmi seems fairly content from what I can tell, he/she just has a choir.

But no, those personalities are not just as real as anyone else. Someone with DID typically has a core personality which is the original and identifies itself by birth name, etc. The rest are incomplete fragments that often manifest emotions or tendencies the main personality is suppressing or rejecting.

Like Daskinor was saying, schizophrenia is basically a malfunction in information sorting. This is why with severe schizophrenia someone may claim all sorts of things. Its not because they are hallucinating these things but because when they take in information they cannot organize it properly. If they read something in the news paper like a story about a bomb threat. The brain can't organize it properly and it may mess up first person and third person. So they read "Man makes bomb threat" but the brain misfiles it in the first person and reads "I made a bomb threat".

[telecom_goddess]

But no, those personalities are not just as real as anyone else. Someone with DID typically has a core personality which is the original and identifies itself by birth name, etc. The rest are incomplete fragments that often manifest emotions or tendencies the main personality is suppressing or rejecting.

I know EXACTLY what DID is I have two girlfriends with it and numerous friends. And one girlfriend is the alter of the host person, try and tell her she's not real I dare you I know how that whole thing works I live it every day. I just listed it as a possibility because I also know of some DID people who hear the voices in their head abut they don't necessarily come out take control all the time.

Some personalities are fragments, and some are complete identities. Name, birth date, separate thoughts and opinions, likes and dislikes, talents and so forth. They have to fight to have people believe their individuality every day.

To try and stay more on topic I was just stating it was a possibility. It probably IS schizophrenia. But this was an idea to kick around as well. No two cases of DID are alike, that's for damn sure.

[Gravekeeper]

To try and stay more on topic I was just stating it was a possibility. It probably IS schizophrenia. But this was an idea to kick around as well. No two cases of DID are alike, that's for damn sure.

DID is such a nebulous spectrum that presents as part of so many other things that its existence itself as a separate disorder rather than a symptom of other disorders is still a matter of some medical debate. I'd say its the least understood and least clearly defined of all the mental disorders. If only by the nature of the symptoms alone.

I'm going to avoid the potential mine field of multiple personality's rights though. >.>