Delusions and Hallucinations

What is a delusion? It is a false belief that an individual holds on inadequate and irrational grounds. There are various types of delusions one can suffer from. Delusions of persecution is when a person is absolutely certain that he/she is being spied on, or plotted against. Delusions of grandeur is when people believe that they hold special powers. Delusions of reference, is when the person believes that everything in his environment is directed at him and holds special meaning. Delusions of control, is when the person believe that his actions, thoughts and feelings are controlled by someone other than himself.

Hallucinations are perceptions that occur in the absence of external stimuli. Our body responds to stimuli, internal or external, and that is how an experience takes place. When people hallucinate, they tend to see, hear, smell and feel things, that don’t really exist, i.e. their mind tricks them into believing something is not actually happening. Such a thing can be quite maddening. And it can be even worse, when someone hallucinates about seeing someone and then tries to convince another person that what they are saying is true. It makes you them feel odd and different.

People experiencing delusions and hallucinations generally believe things without any justification. They don’t need concrete reason or logic. To them, the voices are real. Some inconsiderate people will go on to call such people ‘crazy’ or ‘abnormal,’ which is wrong. We must remember that it is not their fault that they experience such delusions. It is a neurological problem, and with the right help it can be dealt with. We must be empathetic toward them and try to understand what it would feel like to not know what is real and what is not.