A Personal Perspective: Hallucinations can be debilitating for people with schizophrenia, most often auditory and visual, but sometimes affecting all five senses.
My life suddenly began to fall apart when I was an honors student at the University of Southern California studying biochemistry and molecular biology. My grades dropped, and I withdrew from a laboratory where I had been a successful student researcher. Slowly, I became paranoid of friends and family, not knowing that schizophrenia, a neurobiological brain disorder, was slowly distorting my mind.
In January of 2006, I began to experience hallucinations. These hallucinations overtook my perception of reality, and I gradually experienced them in all five of my senses.On January 28. 2006, in the early afternoon, I was sitting on a park bench on my former university campus resting and enjoying the cool weather when, suddenly, I began to hear a chorus of voices inside my mind.
When it actually happened to me, it was different than I expected. In fact, I did literally hear voices inside my mind , but I was somehow aware that others could not hear the voices. Looking back, the voices were like laugh tracks in a sitcom, such as"Seinfeld." The audience hears the laugh tracks, but you assume that Jerry Seinfeld, Elaine, and the other characters do not.
I went to a library one day, and the name on the sign was changed by one letter and misspelled. I looked in the mirror but saw a reflection that looked more like a character from the show"The Simpsons." My visual hallucinations quickly became something I experienced daily.I was given a plain coffee at one point. It tasted intensely minty. I remember sitting down on a couch in an academic building when I noticed a foul smell, like sewage. The area was clean and well cared for.
Philippines Latest News, Philippines Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Personal Perspective: An urge to travel can be a symptom of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.A Personal Perspective: Dromomania is a symptom of some types of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder involving an uncontrollable urgency to travel.
Read more »
Personal Perspective: Unraveling the paradox of high expectations and their impact on happiness.Personal Perspective: Have you ever felt that pang of disappointment when reality doesn't quite match the picture-perfect vision you had in your head?
Read more »
Personal Perspective: What happens when my days are no longer defined by appointments?Personal Perspective: After more than 40 years in clinical work I loved, It was time to retire. Now I'd have time for everything else I'd always wanted to do! It hasn't turned out quite like that.
Read more »
Personal Perspective: In the "Man vs. Bear" debate, neither choice feels safe.Personal Perspective: In the "Man vs. Bear" debate, neither choice feels safe.
Read more »
Personal Perspective: Measure resilience by day and nighttime stress and recovery.A Personal Perspective: Resilience is the ratio of stressful and recovery periods throughout the day and night, so if you get sick, let your score be your guide to balance.
Read more »
Personal Perspective: Maybe we shouldn't quit the work we love when we retire.Personal Perspective: Maybe we shouldn't quit the work we love when we retire.
Read more »