Disturbed by What I See and Hear

I see, hear, feel, smell or taste things that are strange or illogical to others

I feel that I am being watched

I feel I am controlled by someone else

I feel like I am god or have special powers

Someone is talking inside my head

I have confusing thoughts

I see, hear, feel, smell or taste things that other people don’t

I am driven to do things I don’t want to do

Further Information

Hearing voices can be experienced as anything from receiving commands to be harmful, to engaging someone in conversation, and even to experiencing voices as if someone is speaking to you. It is the most common type of hallucination in people with psychotic disorders. While some people find that they are able to live with their voices as a manageable part of their lives, others may hear voices that are present all day, preventing them from doing things in their daily lives. A person hearing voices may become isolated, withdrawn, disturbed, distressed or agitated.

Regardless of a person’s experience, it is important that a person hearing voices should talk to someone about it and explore the variety of methods that are available to manage the experience of hearing voices. There are treatments available to help you, so it is important that you seek help.

There are a number of ‘traditional’ and ‘non-traditional’ approaches to help a person treat and manage the experience of hearing voices. More traditional approaches apply a medical model to reduce the ‘delusionary’ aspect of hearing voices through antipsychotic medications. Along with medications, psychosocial interventions provide services, supports and strategies to change behaviour and provide support.

The Hearing Voices Network and Intervoice both provide less traditional approaches to dealing with experiences of hearing voices by understanding the reasons why voices occur. They determine ways to cope with the voice hearing experience and embrace it as a natural aspect of life.

Who Can Help?